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Illustrated with breathtaking images of the Solar System and of the Universe around it, this book explores how the discoveries within the Solar System and of exoplanets far beyond it come together to help us understand the habitability of Earth, and how these findings guide the search for exoplanets that could support life. The author highlights how, within two decades of the discovery of the first planets outside the Solar System in the 1990s, scientists concluded
that planets are so common that most stars are orbited by them.

The lives of exoplanets and their stars, as of our Solar System and its Sun, are inextricably interwoven. Stars are the seeds around which planets form, and they provide light and warmth for as long as they shine. At the end of their lives, stars expel massive amounts of newly forged elements into deep space, and that ejected material is incorporated into subsequent generations of planets.

How do we learn about these distant worlds? What does the exploration of other planets tell us about Earth? Can we find out what the distant future may have in store for us? What do we know about exoworlds and starbirth, and where do migrating hot Jupiters, polluted white dwarfs, and free-roaming nomad planets fit in? And what does all that have to do with the habitability of Earth, the possibility of finding extraterrestrial life, and the operation of the globe-spanning network of the
sciences? The book strikes a delicate balance between conveying complex ideas and remaining accessible to a non-technical reader. There are no equations, but there are extensive bibliographies for each chapter for further reading. I would recommend this book widely for its summarization of the state of many sub-disciplines within exoplanet science and enlightening historical background. * Edward W. Schwieterman, Nature Astronomy * The text is written in a light, narrative and yet scientific style and abstains from mathematical formalism or unnecessary jargon. It is interesting to read at any point, owing also to the view on the subject from different angles, including historical, cultural, technical and scientific aspects. * Manuel Vogel, Contemporary Physics * Schrijver's style is so accessible, almost conversational ... If you are into exoplanets and the possibility of life elsewhere from an astronomy perspective (as opposed to a bio- and geo-science viewpoint) then this could well be this year's choice ... Fascinating stuff. * Jonathan Cowie, Concatenation * Karel Schrijver's lucid, fact-packed primer ranges over everything from the Goldilocks zone and stellar nurseries to disrupted exosystems and the vagaries of living on a pale blue dot. * Barbara Kiser, Nature * A very readable and up-to-date account of the ongoing search and discovery of extra-solar planets throughout the Universe, with emphasis on finding those that resemble Earth to a greater or lesser degree, and those that may harbour some kind of life. * Fred Taylor, University of Oxford *

One of Ten Billion Earths: How we Learn about our Planet's Past and Future from Distant Exoplanets