Researchers find intermediate state between gas and metal, allowing heat to escape from gas giant planetary interiors. The 'dark hydrogen' layer is metallic, conducting electricity poorly but playing a role in planetary magnetic field generation.
A team of scientists has developed an apparatus to measure the behavior of ice under various external forces. The device can be used to study both terrestrial glaciers and icy satellite bodies, providing insights into potential life-supporting oceans beneath the ice.
Researchers find that planets in the red giant habitable zone can stay warm for up to half a billion years, potentially allowing life to thrive. This discovery offers optimism for the chances of life existing on worlds orbiting older stars.
Researchers analyze the Kepler-223 star system, finding a unique orbital configuration similar to that of Jupiter, Saturn, and Uranus. The study suggests that the four planets may have migrated through a disk, getting stuck and maintaining their current orbits, which differs from the formation process of Earth's inner planets.
Scientists have pinpointed a mechanism for cyclical tidal stresses to drive and sustain Enceladus's long-lived eruptions. The Cassini spacecraft has observed geysers erupting continuously along the south pole for decades.
A team of scientists led by UH professor Liming Li analyze Cassini spacecraft data to understand the seasonal changes on Saturn. They also examine the energy budget for Jupiter and Saturn to better comprehend planetary climate evolution.
The study reveals that asteroids are destroyed when they approach the Sun, explaining discrepancies in meteor stream observations and providing a new perspective on asteroid interiors. The team's discovery allows for the testing of models of asteroid interiors by tracking their orbits and sizes.
Astronomers have discovered a crescent-shaped dust cloud in the outer reaches of a binary star's protoplanetary disk, providing fresh insights into planet formation. The cloud may be the key to forming planets in binary systems, with its lack of free-floating gases likely due to freezing out and forming ice on dust grains.
The James Webb Space Telescope will study planets, moons, comets and asteroids in our solar system to understand its formation and potential habitability. Scientists envision monitoring the water cycle on Mars, studying weather patterns on Saturn's moon Titan, and tracking comets to better comprehend our solar system's evolution.
A new simulation study suggests that Jupiter's most important role in fostering life on Earth was delivering volatile materials from the outer Solar System. The study also proposes that a Solar System with one or more planets similar to Jupiter located beyond the region of potential terrestrial planets is beneficial for life development.
Researchers at the University of Edinburgh successfully recreated an elusive form of hydrogen, which exists only under extremely high pressures. The study found that at pressures equivalent to 3.25 million times that of Earth's atmosphere, hydrogen entered a new solid phase and showed unusual properties.
A new analysis helps consumers choose energy-efficient appliances to save money and water. Meanwhile, a Himalayan glacial lake threatens to flood a Buddhist holy city due to melting ice and rock barriers. Ocean sounds are also being used to measure stratospheric winds with precise data analysis.
Researchers successfully stabilized hydrogen in a high-temperature environment, revealing anomalies in its phase transition. This breakthrough may lead to a deeper understanding of gas giants like Jupiter and Saturn, as well as the potential synthesis of room-temperature superconductive materials.
A University of Sydney graduate student has reconstructed images of the star CW Leo, which appears to be a changing 'inkblot pattern' due to dust and gas ejections. The star's appearance evolved over eight years, revealing it is not buried under its own dust as previously thought.
Researchers found that water ions escape from Saturn's magnetosphere at a reconnection point, where magnetic fields disconnect and reconnect. This discovery helps scientists understand the physics of rapid rotators like Jupiter and how they expel materials.
Scientists have successfully simulated 3D models of deep jet streams and storms on Jupiter and Saturn, revealing their dynamics and providing clues to Earth's weather patterns. The study helps clarify the origin and behavior of these features, which remain debated among researchers.
Phobos will likely break apart and form a ring around Mars due to tidal forces. The debris from Phobos will continue to orbit Mars for millions of years before eventually colliding with the planet.
Scientists have detected a monstrous new cloud of frozen compounds in the moon's low- to mid-stratosphere, peaking at an altitude of about 124 miles. This discovery provides insight into the nature and severity of Titan's winter, which is expected to be harsher than its northern counterpart.
A team of researchers from Auburn University, the University of Iowa and the University of California, San Diego, discovered a new form of crystalline-like matter in strongly magnetized dusty plasma. The lattice properties can be imposed arbitrarily by an external grid/mesh structure, creating unique geometric patterns.
Researchers capture first image of a debris ring orbiting a white dwarf star, revealing a spiral-like structure and 'inside-out' structure. The ring system is formed by the star's gravity tearing apart asteroids, emitting a dark red glow from gas produced by collisions.
A new study suggests that disk gaps may be a cosmic illusion and not necessarily caused by hidden planets. The researchers used models to show that growth, migration, and destruction of small particles can create apparent gaps in the disk.
Recent studies by Michael Hippke and Daniel Angerhausen predict that upcoming missions like TESS and PLATO will uncover planetary moons, ringed worlds similar to Saturn, and large collections of asteroids. These discoveries could provide insights into alien planetary systems similar to our own.
Researchers used a new process to model planetary formation, showing that rocky planets grow from pebbles, resulting in the massive differences between Earth and Mars. The VSPA model explains why Mars is smaller than expected by suggesting that aerodynamic drag prevents pebbles from colliding with objects near the Red Planet.
A new study reveals a sudden drop in the atmospheric concentration of a human-made ozone-destruction gas: HCFC-133a. Researchers explore the causes behind this decline and examine recent developments in U.S. policy addressing geomagnetically induced currents, as well as space weather and earthquakes.
Scientists have discovered a previously unknown process of warm Gulf Stream water and continental shelf exchange. Researchers also explored the effects of Saturn's magnetospheric dynamics on Titan's ionosphere.
Scientists have discovered a 'bucket brigade' that brings liquid to Titan's north pole, creating lakes and seas. Meanwhile, NASA's Kepler telescope has opened up possibilities for exoplanet studies. Research also explores abrupt shifts in phenology and vegetation productivity under climate extremes.
Researchers reveal that Saturn's F ring and its shepherd satellites, Prometheus and Pandora, formed from the collision of small satellites with a dense core. This study sheds light on the formation process of satellite systems in our solar system and beyond.
Researchers explore Earth's most extreme lifeforms to predict what life could be like elsewhere in the universe. They suggest water-hydrogen peroxide mixtures for Mars-like environments and liquid hydrocarbons for Titan-like planets, with organisms adapting to frigid temperatures and slow metabolisms.
Dr. Martin Duncan's new model proposes that gas giants like Jupiter and Saturn formed through the accumulation of small 'pebbles', allowing cores to form rapidly enough to capture their atmosphere. The successful model predicts the formation of one to four gas giant planets, consistent with the observed outer solar system configuration.
Researchers suggest planetary pebbles, icy objects about a foot in diameter, were the building blocks for Jupiter and Saturn. This new model improves solar system formation models, producing the observed structure of the solar system with two gas giants, two ice giants, and a pristine Kuiper belt.
Researchers found that comet impacts can synthesize peptides, the first building blocks of life, under cold conditions. This suggests that comet impacts played a crucial role in delivering life's seeds to early Earth.
A team of UCLA scientists discovers a Jupiter-like planet, 51 Eridani b, which orbits a nearby star at a distance similar to Saturn's orbit. The planet has the strongest concentration of methane ever detected on a planet outside the Milky Way and is roughly twice the mass of Jupiter.
A team of astronomers has discovered a Jupiter-like exoplanet called 51 Eridani b, which shows the strongest methane signature ever detected on an alien planet. The new planet is the faintest exoplanet on record and provides clues about how planets formed around the sun.
Astronomers using Gemini Observatory's new Planet Imager have probed a newly discovered world in unprecedented detail. The planet, 51 Eridani b, is about two times the mass of Jupiter and features a Solar System-like atmosphere with methane detection.
Scientists discovered that the size of particles doesn't matter for ring formation and that the abundance of larger particles drops off due to surface forces. The team's model showed that the size distribution in planetary rings is universal, supporting a hypothesis that it follows the same laws as Saturn's rings.
A breakthrough study by the University of Leicester team, led by Professor Nikolai Brilliantov, reveals that planetary rings have a universally similar particle distribution. The researchers solved the 'amazing' mathematical inverse cubes law of particle size distribution, suggesting that Saturn's rings are in a steady state that does ...
The study provides a high-resolution readout of the energy levels for cations from their vibrational ground state to excited states, furthering our understanding of the coupled vibrations in the Renner-Teller effect. The results also shed light on the electronic structure of organic molecules.
Astronomers confirm exoplanet orbiting far from its central star using gravitational microlensing, opening new discovery space for long-period orbits. The Uranus-sized planet is about 370 million miles from its parent star, with a host star about 70% as massive as our Sun.
Scientists used Sandia's Z machine to verify the metallic phase of hydrogen, solving a long-standing discrepancy in Saturn's age. The experiment found that dense hydrogen can become atomic, releasing energy that could explain Saturn's temperature.
Researchers found that Titan's atmosphere loses hydrocarbons and nitriles due to a polar wind powered by sunlight and the Saturnian magnetic field. This phenomenon has been observed on Earth in polar regions, suggesting Titan may have a similarly widespread 'polar wind' beyond its poles.
Researchers at MIT propose that Saturn's polar cyclones are caused by small thunderstorms building up angular momentum, leading to the formation of large and long-lasting vortices. The team developed a model that predicts which planets would form such cyclones based on two parameters: atmospheric energy and storm size.
Researchers mimicked the conditions of distant planets and stars using a laboratory technique, revealing how noble gases behave under extreme pressures and temperatures. This discovery sheds light on the atmospheric and internal chemistry of celestial objects, including the mystery of Saturn's internal heat emission.
The discovery of a stratosphere on WASP-33b offers insights into the planet's composition and formation. The presence of titanium oxide in the atmosphere indicates temperature inversion, similar to Earth's ozone layer.
A team of scientists has developed a new chemical model to determine the pH of Enceladus' ocean, finding it to be salty and alkaline with a pH of 11-12. This suggests that serpentinization, a geochemical process, could have created conditions suitable for life on the moon.
New research matches underwater volcanic eruptions with their sound signatures to better detect seafloor emissions. Shale boom is linked to increased ozone pollution concentrations in Texas areas. Titan's atmosphere changes fluctuate according to the Sun's magnetic cycle, affecting methane levels.
A new study by University of Washington astronomer Benjamin Charnay and co-authors proposes that violent methane storms high in Titan's dense atmosphere could be the answer to the moon's eastward-sloping sand dunes. The storms produce strong gusts much faster than Titan's usual winds, dominating sand transport and realigning the dunes.
A new system devised by Dr. Ravit Helled measures Saturn's rotation period, offering a more accurate determination of the planet's internal structure, weather patterns, and formation process. The method applies to other gas planets in the solar system, including Uranus and Neptune.
The study explains why our solar system has a gap between Mercury and the outer planets. Jupiter's inward migration destroyed any newly-formed super-Earths, leaving behind rocky inner planets like Earth with thinner atmospheres.
A new OSU study found that young women with lower levels of vitamin D were more likely to experience clinically significant depressive symptoms over a five-week period. The results suggest a potential link between vitamin D deficiency and depression, highlighting the importance of maintaining adequate vitamin D levels for overall health.
A team of researchers from MIT has detected optical features around Chiron that may signal the presence of a ring system, jets, or a shell of dust. The findings are based on observations of a stellar occultation in 2011, which revealed symmetrical and sharp features near the start and end of the event.
A team of scientists suggests that hydrothermal processes at the rock-water boundary could produce methane in Enceladus' ocean. Analyzing Cassini data, they propose two possible explanations for the moon's methane abundance: one involving hydrothermal activity and another based on ice formation/melting cycles.
A new study by a team of Cassini mission scientists led by the University of Colorado Boulder has found evidence of hydrothermal activity on Enceladus, a Saturn moon with remarkable geologic activity. The tiny grains of rock detected near Saturn imply that seawater infiltrates and reacts with a rocky crust, emerging as a heated, minera...
Researchers at Cornell University have modeled a methane-based, oxygen-free life form that can metabolize and reproduce like life on Earth. The theorized cell membrane, called an azotosome, is composed of small organic nitrogen compounds and shows stability and flexibility similar to Earth's phospholipid membranes.
Researchers use laser-driven compression to study extreme conditions inside planets, revealing properties of silica that determine planet formation and evolution. The findings suggest large rocky planets may have long-lived oceans at depth and could explain the existence of planets like Neptune and Uranus.
A University of Texas at Arlington astrophysicist has created a new online tool called BinHab that can calculate the regions of binary systems favorable for life. The tool uses a comprehensive mathematical approach to consider both stellar radiation and gravitational influence, directly relevant to NASA's Kepler mission.
Researchers used NASA wind tunnel to study threshold speeds for particle movement on Titan, finding higher speeds than predicted from Earth-based models. The findings can help understand atmospheric forces on icy moons and planets with thin or thick atmospheres.
New research at Arizona State University's Planetary Aeolian Laboratory found that wind speeds necessary to move sand-size particles on Titan are about 40 percent too low. Dune particles on Titan need winds of at least 3.2 miles per hour to start moving, contradicting previous estimates.
Research led by Devon Burr shows that Titan's winds must blow faster than previously thought to move sand, explaining the formation of massive dunes. The discovery validates older models for thin atmospheres like comets and asteroids.
A new study by McGill University and UCL finds that Mars experiences a transitional 'macroweather' regime between weather and climate. The sun plays a major role in determining macroweather on Mars, with temperature and wind fluctuations occurring over 1.8 Martian days.
Astronomers have taken the first time-lapse images of an expanding fireball from a 'nova' star, providing new insights into this rare celestial phenomenon. The data reveal that the fireball expands at a rate faster than previously predicted, engulfing a region comparable to Earth's orbit within a day.