Five Billion Years of Solitude

*Five Billion Years of Solitude: The Search for Life Among the Stars*
	First edition cover
Author	Lee Billings
Language	English
Subject	Science, Astronomy
Genre	Nonfiction
Publisher	Current, a member of Penguin Group
Publication date	October 3, 2013
Publication place	United States
Media type	Print, e-book, audiobook
Pages	304 pp.
ISBN	978-1617230066

Last updated May 29, 2025

Five Billion Years of Solitude: The Search for Life Among the Stars is a nonfiction work by the science author Lee Billings. The text was initially published on October 3, 2013 by Current. The paperback version was published on October 28, 2014.

Overview

In this book, Billings explores the scientists and science behind the ever-expanding universe of exoplanets. Since the first detection of a planet orbiting another Sun-like star in 1995,^[1] scientists have discovered an increasing number of worlds beyond the Solar System through detections by telescopes and spacecraft. Billings reveals the scientists behind these discoveries and their thoughts on not only exoplanets, but also their triumphs and frustrations in their quest to solve one of the greatest mysteries of humankind: Are we alone? Billings includes interviews with Frank Drake, Geoffrey Marcy, Greg Laughlin, James Kasting, Matt Mountain, Wesley Traub, Sara Seager, and many other prominent researchers.

Topics covered

The book has 10 chapters:

Looking for Longevity
Drake's Orchids
A Fractured Empire
The Worth of a World
After the Gold Rush
The Big Picture
Out of Equilibrium
Aberrations of the Light
The Order of the Null
Into the Barren Lands

Reviews

Overbye, Dennis (8 November 2013). "Lonely Planet". Sunday Book Review. The New York Times. Retrieved 23 November 2013.
Brown, Mike (15 November 2013). "Five Billion Years of Solitude: The Search for Life Among the Stars by Lee Billings". The Washington Post. Retrieved 23 November 2013.
Henderson, Caspar (21 November 2013). "Five Billion Years of Solitude: The Search for Life Among the Stars – review". The Guardian . Retrieved 23 November 2013.
Teitel, Amy Shira (14 October 2013). "Lee Billings' Five Billion Years of Solitude (Review)". Discovery News Book Reviews. Discovery News. Retrieved 23 November 2013.
Kuchner, Marc (12 December 2014). "Five Billion Years of Solitude: The Search for Life Among the Stars" . Physics Today . 67 (12): 59. Bibcode:2014PhT....67l..59K. doi:10.1063/PT.3.2626 . Retrieved 18 December 2014.

References

↑ Hand, Eric (2012). "The exoplanet next door". Nature. 490 (7420): 323. Bibcode:2012Natur.490..323H. doi: 10.1038/490323a . PMID 23075959. S2CID 32713737.

External links

for Five Billion Years of Solitude — Penguin Books website

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[1] Hand, Eric (2012). "The exoplanet next door". Nature. 490 (7420): 323. Bibcode:2012Natur.490..323H. doi: 10.1038/490323a . PMID 23075959. S2CID 32713737.

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