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	« back Pictures: UK Schmidt Telescope, Skyview, Royal Observatory Edinburgh, Anglo-Australian Observatory, and AURA \| 70 Virginis In 1996, scientists announced that this star — called 70 Virginis — has a planet, only the second planet ever detected outside of our solar system. 70 Virginis, shown in the center of the above false-color picture, is very much like our sun. And the planet, designated "70 Vir b" for short, is thought to be at least eight times the mass of Jupiter, but with a temperature that allows water to exist in liquid form, just like on the Earth. This has prompted scientists to debate whether life might exist on 70 Vir b.

Pictures: UK Schmidt Telescope, Skyview, Royal Observatory Edinburgh, Anglo-Australian Observatory, and AURA |

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