In Astronomy, the Inference to Design Is Flourishing

Astronomers of late have been studying with great interest KIC 8462852, a star observed by the space observatory Kepler.

The star, nicknamed "Tabby's star" after the astronomer who first noted its unusual behavior, has intervals of extreme occultation. Its brightness dims periodically by 20 percent, which implies that a very large object or structure orbits it. Astronomers have proposed natural explanations for the extreme periodic variation of the star's light, but the possibility that the...