Articles tagged with Planetary Surfaces
A recent study published in Nature found that Mars' surface water was absorbed by its crust over time, leaving the planet essentially dry. The research suggests that approximately 300 meters of surface water on Mars could have been locked up in microscopic mineral structures.
A global analysis found that artificially lit surface of Earth at night is growing in size and brightness in most countries. This trend has nearly matched the global rise in gross domestic product.
New research identifies Recurring Slope Lineae on Mars as granular flows, not liquid water, indicating present-day Mars may lack significant liquid water. The study supports the hypothesis that Mars is dry and limits Earth-like life near its surface.
Researchers at the University of Edinburgh used computer simulations to predict chemical compounds in Neptune's mantle, finding ammonia hemihydrate as a likely component. The discovery sheds light on the extreme conditions and chemistry of ice giants, influencing future studies.
Scientists will use twin telescopes on NASA's WB-57F jet planes to capture high-resolution images of the Sun's outer atmosphere and thermal images of Mercury. The observations aim to study coronal heating and temperature variation across Mercury's surface.
Astrophysicists from Moscow Institute of Physics and Technology discovered that hydrogen bromide could play an important part in the photochemistry of Venus' lower atmosphere. The study found low abundance of HBr, but thermodynamic calculations suggest it dominates at lower altitudes.
A new study published in Nature Communications estimates that the ancient network of valleys on Mars required at least 10 times more water than previously thought to carve out. The research suggests that Mars once had a warmer climate and active hydrologic cycle, with an ocean playing a key role in shaping the planet's landscape.
A team of researchers led by Esteban Gazel discovered deep portions of Earth's mantle might be as hot as it was more than 2.5 billion years ago. They found magnesium concentrations and textural evidence similar to the mysterious Archean komatiites in rocks from the 90 million-year-old Tortugal Suite in Costa Rica.
Researchers found that heavy rainfall on early Mars carved out river-like channels and altered impact craters, similar to Earth's effects. The study used physics principles to understand the relationship between Martian atmosphere pressure, raindrop size, and rainfall intensity.
An international study led by Monash scientists found that Antarctica and the Southern Ocean's biodiversity management is lagging behind the global average in some areas, but exceling in others. The study's findings have significant implications for conservation efforts globally.
Scientists have identified three potential light elements - hydrogen, silicon, and sulfur - that could make up the remaining 5% of the Earth's core. These findings are based on experiments simulating the core's extreme conditions and matching them with seismological observations.
The Wolf 1061 system is a promising target in the search for extraterrestrial life due to its proximity to Earth and the presence of a habitable zone. The team's findings suggest that one of the planets, Wolf 1061c, may have an atmosphere similar to Venus, which could lead to a runaway greenhouse effect.
A team of planetary scientists suggests that dramatic climate cycles on early Mars could have created the planet's deep canyons and extensive valley networks. The researchers propose a glacier-covered Mars with long warm periods lasting up to 10 million years, producing enough water to form these features.
Research suggests Pluto's subsurface ocean could be responsible for its current location. The 'heart' region, Sputnik Planitia, may have accumulated ice that made the planet roll over, creating cracks and tensions in the crust. This process, called true polar wander, allows planets to reorient without changing their spin axis.
A subsurface ocean of water ice may lie beneath Pluto's heart-shaped region, aligning almost exactly opposite its moon Charon. The existence of this ocean solves a longstanding puzzle and provides an explanation for the planet's gravitational tug-of-war with its moon.
Researchers propose new model of megaflood-carved landscapes, suggesting that deep canyons can be formed in bedrock by significantly less water than previously thought. This study applies numerical flood models to the 'channeled scablands' in eastern Washington State and Mars, revealing that channels were likely formed by flood dischar...
Researchers discovered that Mercury's surface was formed by melting at high pressures near the core-mantle boundary. The study suggests that the unique sulfur content and pressure-temperature conditions explain the heterogeneous surface composition.
Geologists at MIT traced Mercury's cooling history, finding the planet cooled dramatically in half a billion years. The team used data from NASA's MESSENGER spacecraft to analyze lava deposits and found that older deposits had distinct chemical compositions.
Scientists have used a revolutionary image stacking and matching technique to reveal objects on Mars with a resolution up to five times greater than previously achieved. The Super-Resolution Restoration (SRR) method has huge potential to improve knowledge of a planet's surface from multiple remotely sensed images.
A team of scientists led by Patrick Peplowski used MESSENGER mission data to confirm a high abundance of carbon at Mercury's surface. The carbon most likely originated deep below the surface, in an ancient graphite-rich crust that was later brought to the surface through impact processes.
Research suggests that tidally locked planets may have protective magnetic fields due to tidal heating, which helps maintain surface conditions conducive to life. This finding challenges the previous assumption that such planets are at mercy of their star.
Researchers at the University of Colorado Boulder have discovered evidence of an ancient lake on Mars that likely represents some of the last potentially habitable surface water ever to exist on the planet. The salt deposit, approximately 18 square miles in size, is believed to be around 3.6 billion years old.
Researchers found that nonphotosynthetic pigments could produce strong spectral signals detectable by powerful future telescopes. These organisms cover a significant portion of a distant planet's surface, producing reflectance signatures different from photosynthetic land vegetation like trees.
The 2011 Tohoku-Oki earthquake was measured directly from space 450 kilometers above the planet's surface. The Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment (GRACE) satellites captured the significant ionospheric signature produced by the quake's infrasonic wave output.
The MESSENGER spacecraft is using its altimeter instrument to help with navigation during close approaches to Mercury's surface. The team is using the altimeter's precise measurements of distance from the spacecraft to the surface to assess the accuracy of their orbit predictions.
Scientists have created global-scale maps of Mercury's surface chemistry, revealing previously unrecognized geochemical terranes with distinct compositions. The presence of these terranes has important implications for the planet's history and evolution.
Scientists from Carnegie Institution have made a groundbreaking discovery that resolves the long-standing debate on how metals become less conductive when heated. Their work reveals that the missing piece of the traditional theory explaining this phenomenon was needed to complete the puzzle for generating Earth's magnetic field.
Scientists at Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution discover evidence of water on Earth dating back to the planet's formation. The findings suggest that Earth formed as a wet planet with water on its surface.
Researchers develop acousto-optic tunable filter (AOTF) technology to overcome technical challenges in balloon-borne imaging. AOTFs enable flexible, compact, and low-power narrowband or hyperspectral imaging, suitable for various planetary science applications.
Astronomers have discovered two new planets orbiting a nearby ancient star, Kapteyn's Star, which is just 13 light years away from Earth. One planet, Kapteyn b, is thought to be warm enough to support liquid water on its surface, while the second, Kapteyn c, is a more massive super-Earth with uncertain habitability.
Scientists have detected two planets orbiting Kapteyn's star, one of which could support liquid water and potentially harbor life. The discovery was made using HARPS spectrometer data and reveals a third of the mass of the Sun.
Researchers at San Francisco State University have discovered a new rocky planet, Kepler-186f, which may have liquid water on its surface. The planet's size and distance from its star suggest it could have a rocky surface similar to Earth.
A new analysis of Mercury's surface suggests that the planet experienced extended periods of volcanic explosions in its history. The study, led by researchers at Brown University, used MESSENGER data to determine that the eruptions did not occur all at once but rather over an appreciable period of Mercury's history.
The Landsat satellite helps track urban change, which impacts a community's flood risk, using data from NASA and the US Geological Survey. Urbanization increases flood risk as impermeable surfaces absorb water, leading to more frequent and severe flooding.
Researchers have discovered that Mercury has contracted by as much as 4.4 miles due to cooling, exceeding previous estimates of ½ to 2 miles. This finding is consistent with thermal models and resolves a decades-old paradox in understanding the planet's history.
Researchers found distinct spectral signatures of ferric and ferrous minerals at most RSL sites, suggesting a possible connection to water. However, the lack of water-related absorptions rules out hydrated salts as a dominant phase on RSL slopes.
Researchers discovered a temperature turnaround point in the atmospheres of Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune, and Titan, which may be common to billions of planets. This phenomenon occurs at a pressure of about 0.1 bar and is likely caused by infrared radiation absorption.
The Radiation Assessment Detector measured radiation on Mars' surface, revealing an average GCR dose equivalent rate of 0.67 millisieverts per day. The findings also show that most mission radiation exposure will occur during outbound and return travel, posing a challenge for future human exploration.
The Curiosity Rover discovered a diverse range of soils and sediments on Mars, revealing small amounts of water in the dust and fine soil. The findings suggest that water may be present in the Martian environment, potentially providing a source for future astronauts.
The Curiosity rover's Sample Analysis at Mars (SAM) instrument suite found 2% water in Martian surface soil, indicating a significant resource for the planet. The analysis also revealed perchlorate and chlorate compounds, suggesting they could be distributed globally.
The NASA Mars rover Curiosity has found water in its first sample of Martian soil, with fine materials containing several percent water by weight. The discovery sheds light on the planet's surface composition and implications for future research.
Research led by Aomawa Shields found that planets orbiting cool stars absorb near-infrared light, warming the planet. In contrast, hotter stars' visible light is reflected by ice, cooling the planet. This interaction affects planetary habitability and may prioritize planets around cooler stars for life detection.
Scientists have concluded that the oldest visible terrains on Mercury date back to 4 billion to 4.1 billion years ago, with volcanic activity resurfacing the planet's surface during this time period. The findings suggest a global resurfacing event due to volcanism and may indicate that large projectiles enhanced the observed resurfacing.
Scientists found that Martian meteorites and surface rocks have similar origins in the planet's deep interior, but surface rocks came from a more oxygen-rich environment. The researchers believe this was caused by recycling of oxygen-rich materials into the interior through subduction.
Postdoctoral researcher Nina Lanza discovered a consistent chemical signature in Martian rocks sampled by the Curiosity rover's ChemCam instrument during its first 90 days on Mars. The signature appears after five laser blasts, leading to theories about dust or geological coatings on the planet's surface.
Researchers at MIT analyzed MESSENGER data to identify two distinct rock compositions on Mercury's surface, suggesting a massive lava flow and subsequent magma ocean. The team recreated the rock types in the lab and simulated geological processes to support their hypothesis.
Researchers discovered that homing pigeons rely on 'loft-specific infrasonic map cues' to navigate, which are disrupted when release sites are shielded from these low-frequency signals. This finding resolves a long-standing puzzle and sheds new light on the birds' impressive navigation abilities.
The probe dug a 12 cm deep hole before bouncing out onto a flat surface, sliding 30 cm across the surface due to friction. The probe wobbled back and forth five times before coming to rest, suggesting the surface was soft enough to make a hole but hard enough to support wobbling
The research aims to test two theories on Venus' geological history, focusing on its volcanic activity and plate tectonics. The team will gather data from NASA's Magellan mission and create statistical models to analyze the orientations of volcanic constructs.
A team at Caltech developed a new method to measure sand dune movement on Mars, revealing rates similar to those on Earth. The research provides key data for interpreting the Martian landscape and stratigraphic record.
Researchers analyzed Martian soil samples and found no microscopic clay particles, suggesting the soil has had a very arid history. The team estimated that liquid water on Mars was present for at most 5,000 years since its formation, making it unlikely for life to maintain a foothold on the surface.
A team of researchers has discovered a large, rocky planet with a surface temperature comparable to a comfortable spring day on Earth. The planet orbits in the middle of its star's habitable zone, where liquid water is expected to exist.
The MESSENGER mission has provided unprecedented data on Mercury's magnetic field, revealing a host of firsts, including evidence of widespread flood volcanism and direct measurements of its surface composition. The study sheds light on the planet's global magnetic field geometry and its interaction with solar wind.
The MESSENGER spacecraft has shown that Mercury's surface material composition differs significantly from other terrestrial planets, with higher abundances of sulfur and potassium. The planet's surface also features a unique magnetic field and extensive volcanic plains covering over 6% of its surface.
Researchers used MESSENGER data to confirm past volcanic activity on Mercury, which poured out huge volumes of lava 3.5-4 billion years ago
A new study by NASA and international scientists detects temperature changes in Venus' upper atmosphere, contrary to the planet's harsh surface conditions. The findings suggest that atmospheric circulation patterns may be more complex than previously thought, with potential implications for understanding Earth's own atmospheric evolution.
Researchers at UBC have created a global map of surface permeability, which could lead to new insights into water supply and climate modelling. The map, published in Geophysical Research Letters, provides critical data for managing groundwater resources and evaluating the impact of groundwater on climate.
A team of astronomers has discovered an Earth-sized planet orbiting a nearby star in the middle of its habitable zone, where liquid water could exist. The newly found planet, Gliese 581g, is tidally locked and has stable surface climates, offering a wide range of temperatures for potential life forms.
Scientists have discovered an Earth-sized exoplanet in the habitable zone of a nearby star, making it potentially habitable. The newly discovered planet, Gliese 581g, is about three to four times the mass of Earth and has a stable surface climate.
A University of Calgary scientist proposes two novel geoengineering approaches to mitigate global warming: releasing engineered nano-particles and sulphuric acid. These methods aim to reduce the negative effects of sulphates, which are blunt instruments for climate engineering.