Planetary Science

Discovery Alert: Water Vapor Detected on Super Neptune Exoplanet

Illustration of a “super Neptune,” TOI-674 b, with an atmosphere that, according to a recent study, includes water vapor. Credit: NASA/JPL-CaltechWater vapor in the atmosphere of planet TOI-674 bThis newly found planet, a bit larger than Neptune and orbiting a red-dwarf star roughly 150 light-years away. This size places it in an exclusive club:...

Mercury Earliest Atmosphere

Nasa/JHU/Carnegie CreditMercury is a really peculiar planet. The tiniest in the solar system and the one nearest to the sun, it rotates slowly in a 3:2 spin resonance and experiences hot temperatures of up to 430 degrees Celsius during the day and cold temperatures of -170 degrees Celsius at night.Its average density is...

Chemistry Lab on ExoMars Rover Will Search For Evidence of Life on Mars

An international group of scientists made a tiny chemistry lab for a rover that will drill below the Martian surface, searching for previous or existing life signs. For ExoMars Reconnaissance is a joint venture involving the European Space Agency and the Russian aerospace company Roscosmos. NASA made a significant contribution to MOMA, the laboratory...

Astrophysicists Detect an Exoplanet With the Ability To Form Moons

This image, taken with the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA), in which ESO is a partner, shows wide (left) and close-up (right) views of the moon-forming disc surrounding PDS 70c, a young Jupiter-like planet nearly 400 light-years away. Credit: ALMA (ESO/NAOJ/NRAO)/Benisty et al.New high-resolution observations reveal a Moon-forming area around exoplanet PDS 70c. The...

The Elusive Planet Mercury Spotted at its ‘Greatest Elongation’ from the Sun

See Venus and the first-quarter moon, as well!Mercury, Venus and the first-quarter moon — along with the stars Spica and Arcturus — will appear to form a straight line in the evening sky on Sept. 13, 2021. This sky map shows the view from New York City at approximately 7 p.m. local time. Credit: SkySafari appMercury...

The Life and Death of Our Solar System: The Stardust Genesis

How did it all start?This image maps the cooler infrared emission from interstellar dust found throughout the interstellar medium. NASA/JPL-CaltechAs humanity has rolled in beyond into space, we have come to learn a great deal even more concerning the lifecycle of the solar system.From a collapsing cloud of gas into an all-new star to an...

Supernova Requiem: Rerun of Enormous Blast From Exploding Star Expected To Appear in 2037

Titan Galaxy Cluster Magnifies the Light from a Distant Supernova and Splits It into Multiple ImagesIndividuals over the centuries have not been reluctant to make forecasts concerning the future. However, a few of them should have maintained their projections to themselves. The head of state of the Michigan Savings Bank, as an example, forecasted...

Unusual, Duplicating Radio Signal Near the Facility of the Galaxy Has Scientists Puzzled

It is not a quick radio ruptured, a pulsar, or low-mass star. So what in the heavens is it?Astronomers have found an unusual, repeating radio signal near the center of the Milky Way, and also it differs from any other energy signature ever studied.The center of the Milky Way, as seen by NASA's Chandra,...

Cold Planets Exist Throughout the Galaxy– in the Galactic Lump

An artist’s conception of cold planet distribution throughout the Milky Way. For comparison, the cyan cone is the Kepler transit survey field. The inset shows an artistic conception of a planetary system in the Galactic bulge. Credit: Osaka UniversityResearchers led by Osaka University and NASA found that the distribution of cold "planets" in the...