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This title, out of print in 2008, is now available free of charge, in it's entirety, online through the University of Arizona Press Both a textbook and a status report for every facet of research into the formation of stars and planets, "Protostars and Planets IV" brings together 167 authors who report on the most significant advances in the field since the publication of the previous volume in 1993. "Protostars and Planets IV" reflects improvements in observational techniques and the availability of new facilities such as the Infrared...

We are nearing a turning point in our quest for life in the universe--we now have the capacity to detect Earth-like planets around other stars. But will we find any?

In The Crowded Universe, renowned astronomer Alan Boss argues that based on what we already know about planetary systems, in the coming years we will find abundant Earths, including many that are indisputably alive. Life is not only possible elsewhere in the universe, Boss argues--it is common.

Boss describes how our ideas about planetary formation have changed radically in the past decade and brings readers up to date...