Google search reaches for the stars

This artist rendering shows the different types of planets in our Milky Way galaxy detected by NASAs Kepler spacecraft. Source: Supplied

INTERNET giant Google its taking its search function to new heights: Finding new planets, no less.

The Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS) will be launched in 2017 and will see Google join NASA to send a set of specialist cameras in to space to scan the skies for planets orbiting bright nearby stars.

NASA has said the satellite will focus upon stars likely to have Earth-like planets.

It will use a technique to analyse starlight to find planets as they swing around their stars, similar to that used by the Kepler telescope which has already found some 2700 orbiting bodies.

"TESS will carry out the first space-borne all-sky transit survey, covering 400 times as much sky as any previous mission," George Ricker, TESS' principle investigator, said in a statement.

"It will identify thousands of new planets in the solar neighbourhood, with a special focus on planets comparable in size to the Earth."

NASA is planning for a robotic spaceship to capture a small asteroid and park it near the moon to explore.

Google's role so far extends back to 2008 when it provided initial funding for the development of the telescope's sensors and optical cameras.

Are there plans to launch a Google Space View to join its terrestrial equivalent?

Google has not said.

The launch is one of two projects slated by NASA to be launched in 2017.

The second involves a neutron star scanner to be fitted to the International Space Station.

This illustration provided by the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics shows artist's renderings of planets Kepler-20e and Kepler-20f compared with Venus and the Earth. Scientists have found the two Earth-sized planets orbiting a distant star, an encouraging sign for prospects of finding life elsewhere.

View the original article here

Google search reaches for the stars

This artist rendering shows the different types of planets in our Milky Way galaxy detected by NASAs Kepler spacecraft. Source: Supplied

INTERNET giant Google its taking its search function to new heights: Finding new planets, no less.

The Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS) will be launched in 2017 and will see Google join NASA to send a set of specialist cameras in to space to scan the skies for planets orbiting bright nearby stars.

NASA has said the satellite will focus upon stars likely to have Earth-like planets.

It will use a technique to analyse starlight to find planets as they swing around their stars, similar to that used by the Kepler telescope which has already found some 2700 orbiting bodies.

"TESS will carry out the first space-borne all-sky transit survey, covering 400 times as much sky as any previous mission," George Ricker, TESS' principle investigator, said in a statement.

"It will identify thousands of new planets in the solar neighbourhood, with a special focus on planets comparable in size to the Earth."

NASA is planning for a robotic spaceship to capture a small asteroid and park it near the moon to explore.

Google's role so far extends back to 2008 when it provided initial funding for the development of the telescope's sensors and optical cameras.

Are there plans to launch a Google Space View to join its terrestrial equivalent?

Google has not said.

The launch is one of two projects slated by NASA to be launched in 2017.

The second involves a neutron star scanner to be fitted to the International Space Station.

This illustration provided by the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics shows artist's renderings of planets Kepler-20e and Kepler-20f compared with Venus and the Earth. Scientists have found the two Earth-sized planets orbiting a distant star, an encouraging sign for prospects of finding life elsewhere.

View the original article here

Google Chromebook reaches Australia

The new Google Chromebook utilizes cloud storage for all your files. Source: Supplied

THE Google Chromebook, a product that has been available in the US for more than two years, has finally hit Australian shelves. But what is it and why would you want one?

> The basics

It looks like a cheap laptop but it's different to the style of laptop you are probably familiar with. Think of this as the terminal that you can use while the main brain of the computer is stored elsewhere. The machine boots up quicker than a Windows laptop, and it is fast and simple to switch between users.

A Chromebook runs on Google's operating system, which is called ChromeOS.

The Chrome web browser is at the heart of the computer. You don't install programs like you would on a Windows-based laptop, you load apps through the Chrome store.

While some Chromebooks have memory card slots, you typically don't store your files on the machine. This is a machine that's made to interact with cloud storage.

You start up the machine and access your files through Google Docs, Gmail or Google Drive.

If you plan on travelling overseas to places where you may not get wi-fi, then this may not be the device for you.

But if you're always online, then this is a cheap and very portable option.

And because your files are stored in the cloud, you don't lose them if you should happen to lose your Chromebook.

> The models

There are two models coming to Australia. The Samsung Chromebook ($349) has a VGA camera, an HDMI port and two USB ports. It weighs 1.1kg, is 17.5mm thick and promises 6.5 hours of battery life.

The Acer Chromebook ($299) is slightly thicker and heavier at 25mm and 1.38kg, has three USB ports, an HDMI port and a memory card slot. It promises up to four hours of battery life. Both models have 11.6-inch displays and come with 100GB of Google Drive Cloud storage for two years.

View the original article here

Google Chromebook reaches Australia

The new Google Chromebook utilizes cloud storage for all your files. Source: Supplied

THE Google Chromebook, a product that has been available in the US for more than two years, has finally hit Australian shelves. But what is it and why would you want one?

> The basics

It looks like a cheap laptop but it's different to the style of laptop you are probably familiar with. Think of this as the terminal that you can use while the main brain of the computer is stored elsewhere. The machine boots up quicker than a Windows laptop, and it is fast and simple to switch between users.

A Chromebook runs on Google's operating system, which is called ChromeOS.

The Chrome web browser is at the heart of the computer. You don't install programs like you would on a Windows-based laptop, you load apps through the Chrome store.

While some Chromebooks have memory card slots, you typically don't store your files on the machine. This is a machine that's made to interact with cloud storage.

You start up the machine and access your files through Google Docs, Gmail or Google Drive.

If you plan on travelling overseas to places where you may not get wi-fi, then this may not be the device for you.

But if you're always online, then this is a cheap and very portable option.

And because your files are stored in the cloud, you don't lose them if you should happen to lose your Chromebook.

> The models

There are two models coming to Australia. The Samsung Chromebook ($349) has a VGA camera, an HDMI port and two USB ports. It weighs 1.1kg, is 17.5mm thick and promises 6.5 hours of battery life.

The Acer Chromebook ($299) is slightly thicker and heavier at 25mm and 1.38kg, has three USB ports, an HDMI port and a memory card slot. It promises up to four hours of battery life. Both models have 11.6-inch displays and come with 100GB of Google Drive Cloud storage for two years.

View the original article here