Ancient Mars May Have Had Hydrothermal Systems
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…
SOFIA Detects Molecular Water on Nominally Dry Asteroids
Using the FORCAST instrument on NASA’s retired Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy (SOFIA), astronomers have obtained mid-infrared spectra of four S-type (silicate-rich) asteroids: Iris, Parthenope, Melpomene, and Massalia. They’ve detected…
Saturn’s Moon Mimas Harbors Global Ocean beneath Its Icy Shell, Study Suggests
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…
Mars Express Finds New Evidence for Ice-Rich Layered Deposits in Medusae Fossae
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…
Scientists Recreate Extraterrestrial Atmospheric Hazes in the Lab
The NASA/ESA/CSA James Webb Space Telescope has begun its scientific mission, which includes the atmospheric characterization of transiting exoplanets. Some of the first exoplanets to be observed by Webb have…
Ancient Mars was Planet of Rivers, Planetary Scientists Say
Ancient river deposits exist across Mars and can be identified in satellite data by erosional landforms called fluvial ridges. Fluvial ridges take the shape of ancient river deposits, and are…
Planetary Researchers Probe Origin of Complex Organics on Ceres
How aliphatic organic compounds originated on the dwarf planet Ceres has been the subject of intensive research since their discovery by NASA’s Dawn mission in 2017. Some studies have concluded…
Sample Material from Asteroid Bennu Contains Carbon and Water, NASA Scientists Say
The sample was collected by NASA’s OSIRIS-REx (Origins, Spectral Interpretation, Resource Identification and Security, Regolith Explorer) spacecraft on October 20, 2020 and arrived on Earth on September 24, 2023. A…
High-Energy Electrons from Earth’s Plasma Sheet May Be Forming Water on Lunar Surface
Planetary scientists from the University of Hawaii and elsewhere suggest that although they have confirmed the importance of the solar wind as a major source of water production on the…
Early Mars Had a Sustained, Cyclic, Possibly Seasonal, Climate
New observations of mud cracks made by NASA’s Curiosity rover show that high-frequency, wet-dry cycling occurred in early Martian surface environments, indicating that the Red Planet may have once seen…