Planetary Science

Planetary Science

New thermal maps of Neptune reveal surprising temperature swings

Neptune's atmospheric temperatures show a global drop and later, a weird isolated spike at the south pole. Scientists don't yet know why.

Planetary Science

Mars has two speeds of sound

High-pitched clacks from a laser on NASA’s Perseverance rover zapping rocks traveled faster than the lower-pitched hum of the Ingenuity helicopter’s blades.

Planetary Science

Diamonds may stud Mercury’s crust

Billions of years of meteorite impacts may have flash-baked much of a primitive graphite crust into precious gemstones.

Planetary Science

An ancient impact on Earth led to a cascade of cratering

For the first time, scientists have discovered clusters of craters on Earth that were formed by the impacts of material thrown out of a larger crater.

Planetary Science

These are the first visible-light images of Venus’ surface captured from space

Cameras aboard NASA’s Parker Solar Probe managed to peer through Venus’ thick clouds to photograph the planet’s surface.

Planetary Science

50 years ago, Arecibo got an unprecedented view of Venus’ surface

Over its 57-year lifetime, Arecibo’s radar system measured the mountains around Venus’ middle, studied the textures of many rocky bodies in outer space and more.

Planetary Science

Earth has a second known ‘Trojan asteroid’ that shares its orbit

A recently found space rock is about one kilometer wide, orbits ahead of Earth around the sun and will stick around for at least 4,000 years.

Planetary Science

Machine learning points to prime places in Antarctica to find meteorites

Using data on how ice moves across Antarctica, researchers identified more than 600 spots where space rocks may gather on the southern continent.

Planetary Science

Organic molecules in an ancient Mars meteorite formed via geology, not alien life

Analysis of an ancient Martian meteorite reveals that organic molecules within it were formed by geologic processes rather than alien life.

Astronomy

Astronomers identified a second possible exomoon

Kepler 1708 b i, a newly discovered candidate for an exoplanet moon, has a radius about 2.6 times that of Earth, a new study suggests.

Planetary Science

Oxygen-rich exoplanets may be geologically active

Experiments show that rocks exposed to higher concentrations of oxygen have a lower melting temperature than rocks exposed to lower amounts.

Planetary Science

Enceladus’ plumes might not come from an underground ocean

The celebrated plumes of Saturn’s moon Enceladus could come from pockets of watery mush in the moon’s icy shell, simulations suggest.