End-of-summer special

In one of the busiest weeks in astronomical history, NASA announced that four new planets have been identified in the past week: three by U.S.-based teams and one by a European team.

Planet-hunting is the hottest field in astronomy, with hundreds of researchers joining a race that just a decade ago was reserved for a few dreamers. This past week has been a dizzying one with three teams in the United States and Europe rushing to announce their discoveries of new exoplanets - those orbiting stars other than our sun.

And in astronomy as in other areas, networks of indivdual efforts seem to be equal to single, large institutions:

What makes the American discovery noteworthy is it was found through a network of small telescopes.