Researchers used state-of-the-art computational techniques to reveal fundamental differences in moon formation from a Mars-sized object and Earth 4.5 billion years ago. Material strength of the two ancestral bodies matters in the process, changing how researchers think the planetary collision happened.
Researchers have discovered that material strength and temperature can significantly impact the formation of the Moon. The study suggests that a Mars-sized object collided with Earth, but the simulations previously ignored material strength, which is now found to matter. The results imply a potential connection between the Moon's compo...
The Europlanet Science Congress 2026 will cover various topics in planetary research, including the Solar System, exoplanets, and artificial intelligence. The conference will feature over 125 scientific sessions and keynote talks, with around 1200 planetary scientists attending from 40 countries.
Phosphorus and nitrogen, two elements necessary for life, were found in distinct ratios in asteroidal bodies related to iron meteorites compared to younger asteroids. Researchers recreated the crystallization of iron meteorites in the lab and analyzed their chemical composition, which suggested that these life-essential elements origin...
A team from the University of Trento has identified an empty subsurface lava tube beneath Venus' surface, estimated to be approximately one kilometer in diameter and 375 meters deep. The discovery was made possible by analyzing Magellan's radar images and provides new insights into Venus' volcanic processes and geology.
Researchers propose that high-energy collisions and core formation triggered chemical changes, shaping the earliest outer solar system planetesimals. The study suggests a more dynamic and complex pathway to planetary formation.
Three planetary scientists have been awarded Europlanet Career Medals for their contributions to planetary science. Dr Tim Lichtenberg received the Early-Career Medal for his work on planetary formation and exoplanet evolution, while Dr Benoit Carry won the Mid-Career Medal for his research on asteroid structures and planetary defence.
A study of Bennu samples reveals the asteroid reflects light differently at red and blue wavelengths, offering insights into solar system evolution. The findings also enable future research on asteroid navigation and selection.
Researchers at Nagoya University and the Italian National Institute for Astrophysics have determined how molten rock droplets formed in Jupiter's early days. Their study shows that chondrule characteristics are influenced by the water content of impacting planetesimals, providing a clearer picture of solar system formation.
The OSIRIS-REx sample return mission revealed asteroid Bennu's composition, history, and unique materials. Researchers found stardust from other stars and organic material formed in interstellar space, shedding light on the early solar system's formation.
Researchers find shared dusty layer of troilite on M- and K-type asteroids, suggesting they originated from similar large objects. Polarization studies reveal unique composition linking these distinct asteroid types.
The Hubble Space Telescope has captured the sharpest-ever picture of the interstellar comet 3I/ATLAS, allowing astronomers to estimate its size and physical properties. The comet's solid, icy nucleus is estimated to be between 1,000 feet and 3.5 miles across.
The discovery of 2023 KQ 14, a sednoid with an unusual orbit, challenges our understanding of the outer Solar System's structure. The object's stable orbit over 4.5 billion years suggests that the system is more diverse and complex than previously thought.
A new study by Southwest Research Institute (SwRI) proposes that compact exoplanetary systems may be surviving remnants of planet accretion during the final stages of stellar formation. This process results in similarly sized planets with characteristic masses determined by infall and disk conditions.
Researchers analyzed Trans-Neptunian Objects using the James Webb Space Telescope, finding two distinct groups with varying surface ice methanol presence. The discovery sheds light on the formation and evolution of these distant icy worlds, revealing insights into the solar system's origins and potentially habitable exoplanets.
The Lucy mission is surveying the three-mile-wide main belt asteroid Donaldjohanson, which may have formed 150 million years ago when a larger parent asteroid broke apart. The flyby will provide independent insights on evolutionary processes based on its shape, surface geology and cratering history.
The James Webb Space Telescope has captured its first direct images of carbon dioxide in a planet outside the solar system. The observations suggest that four giant planets formed like Jupiter and Saturn by slowly building solid cores, providing strong evidence for core accretion as their formation model.
Researchers at the University of Central Florida used the James Webb Space Telescope to analyze trans-Neptunian objects, revealing a clearer picture of how the outer solar system formed and evolved. The study found three distinct compositional groups among TNOs, shaped by ice retention lines that existed in the era when the solar syste...
Scientists suggest the Moon underwent a 'remelting' event due to tidal forces, resetting its geological clock and masking its true age with volcanic activity. This hypothesis could account for discrepancies in lunar-rock ages and impact basins, placing the Moon's formation between 4.43 and 4.53 billion years ago.
A Southwest Research Institute-led team developed a revised solar composition that potentially reconciles spectroscopy and helioseismology measurements for the first time. The new solar composition suggests higher levels of carbon, nitrogen, and oxygen in the Sun than previously thought.
Scientists analyzed particles from asteroid Ryugu, revealing a weak magnetic field that likely pulled matter inward to form the outer planetary bodies. The team estimates that such a low-grade field intensity would have been enough to play a role in giant planet formation, from Jupiter to Neptune.
Researchers discover that asteroid Ryugu, a carbon-rich meteorite, shares a rare ingredient with material formed at the outer edge of the Solar System. The findings challenge previous ideas about the formation of asteroids and require a rethinking of the origin of the CI chondrites group.
A team of geoscientists has identified the origin of the massive asteroid that wiped out 70% of Earth's species 66 million years ago. The study found the asteroid was a carbonaceous-type asteroid that formed outside Jupiter's orbit.
For the first time, a team of French scientists has observed brown dwarfs orbiting very close to bright stars using precise astronomical imaging. The findings provide new insights into the formation of these unusual celestial objects and massive exoplanets.
New research suggests that our infant solar system resembled a doughnut-shaped protoplanetary disk, where asteroids with metal grains rich in iridium and platinum migrated to the outer disk as it rapidly expanded. This explanation contradicts previous findings of concentric ring structures around other stars.
During its flyby, the Lucy spacecraft discovered a trough and ridge structure on Dinkinesh, revealing a complex history of sudden breakups and transformation. The asteroid's internal strength and dynamic evolution were also revealed, suggesting that it has significant cohesion, unlike some other asteroids.
A research team led by UCF's Mário Nascimento De Prá and Noemí Pinilla-Alonso discovered carbon dioxide and carbon monoxide ices on 59 trans-Neptunian objects using the James Webb Space Telescope. The findings suggest that carbon dioxide was abundant in the protoplanetary disk, while the origin of carbon monoxide remains uncertain.
Researchers at the University of Arizona used computer simulations and spacecraft data to study the moon's geology, finding that a dense layer of titanium-rich material sank into the interior and rose on the near side. The findings suggest that the moon 'turned itself inside out' during its formation.
Climate change causes melting of ice sheet, resulting in loss of about 5,000 meteorites per year. Researchers call for urgent action to preserve the scientific value of meteorites and reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
A new study using the James Webb Space Telescope has captured the first-ever image of a planet-forming disk's gas dispersal, providing insights into how planets form in our solar system. The observations reveal that the inner disk of T Cha is evolving on very short timescales, differing from earlier spectra detected by Spitzer.
A study of the Orion Nebula reveals that massive stars play a crucial role in shaping planetary systems. The intense ultraviolet radiation from these stars can either facilitate or hinder planet formation, depending on the mass of the star at the system's center.
Scientists detected water molecules on two asteroids, Iris and Massalia, indicating a distribution of water in our solar system that can inform searches for life beyond Earth. The discovery was made possible by using the FORCAST instrument to isolate mid-infrared spectral signatures indicative of molecular water.
A global ocean of liquid water has been found beneath Mimas' icy shell, with an estimated age of 5-15 million years, suggesting recent ocean formation and potential for life to emerge. This discovery adds Mimas to the list of moons with internal oceans, including Enceladus and Europa.
Researchers have discovered a multi-planet system that provides a rare glimpse into the formation of planets around a young star. The system consists of six confirmed planets and potentially a seventh, all forming under similar conditions at an age of just 700 million years.
Researchers at UTSA's Department of Physics and Astronomy have used deconvolution algorithms to enhance images of galaxy NGC 5728 obtained by the James Webb Space Telescope. The study reveals a faint extended feature that could be part of an outflow from a supermassive black hole interacting with the host galaxy.
Astronomers have discovered a small, cold exoplanet with an orbital period of 146 days, providing insight into planetary formation and evolution. The planet, HD88986b, is about twice the size of Earth and orbits a star similar to the Sun.
Researchers found that iron meteorites from the inner and outer solar systems had similar amounts of missing iron metal, suggesting that water was present in planetesimals right from the start. This challenges current models, which predict cooler temperatures for the inner solar system or formation further out.
The James Webb Space Telescope has revealed a breakthrough discovery in planet formation, confirming the drifting of ice-coated solids into rocky-planet zones. The study found excess cool water in compact disks, consistent with pebble drift theory.
A team of researchers has detected ammonia isotopologues in the atmosphere of a cold brown dwarf, providing new clues to understanding gas giant formation. The ratio of two isotopologues reveals that the exoplanet formed through gravitational collapse, challenging traditional theories.
A new SwRI study posits that the large mounds on Kuiper Belt object Arrokoth are similar in size and shape, suggesting a common origin. This finding supports the streaming instability model of planetesimal formation, where gentle collision speeds allowed objects to accumulate and form Arrokoth.
Scientists have discovered a young exoplanet, MWC 758c, that may be generating the spiral arms in its infant planetary system. The planet's massive size is estimated to be at least twice the mass of Jupiter, yet it was invisible to other telescopes due to its reddish color, which makes it more difficult to detect.
A study by Caltech scientists reveals that Earth primarily consisted of dry, rocky materials during its early stages, with a major addition of life-essential volatiles occurring only in the last 15% of its formation. This finding provides crucial insights into the planet's formation process and has important implications for theories o...
A new calculation shows that a molecular gas filament protected the young Solar System from a nearby supernova explosion, allowing it to capture radioactive isotopes found in meteorites. The filament acted as a buffer, protecting the nascent Sun and helping to channel the isotopes into the forming Solar System.
Researchers believe Earth's formation was facilitated by the accumulation of small pebbles, resulting in the presence of water as a byproduct. This new theory increases the likelihood of finding habitable planets outside our Solar System.
A UTSA-led research team has discovered a new exoplanet using indirect methods. The exoplanet, HIP 99770 b, is about 14 to 16 times the mass of Jupiter and orbits a nearly twice-as-massive star. This breakthrough opens a new avenue for scientists to discover and characterize exoplanets.
Researchers propose that early interactions between the magma ocean and a molecular hydrogen proto-atmosphere could have given rise to Earth's signature features, including its abundant water. The study suggests that even dry rocky material collisions would generate large quantities of water through these atmospheric-magma interactions.
Researchers Jennifer Bergner and Darryl Seligman suggest that 'Oumuamua's acceleration can be explained by the outgassing of hydrogen gas as the comet warmed up in the sunlight. The comet's small size allowed for a significant effect, with the tiny push from hydrogen spurted out of ice altering its gravitational deflection around the sun.
A new study led by University of Maryland researchers found that melted meteorites have extremely low water content, ruling them out as the primary source of Earth's water. The team suggests that unmelted, or chondritic, meteorites may be responsible for delivering water to our planet.
Scientists have detected water in the disk forming around a nearby protostar, V883 Ori, using ALMA. The discovery provides evidence that water in our Solar System formed billions of years before the Sun.
The study reveals that 'similar' planetary systems are the most common type, followed by 'ordered' and then 'anti-ordered' systems. The researchers found that factors such as gas and dust disk mass and star abundance play a crucial role in determining system architecture.
A University of Utah-led study explores using space dust as a shield to reduce solar radiation and slow global warming. Launching lunar dust from the moon instead of Earth's way station at L1 could be an effective and cheap solution.
Researchers have discovered that primitive meteorites contain a different mix of potassium isotopes than those found in other, more-chemically processed meteorites. This suggests that the Solar System was formed from a 'poorly mixed cake batter' of materials, with some planets receiving a unique blend of elements from distant sources.
An international team of scientists suggests that an outward, fast migration of Jupiter can distort the configuration of Trojan swarms, resulting in more stable orbits in one swarm than the other. This new mechanism provides a natural explanation for the observed asymmetry in the number of asteroids in the L4 and L5 swarms.
Researchers at Hokkaido University have discovered a new pathway to forming presolar grains, which could help scientists better understand the interstellar environment and develop more efficient nanoparticles. The study suggests that these grains formed through a non-classical nucleation pathway, involving three distinct steps.
A new theory proposes that rocky planets form in a narrow band of the protoplanetary disk, where silicate vapors condense to form solid pebbles. This process creates a ring of material that constitutes the building blocks for planet formation, resulting in uniform systems of rocky super-Earths.
Researchers recreated interstellar cloud and asteroid conditions to understand how carbonaceous chondrites acquired amino acids, finding that interstellar cloud conditions are resilient to asteroid processing but influence the amount of amino acids present.
Astronomers discovered that the building blocks of planets like Jupiter and Saturn form while their parent star is still growing. The study analyzed spectroscopic observations from polluted white dwarfs, which revealed signs of asteroid melting, indicating a rapid process of planet formation.
Researchers from Osaka University have successfully detected carbon, nitrogen, and oxygen in samples from near-Earth asteroid Ryugu using muon non-destructive analysis. The findings suggest that CI chondrites may be contaminated with terrestrial materials, challenging previous understanding of the solar system's chemical compositions.
A new study of 25 comets has found strong evidence that comet outgassing could be the source of the chemical composition of the early solar system. The research, led by Olga Harrington Pinto, measured the ratio of water, carbon dioxide, and carbon monoxide gases from comets to test predictions of solar system formation and evolution.
Researchers have developed a method to map an asteroid's interior structure based on its spin changes during close encounters with Earth. This technique, called AIME, could help scientists plan more effective defense strategies for asteroids like Apophis, which poses a significant hazard if it were to make impact.