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Coordinated Universal Time Cool STS-126 Mission Summary - Rock On! Science Videos Flashes of light only 40 billionths of a billionth of a second long were used to make this video clip showing a pulse of light lasting just 2.5 billionths of a millionth of a second (OK...it's in slowmo). Don't blink or you'll miss 80 billion of 'em. Choose other videos after you watch the light flash HOT NEWS Hubble Directly Observes a Planet Orbiting Another Star NASA's Hubble Space Telescope has taken the first visible-light snapshot of a planet circling another star. Estimated to be no more than three times Jupiter's mass, the planet, called Fomalhaut b, orbits the bright southern star Fomalhaut, located 25 light-years away in the constellation Piscis Australis, or the "Southern Fish. Future observations will attempt to see the planet in infrared light and will look for evidence of water vapor clouds in the atmosphere. CLICK HERE for more details ___________________________________________________________________________________ The Science Minute is a radio program designed to impart a little science news to the populace in a fun, entertaining way, with the hope of sparking some interest and further individual investigation. For the most part, the average American today has little knowledge of science and its impact on their lives. Recent surveys of people from all walks of life have revealed that: ............14% believes the space shuttle can go to the moon or Mars. ............21% thinks that there is nothing left to invent. ............28% would like to scrap the space program altogether. ............32% sees no value at all in theoretical physics and believes all such research should be abandoned. ............36% have no idea how a TV works. ............39% do not know what “holds” a plane in the air. ............44% believe global warming is caused by holes in the ozone layer. ............51% have no idea what the ozone layer is for. ............65% have no understanding of the scientific process. ............66% believe the sun will go on shining forever. ............68% cannot adequately explain the difference between a solar system, a galaxy and a universe. ............75% cannot explain how radiation could harm them. *Links to more information: National Science Board National Science Foundation ABC News The Dumbing of America by Susan Jacoby, The Washington Post The Science Minute, heard on radio stations across the country, is a short form fun way for people to learn about what’s happening in science today. Listen to sample programs located on the "The Program" page.