Galaxy ripped to shreds, molecules in exoplanets’ atmospheres and development of Orion crew spacecraft

Galaxy ripped to shreds, molecules in exoplanets’ atmospheres and development of Orion crew spacecraft
Welcome! “Alien Life” tracks the latest discoveries and thoughts in the various elements of the famous Drake Equation. You may notice that this and future entries are shorter than usual; Career, family and book deal commitments have forced me to cut back some of my projects. Now, here’s today’s news:
g Stars - Astronomers are watching a galaxy rip to shreds, a finding that could help reveal how galaxies go from stellar riches to rags. See http://space.com/scienceastronomy/070302_galaxy_rip.html.
g Abodes - NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope has for the first time captured enough light from exoplanets to identify signatures of molecules in their atmospheres. The feat is a significant step toward being able to identify life beyond our solar system. See http://www.astrobio.net/news/modules.phpop=modload
&name=News&file=article&sid=2250mode=thread&order
=0&thold=0.
g Life - It’s food scarcity, not dietary preferences, that motivates birds to migrate thousands of miles back and forth between breeding and non-breeding areas each year, new research shows. See http://www.livescience.com/animalworld/070302_hungry_birds.html.
g Cosmicus - NASA Administrator Mike Griffin told a Senate panel Wednesday that development of Orion crew spacecraft and the Ares launch vehicle will be delayed four to six months, pushing the first operational flight of the new system into 2015. See http://space.com/news/070301_orion_delay.html.
g Learning - Here’s a good Web site that gives an general overview of astrobiology for kids: “Astrocentral.” See http://www.astrocentral.co.uk/lifeindex.html.