Planet Archives - Page 4 of 9

New Research Sheds Light on Internal Structure of Dwarf Planet Eris

By Natali Anderson December 4, 2023

The trans-Neptunian dwarf planet Eris is tidally locked to its small moon Dysnomia. Recently obtained bounds on the mass of Dysnomia demonstrate that Eris must be unexpectedly dissipative (‘squishy’) for…

ESA Astronaut Captures Stunning Images of Rare Thunder Phenomenon

By News Staff December 1, 2023

As part of the Thor-Davis experiment on the International Space Station (ISS), ESA astronaut Andreas Mogensen has captured images of a phenomenon called red sprite. Equipped with a specialized event-based…

Mars Odyssey Beams Back Magnificent Images of Martian Horizon

By News Staff November 29, 2023

In an operation that took mission scientists three months to plan, NASA’s Mars Odyssey orbiter captured a series of panoramic images that showcases the curving Martian landscape below gauzy layers…

ESA’s Trace Gas Orbiter Observes Green Atmospheric Nightglow on Mars

By News Staff November 13, 2023

The atmospheric nightglow is observed on Earth. On Mars, it was something expected, yet never observed in visible light until now. This image shows an artist’s impression of what nightglow…

Atmospheric Winds Penetrate Jupiter in Cylindrical Manner, Planetary Researchers Say

By News Staff November 9, 2023

The violent nature of Jupiter’s atmosphere has long been a source of fascination for scientists. NASA’s Juno spacecraft has had a ringside seat to the goings-on since it entered the…

Astronomers Directly Detect Atomic Oxygen on Venus

By News Staff November 8, 2023

Atomic oxygen is produced on the dayside of Venus by photolysis of carbon dioxide and carbon monoxide. Atomic oxygen is a key species in the mesosphere and thermosphere of Venus.…

Two Fragments of Protoplanet Theia Lie Deep within Earth, Geoscientists Say

By Enrico de Lazaro November 1, 2023

A giant collision between the ancient protoplanet Theia and the proto-Earth about 4.5 billion years ago may have formed Earth’s Moon as well as two continent-sized regions — formally known…

Venus May Have Once Had Earth-Like Plate Tectonics

By News Staff October 26, 2023

Venus is the least understood of the terrestrial planets. Despite broad similarities to the Earth in mass and size, Venus has no evidence of plate tectonics recorded on its young…

InSight Finds Evidence for Molten Silicate Layer above Martian Metallic Core

By News Staff October 25, 2023

Mars’ liquid iron alloy core is surrounded by a layer of fully molten silicate (magma) about 150 km thick, according to a pair of papers published in the journal Nature.…

Ancient Mars was Planet of Rivers, Planetary Scientists Say