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- Written by: Pat Brennan
The count of confirmed exoplanets just ticked past the 5,000 mark, representing a 30-year journey of discovery led by NASA space telescopes.
Not so long ago, we lived in a universe with only a small number of known planets, all of them orbiting our Sun. But a new raft of discoveries marks a scientific high point: More than 5,000 planets are now confirmed to exist beyond our solar system.
The planetary odometer turned on March 21, with the latest batch of 65 exoplanets — planets outside our immediate solar family — added to the NASA Exoplanet Archive.
The archive records exoplanet discoveries that appear in peer-reviewed, scientific papers, and that have been confirmed using multiple detection methods or by analytical techniques.
The 5,000-plus planets found so far include small, rocky worlds like Earth, gas giants many times larger than Jupiter, and “hot Jupiters” in scorchingly close orbits around their stars.
There are “super-Earths,” which are possible rocky worlds bigger than our own, and “mini-Neptunes,” smaller versions of our system’s Neptune.
Add to the mix planets orbiting two stars at once and planets stubbornly orbiting the collapsed remnants of dead stars.
“It’s not just a number,” said Jessie Christiansen, science lead for the archive and a research scientist with the NASA Exoplanet Science Institute at Caltech in Pasadena. “Each one of them is a new world, a brand-new planet. I get excited about everyone because we don’t know anything about them.”
We do know this: Our galaxy likely holds hundreds of billions of such planets. The steady drumbeat of discovery began in 1992 with strange new worlds orbiting an even stranger star. It was a type of neutron star known as a pulsar, a rapidly spinning stellar corpse that pulses with millisecond bursts of searing radiation. Measuring slight changes in the timing of the pulses allowed scientists to reveal planets in orbit around the pulsar.
Finding just three planets around this spinning star essentially opened the floodgates, said Alexander Wolszczan, the lead author on the paper that, 30 years ago, unveiled the first planets to be confirmed outside our solar system.
“If you can find planets around a neutron star, planets have to be basically everywhere,” Wolszczan said. “The planet production process has to be very robust.”
Wolszczan, who still searches for exoplanets as a professor at Penn State, says we’re opening an era of discovery that will go beyond simply adding new planets to the list. The Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite, or TESS, launched in 2018, continues to make new exoplanet discoveries.
But soon powerful next-generation telescopes and their highly sensitive instruments, starting with the recently launched James Webb Space Telescope, will capture light from the atmospheres of exoplanets, reading which gasses are present to potentially identify telltale signs of habitable conditions.
The Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope, expected to launch in 2027, will make new exoplanet discoveries using a variety of methods. The European Space Agency mission ARIEL, launching in 2029, will observe exoplanet atmospheres; a piece of NASA technology aboard, called CASE, will help zero in on exoplanet clouds and hazes.
“To my thinking, it is inevitable that we’ll find some kind of life somewhere — most likely of some primitive kind,” Wolszczan said. The close connection between the chemistry of life on Earth and chemistry found throughout the universe, as well as the detection of widespread organic molecules, suggests detection of life itself is only a matter of time, he added.
How to find other worlds
The picture didn’t always look so bright. The first planet detected around a Sun-like star, in 1995, turned out to be a hot Jupiter: a gas giant about half the mass of our own Jupiter in an extremely close, four-day orbit around its star. A year on this planet, in other words, lasts only four days.
More such planets appeared in the data from ground-based telescopes once astronomers learned to recognize them — first dozens, then hundreds.
They were found using the “wobble” method: tracking slight back-and-forth motions of a star, caused by gravitational tugs from orbiting planets. But still, nothing looked likely to be habitable.
Finding small, rocky worlds more like our own required the next big leap in exoplanet-hunting technology: the “transit” method.
Astronomer William Borucki came up with the idea of attaching extremely sensitive light detectors to a telescope, then launching it into space. The telescope would stare for years at a field of more than 170,000 stars, searching for tiny dips in starlight when a planet crossed a star’s face.
That idea was realized in the Kepler Space Telescope.
Borucki, principal investigator of the now-retired Kepler mission, says its launch in 2009 opened a new window on the universe.
“I get a real feeling of satisfaction, and really of awe at what’s out there,” he said. “None of us expected this enormous variety of planetary systems and stars. It’s just amazing.”
Pat Berman writes for NASA.
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- Written by: Elizabeth Larson
LAKE COUNTY, Calif. — A parent and education professional was appointed on Thursday night to fill the most recent vacancy on the Middletown Unified School District Board.
At the end of a two-hour meeting, the board voted unanimously to appoint Chris Ochs to fill the seat vacated by Misha Grothe.
Ochs and wife, Heather, live in Hidden Valley Lake and have two children who also attend Middletown Unified schools. He was lauded by supporters as an involved parent and dedicated volunteer.
In his professional life, Ochs — whose last name is pronounced “Oaks” — is the director of facilities, maintenance and operations for Calistoga Joint Unified School District, where he has handled bonds and $47 million in master plan projects.
In addition to bond oversight, his experience with grant writing was cited as a key factor weighing in favor of his selection.
He was one of three candidates interviewed during the special Thursday night meeting at Middletown High School. The two other candidates were Hank Lescher and Collyn Vargo-Criglar.
During the meeting, community members called for an end to the divisiveness that has plagued the district over the past year, particularly over matters related to the district’s following state COVID-19 mandates such as requiring masking.
Grothe’s resignation was the third from the board in just over four months’ time. Her term was set to expire on Dec. 9.
She resigned on March 3, the same day that the board voted to select Thad Owens as the district’s fourth superintendent in less than two and a half years.
Owens’ hire followed the abrupt resignation two days earlier of Tim Gill, who had served as superintendent for just four months.
On Wednesday night, the Konocti Unified School Board voted to hire Gill as its new director of curriculum and instruction.
Owens, who previously worked for Middletown Unified and most recently had worked for Konocti Unified, also had been a Middletown Unified board member until November, when he resigned without giving a reason. That followed the October resignation of LaTrease Walker, who left over COVID-19 mandates.
In December, the board interviewed 10 candidates for those seats, with Ochs among that group.
At that time, the board appointed Annette Lee to fill Walker’s seat and Allison Berlogar to fill the seats as provisional appointments.
However, a group that included Walker targeted Lee’s provisional appointment over her support — at her first meeting as a board member in December — of modifying a proposed resolution advocating the state against imposing a COVID-19 vaccination mandate.
That challenge was filed within the necessary 30-day window, forcing the district to go to a special election that originally was estimated to potentially cost up to $50,000.
The special election has been consolidated with the state’s June primary. Bryan Pullman and Charise Reynolds are on the ballot to seek that seat.
A member of the group who targeted Lee urged the board instead to select Lescher, who during his response to questions called the COVID-19 vaccine “an experimental vaccine.”
Statements during the Thursday night special meeting from Ochs’ supporters raised concerns that his appointment also would be challenged.
Candidates answer questions, majority of speakers support Ochs
The three candidates drew numbers to determine their order, which was Lescher, Vargo-Criglar and Ochs.
They were asked a round of questions regarding priorities, the district’s strengths and the candidates’ qualifications.
Ochs said he wanted to make sure district policies are up to date. He explained that school board members have the ability to improve the environment for students, faculty and staff, and that they need to be able to listen with an open mind. Ultimately, board members are just ordinary people, with their own ideas, experiences and goals.
“It’s key for a board member to be open to differing ideas and willing to consider those in the decisions they make, because as a board member, you’re not an individual, you’re a representative of the community and what they want to see for the school district,” Ochs said.
Ochs said it’s important to advocate for the needs of all students — noting that first grade is just as important as eighth, and musicians are just as important as quarterbacks.
His praise for the district included its working with Woodland Community College to allow high school students to have dual enrollment for free, which prepares them for the transition to higher learning.
Ochs also lauded agriculture and vocational training classes, which prepare students for high paying jobs, and the district’s robust athletics program.
His goals included seeing the district restore the music program back to the elementary school, referencing Konocti Unified’s recent success in receiving an elementary music program grant.
He also noted his experience in handling millions of dollars of bond funding for projects at Calistoga Joint Unified.
Following the interviews, Owens lauded the three candidates and noted that there are some very qualified people in the community.
After the questioning session by the board, community members also were allowed to weigh in on the candidates.
Lescher received a large amount of support from friends and family, including members of his church, Jesus Christ Fellowship.
However, Ochs received the most support by a two-to-one margin over Lescher from those who spoke or submitted correspondence to the board.
Among those supporting Ochs was Cobb resident and parent Justine Schneider, who said she has watched with increasing alarm what is happening in the district. She said the district has lost good people and money for the special election is being bled away from the children.
When Gill resigned, Schneider said she and other parents realized the level of harassment and pressure being brought to bear on teachers and administrators.
Schneider said she wants her children to go to a district that functions, for teachers to be supported, and for administrators to be able to do their job without constant interruptions and ongoing harassment.
“I want a board that is not ground zero for a fight that just cannot be won here,” she said.
She cited Ochs’ experience with bonds, adding he is a politically neutral person.
Parent and business owner Dan Tyrrell thanked the three candidates for sticking their necks out, and said that, speaking on behalf of his two children, he was very concerned about the divisions in the community and how it will impact children’s access to quality education.
Noting that the state will not care if people disagree with its policies, he endorsed Ochs for the board seat.
Allisun Moore, an educator in the Middletown Unified district for 29 years, also supported Ochs.
She noted that the district’s leadership has been “bumpy at best” over the past few years, pointing to the repeated changes in board members and superintendents. Over the last year, the district has had three superintendents and seven different board members — and still needed to fill two vacancies. Moore said she’s never seen anything like it.
“Middletown is a district in need of consistency and stability, and I believe Chris Ochs can bring that to us,” she said.
Annette Lee, the provisional board member whose appointment was challenged, read into the record a letter from Jennifer Hanson, a Lakeport Unified School Board member.
Hanson recounted how Lakeport Unified had gone through extremely difficult times four years ago. “I know that you never thought it would be this difficult.”
She said having a board member with bond management experience would be a windfall. She then quoted LaTrease Walker’s own statement to Lake County News on that point: “It's time to rebuild our district. In the 2018 election our district was granted a $42 million bond to modernize and grow our sites. In order to execute the projects we need someone with bond knowledge.”
When Board Chair Larry Allen asked for a nomination, he went to Berlogar first. After noting it was a very tough decision, Berlogar said, “It’s time to get back to the business of educating our students,” and added that Ochs was her choice.
Her motion was seconded by Trustee Zoi Bracisco.
Allen, a retired teacher who worked for the district for 35 years, said that during his time there many people had said they should hire someone to write grants, but they never did. With Ochs, they now have that chance to have someone with grant writing experience, and Allen also voiced his support before calling for the vote, which was unanimous to appoint Ochs.
The board urged Lescher and Vargo-Criglar to stay involved and to run for the board.
Owens then called Ochs forward and administered the oath of office to him. Ochs took his seat at the board table, with his first vote as a trustee being to adjourn the meeting.
After the meeting, he shook hands with fellow board members and community members.
Email Elizabeth Larson at
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- Written by: City of Lakeport
LAKEPORT, Calif. — The city of Lakeport reported Thursday that it removed a large homeless camp on the south side of Safeway.
The Lakeport Police Department and Public Works staff removed the site, which was located on city-owned property known as the Ninth Street extension, which is an unimproved road right of way.
Officials said this location has been a regular site of camps and a concern for surrounding residential and commercial property owners for numerous reasons including safety, sanitary conditions and fire danger.
Police said they surveyed the property and contacted the occupants numerous times in efforts to mitigate the situation.
Lakeport Police’s embedded crisis responder from Lake Family Resource Center worked with occupants to offer resources from the many agencies working on homelessness in Lake County. In this situation, one offer included housing and a job.
On March 9, by direction of the chief of police, the property was ordered vacated, with written notices posted and personally served on occupants, giving them sufficient time to remove their belongings. These notices and removal times are required by federal court case law decisions.
Over the past two weeks, numerous other follow-up contacts were made at the camp and persons were notified the removal would start this morning, officials said.
When police arrived at 8 a.m. Thursday, they located only one occupant in the camp. That occupant was offered — and accepted — resources to be transported to a local homeless shelter and to be further provided with other resources on Friday.
Numerous public works and police staff proceeded to clean the camp and rehabilitate the area over the next nine hours. This work included hauling off 15 yards of trash and fire fuel reduction. Numerous complaints involved the use of cooking and warming fires in this high fire danger area.
Police said they also safeguarded, removed and stored a pickup bed load of personal property which had value to the occupants. This safeguarding and property storage is also required by federal court case law decisions as well as being the morally appropriate action to take, officials said.
Authorities said the removal of homeless camps can be complex and when they take this action they want to be sure that the problem will not just move down the street to the next neighborhood or business district.
“For this reason we are very persistent with offering resources and assistance with connecting people to programs including those for housing, behavioral health and drug and alcohol addiction,” the police department reported. “The most significant reasons we see people being in a homeless situation are behavioral health and substance abuse problems.”
Police said many of the people causing issues for neighborhoods and businesses are people who refuse assistance because they do not want to recognize or change their conditions.
Additionally, many of the tools police have used to have to deal with misdemeanor criminal behavior have been removed by voter or legislative initiatives.
Much of this kind of criminal behavior is the very thing affecting the lives of the residents and business owners and generally making people feel unsafe or hesitant to use their public spaces or even being able to run their business, police said.
“It is sometimes difficult for us to address this bad behavior but we want the community to know we continue to work hard every day to keep Lakeport safe. Please continue to contact us with your concerns,” police said in the Thursday report.
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- Written by: Elizabeth Larson
The City of Clearlake Animal Association also is seeking fosters for the animals waiting to be adopted.
Call the Clearlake Animal Control shelter at 707-273-9440, or email
Visit Clearlake Animal Control on Facebook or on the city’s website.
The following dogs are available for adoption.
‘Terry’
“Terry” is a male shepherd mix with a short brindle coat.
He is dog No. 48443693.
‘Snowball’
“Snowball” is a male American Staffordshire mix terrier with a white coat.
He has been neutered.
He is dog No. 49159168.
‘Fritz’
“Fritz” is a male Australian shepherd mix with a black and white coat.
He is dog No. 49278179.
‘Ebenezer’
“Ebenezer” is a male American pit bull terrier mix with a short tan and white coat.
He is dog No. 49191651.
‘Chai’
“Chai” is a female Alaskan husky mix with a gray and white coat.
She has been spayed.
She is dog No. 49279552.
‘Bear’
“Bear” is a male Labrador retriever-American pit bull mix with a short charcoal and fawn coat.
He has been neutered.
He is dog No. 48443153.
‘Andy’
“Andy” is a male American pit bull mix with a short gray and white coat.
He is dog No. 48995415.
Email Elizabeth Larson at