From the “Nature just wanted Freon for herself” department and the European Southern Observatory: ALMA and Rosetta detect Freon-40 in space Dashing hopes that molecule may be marker of life…
Category: Astronomy
Study: Early Earth gobbled up mini-planets to grow
The volatile processes that shaped the Earth Oxford University scientists have shed new light on how the Earth was first formed. Based on observations of newly-forming stars, scientists know that…
Hubble telescope observes strange 'pitch black' planet
From the ESA/HUBBLE INFORMATION CENTRE Astronomers have discovered that the well-studied exoplanet WASP-12b reflects almost no light, making it appear essentially pitch black. This discovery sheds new light on the…
New planet discovered: An inferno world with titanium skies
A team of astronomers led by Elyar Sedaghati, an ESO fellow and recent graduate of TU Berlin, has examined the atmosphere of the exoplanet [WASP-19b] in greater detail than ever…
Climate change for aliens
From the UNIVERSITY OF ROCHESTER In February NASA astronomers discovered seven Earth-like planets, potentially harboring life, orbiting the star TRAPPIST-1, not too far from Earth. Scientists have yet to discover life,…
Almost as good as being there: Computer simulations provide video of #Eclipse2017
Can’t make it into the path of totality? Traffic jams got you down, here’s relief. Video follows. From the UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS AT AUSTIN, TEXAS ADVANCED COMPUTING CENTER Researchers use…
Astronomers propose a new type of planetary object
From the American Geophysical Union and the “Pluto is still denied planetary status” department comes this idea: WASHINGTON, DC — Scientists suggest in a new study the existence of a…
Mysterious flashes of light from Earth captured by NASA satellite
WASHINGTON, DC — One million miles from Earth, a NASA camera is capturing unexpected flashes of light reflecting off our planet. The homeward-facing instrument on NOAA’s Deep Space Climate Observatory,…
Climate Models Wipe out Life in Trappist-1 Solar System!!!
Guest post by David Middleton They must have used the RCP 8.5 Death Star… The announcement of the Trappist-1 system in February, with seven rocky planets orbiting an ultracool dwarf…
Scientists try to restore Pluto’s planet status
From the “Make Pluto Great Again” department, new definition raises number of planets in solar system to about 110 Johns Hopkins University scientist Kirby Runyon wants to make one thing…
Rock strata dating suggests planetary orbital effects on climate
From the University of Wisconsin From rocks in Colorado, evidence of a ‘chaotic solar system’ Plumbing a 90 million-year-old layer cake of sedimentary rock in Colorado, a team of scientists…
Scientists discover star with building blocks of life in it
Dwarf star 200 million light years away contains life’s building blocks UCLA-led team discovers object in the constellation Boötes with carbon, nitrogen, oxygen and hydrogen UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA – LOS…
Stray black hole found hiding in the Milky Way
Tail of stray black hole hiding in the Milky Way From the NATIONAL INSTITUTES OF NATURAL SCIENCES It is difficult to find black holes, because they are completely black. In…
A Mars ice deposit holds as much water as Lake Superior
From the UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS AT AUSTIN Frozen beneath a region of cracked and pitted plains on Mars lies about as much water as what’s in Lake Superior, largest of…
New model explains the moon's weird orbit
Simulations suggest a dramatic history for the Earth-moon duo From the UNIVERSITY OF MARYLAND The moon, Earth’s closest neighbor, is among the strangest planetary bodies in the solar system. Its…
Caltech: Planet 9 from outer space responsible for 'curious tilt of the sun'
Curious Tilt of the Sun Traced to Undiscovered Planet Planet Nine—the undiscovered planet at the edge of the Solar System that was predicted by the work of Caltech’s Konstantin Batygin…
'Settled Science' syndrome hits Astronomy and the Nobel Prize
From the UNIVERSITY OF OXFORD: The universe is expanding at an accelerating rate — or is it? Five years ago, the Nobel Prize in Physics was awarded to three astronomers for…
Earth's obliquity and temperature over the last 20,000 years
Recently, there was a timeline comic from XKCD about the history of Earth’s temperature over the Holocene which got quite a bit of play, due to the fact that it…
NASA: water spewing plumes on Europa?
Last week NASA made an announcement about a Monday press release that would announce “something surprising” they found on Europa. The announcement generated a lot of buzz, but then got…
Study: Vaporized Earth formed the Moon from it's mantle after ancient collision
From WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY IN ST. LOUIS Chemistry says Moon is proto-Earth’s mantle, relocated Data confirm model in which impact pulverizes Earth like a sledgehammer hitting a watermelon Measurements of an…
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