wrote:
"A huge sunshade a million miles from Earth could help astronomers
search for signs of life on planets orbiting distant stars, a study
says.

The daisy-shaped "occulter", as it is known, would use a powerful
telescope trailing thousands of miles behind."

More at http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/5151610.stm

"The concept by Professor Webster Cash of the University of Colorado
has already received funding from Nasa."

Just what the world needs now is less money spent on what life we know
there is.