Asteroid Hygiea the smallest dwarf planet in the solar system

Asteroid Hygiea the smallest dwarf planet in the solar system

Hygiea, previously classified as an asteroid, may actually be the smallest dwarf planet in the solar system, according to a study published on October 28, 2019. New images by the ESO's SPHERE instrument at the Very Large Telescope (VLT) revealed that the space…

Eugene Bagashov: Martian geology, past and present

Eugene Bagashov: Martian geology, past and present

In part one of this presentation, physicist Eugene Bagashov began his examination of some of the enduring geological mysteries on Mars. Of course, geologists examining the surface of Mars project familiar earthly processes onto the Red Planet — they imagine…

The comet Venus and its missing craters

The comet Venus and its missing craters

Since the dawn of the Space Age, the planet Venus has been a proving ground for competing hypotheses in planetary science. From the 1950s to 1970s, Venus was at the center of a blazing scientific controversy. In 1950, in the bestselling book Worlds in Collision, the…

Martian dust storm now officially a global dust event

Martian dust storm now officially a global dust event

One of the most intense dust storms ever observed on Mars is raging across the planet since May 30, 2018. The storm grew rapidly over the next 20 days and is now officially a 'planet-encircling' (global) dust event. Although Martian dust storms are common…

Rapidly intensifying, possibly planet-wide dust storm affecting Mars

Rapidly intensifying, possibly planet-wide dust storm affecting Mars

A massive and intensifying dust storm, one of the most intense ever observed on Mars, is affecting the Red Planed since May 30, 2018. The storm is growing rapidly and is likely to go, or has already gone, global. On June 10, the storm covered more than 41 million…

3D infrared animation of Jupiter’s north pole

3D infrared animation of Jupiter’s north pole

NASA's Juno scientists have unveiled their 3D infrared movie depicting densely packed cyclones and anticyclones that permeate Jupiter’s polar regions, and the first detailed view of a dynamo, or engine, powering the magnetic field for any planet beyond…

Two Super-Earths around red dwarf K2-18

Two Super-Earths around red dwarf K2-18

New research using data collected by the European Southern Observatory (ESO) has revealed that a little-known exoplanet called K2-18b could well be a scaled-up version of Earth. Just as exciting, the same researchers also discovered for the first time that the…

Unexpected atmospheric vortex behavior on Saturn’s moon Titan

Unexpected atmospheric vortex behavior on Saturn’s moon Titan

A new study, led by a University of Bristol earth scientist, has shown that recently reported unexpected behavior on Titan, the largest moon of Saturn, is due to its unique atmospheric chemistry. Titan’s polar atmosphere recently experienced unexpected and…

Closest temperate world orbiting quiet star discovered

Closest temperate world orbiting quiet star discovered

A temperate Earth-sized planet has been discovered only 11 light-years from the Solar System by a team using ESO’s unique planet-hunting HARPS instrument. The new world has the designation Ross 128 b and is now the second-closest temperate planet to be…

ALMA discovers cold dust around nearest star

ALMA discovers cold dust around nearest star

The ALMA Observatory in Chile has detected dust around the closest star to the Solar System, Proxima Centauri. These new observations reveal the glow coming from cold dust in a region between one to four times as far from Proxima Centauri as the Earth is from the…