Planetary Science Archives - Page 4 of 12

Mars Express Spots Sand Dunes and Ice Layers at Martian North Pole

By News Staff March 1, 2024

New images from the High Resolution Stereo Camera (HRSC) on ESA’s Mars Express spacecraft show the terrain surrounding the permanent north polar ice cap of Mars. This image from ESA’s…

Ancient Mars May Have Had Hydrothermal Systems

By News Staff February 22, 2024

The history of water on Mars is a puzzle that is of interest to planetary scientists as well as the general public. The Red Planet currently has water in the…

Kuiper Belt May Be Much Larger than Previously Estimated

By News Staff February 20, 2024

Kuiper Belt objects (KBOs) are thought to be the dominant source of interplanetary dust particles in the outer Solar System due to both collisions between KBOs and their continual bombardment…

Titan Most Likely Non-Habitable, Astrobiologists Say

By News Staff February 20, 2024

Saturn’s moon Titan has an organic-rich atmosphere and surface with a subsurface ocean that may represent a habitable environment. In a new study, astrobiologists determined the amount of organic material…

Webb Finds Evidence of Hydrothermal Processes in Interiors of Eris and Makemake

By News Staff February 15, 2024

The icy dwarf planets Eris and Makemake have surfaces bearing methane ice of unknown origin. According to an analysis of data from the NASA/ESA/CSA James Webb Space Telescope, Eris and…

Early Mars was Tectonically and Volcanically Active, Study Suggests

By News Staff February 12, 2024

The relatively well-preserved ancient crust of Mars provides a natural window into early planetary evolution not available on Earth. Mars has generally been considered a one-plate basaltic planet, though recent…

NASA’s Juno Orbiter Captures Stunning Images of Jupiter’s Moon Io

By Natali Anderson February 9, 2024

On February 3, 2024, NASA’s Juno spacecraft made a second close flyby of Io, the fifth of Jupiter’s moons and the third largest. Like the previous flyby on December 30,…

Saturn’s Moon Mimas Harbors Global Ocean beneath Its Icy Shell, Study Suggests

By News Staff February 7, 2024

From detailed analysis of Mimas’ orbital motion based on data from NASA’s Cassini mission, planetary researchers from Sorbonne Université, Nantes Université, Queen Mary University of London, Université de Franche-Comté and…

Earth’s Moon is Shrinking, New Modeling Study Suggests

By News Staff January 29, 2024

Earth’s Moon shrank more than 46 m (150 feet) in circumference as its core gradually cooled over the last few hundred million years, according to a paper published in the…

Mars Express Finds New Evidence for Ice-Rich Layered Deposits in Medusae Fossae

By News Staff January 22, 2024

Over 15 years ago, ESA’s Mars Express spacecraft studied the Medusae Fossae Formation, revealing enigmatic deposits up to 2.5 km deep. From those early observations, it was unclear what the…