Images: NASA's Kepler to seek Earth-like planets

It's one of the oldest questions confronting humankind: Is there life out there beyond the confines of planet Earth? NASA hopes to get some answers from its Kepler spacecraft, which is set to launch Friday evening on a mission into the Milky Way.

Kepler will be in search of orbs like Earth: "rocky planets that orbit sun-like stars in a warm zone where liquid water could be maintained on the surface," according to NASA. In other words, it's looking for places where life might be possible.

Photo by NASA

Caption by Jonathan Skillings