https://phys.org/space-news/planetary-sciences en-us Planetary science and exoplanets exploration news stories and features from Phys.org Micrometeorites originating from icy celestial bodies in the outer solar system may be responsible for transporting nitrogen to the near-Earth region in the early days of our solar system. That discovery was published in Nature Astronomy by an international team of researchers, including University of Hawai'i at Mānoa scientists, led by Kyoto University. https://phys.org/news/2023-12-meteorites-source-nitrogen-early-earth.html Planetary Sciences Fri, 01 Dec 2023 07:29:03 EST news620638141 In early November of this year, aurora borealis were observed at surprisingly low latitudes, as far south as Italy and Texas. Such phenomena indicate the impacts of a solar coronal mass ejection on the Earth's magnetic field and atmosphere. Far more dramatic than this recent light show was, it was nothing compared to a huge solar storm in February 1872. https://phys.org/news/2023-11-largest-magnetic-storms-history-quantified.html Astronomy Planetary Sciences Thu, 30 Nov 2023 19:00:04 EST news620593201 The discovery of a planet that is far too massive for its sun is calling into question what was previously understood about the formation of planets and their solar systems, according to Penn State researchers. https://phys.org/news/2023-11-discovery-planet-big-sun-solar.html Planetary Sciences Thu, 30 Nov 2023 14:00:02 EST news620560814 An international team of astronomers have used the NASA/ESA/CSA James Webb Space Telescope to provide the first observation of water and other molecules in the inner, rocky-planet-forming regions of a disk in one of the most extreme environments in our galaxy. These results suggest that the conditions for rocky-planet formation, typically found in the disks of low-mass star-forming regions, can also occur in massive-star-forming regions and possibly a broader range of environments. https://phys.org/news/2023-11-webb-reveals-rocky-planets-extreme.html Astronomy Planetary Sciences Thu, 30 Nov 2023 11:59:24 EST news620567961 China's Zhurong rover was equipped with a ground-penetrating radar system, allowing it to peer beneath Mars's surface. Researchers have announced new results from the scans of Zhurong's landing site in Utopia Planitia, saying they identified irregular polygonal wedges located at a depth of about 35 meters all along the robot's journey. https://phys.org/news/2023-11-zhurong-rover-mysterious-polygons-beneath.html Planetary Sciences Thu, 30 Nov 2023 10:11:14 EST news620561471 University of California, Santa Cruz Professor of Planetary Sciences Francis Nimmo recently co-authored a Science Advances paper about the internal structure of the dwarf planet Eris. https://phys.org/news/2023-11-dwarf-planet-eris-squishier.html Planetary Sciences Thu, 30 Nov 2023 08:31:48 EST news620555506 Observations during a stellar occultation detected the presence of evolving material orbiting around Centaur (2060) Chiron, rather than a two-ring system interpretation, according to a paper by Planetary Science Institute Senior Scientist Amanda Sickafoose. https://phys.org/news/2023-11-evolving-material-circling-centaur-chiron.html Astronomy Planetary Sciences Wed, 29 Nov 2023 12:52:44 EST news620484761 Scientists have discovered a rare sight in a nearby star system: Six planets orbiting their central star in a rhythmic beat. The planets move in an orbital waltz that repeats itself so precisely that it can be readily set to music. https://phys.org/news/2023-11-scientists-rare-six-planet-strange-synchrony.html Planetary Sciences Wed, 29 Nov 2023 11:00:01 EST news620476136 While life on Earth is relatively new, geologically speaking, the ingredients that combined to form it might be much older than once thought. According to research published in ACS Central Science, the simplest amino acid, carbamic acid, could have formed alongside stars or planets within interstellar ices. The findings could be used to train deep space instruments like the James Webb Space Telescope to search for prebiotic molecules in distant, star-forming regions of the universe. https://phys.org/news/2023-11-blocks-life-stars-planets.html Astrobiology Planetary Sciences Wed, 29 Nov 2023 09:52:04 EST news620473922 Asteroid Phaethon, which is five kilometers in diameter, has been puzzling researchers for a long time. A comet-like tail is visible for a few days when the asteroid passes closest to the sun during its orbit. https://phys.org/news/2023-11-team-composition-asteroid-phaethon.html Planetary Sciences Tue, 28 Nov 2023 11:53:04 EST news620394781 Scientists have long puzzled over why all of the planets in Earth's solar system have slightly slanted orbits around the sun. But a new, Yale-led study suggests this phenomenon may not be so unusual after all. Even in "pristine" solar systems, planets exhibit a bit of a tilt. https://phys.org/news/2023-11-astronomers-tilted-planets-pristine-solar.html Astronomy Planetary Sciences Tue, 28 Nov 2023 10:43:10 EST news620390587 Scientists have simulated conditions that allow hazy skies to form in water-rich exoplanets, a crucial step in determining how haziness muddles observations by ground and space telescopes. https://phys.org/news/2023-11-alien-haze-cooked-lab-view.html Astronomy Planetary Sciences Mon, 27 Nov 2023 13:00:03 EST news620312401 A new study shows that there is greater local variation in the impact of solar storms on Earth than previously estimated. Researchers show that the effects can vary widely even over distances as small as 100 kilometers. The findings are published in Scientific Reports. https://phys.org/news/2023-11-solar-storms-locally-current-instrument.html Planetary Sciences Mon, 27 Nov 2023 10:55:04 EST news620304901 Using NASA's Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS), an international team of astronomers has discovered two new "hot Jupiter" exoplanets. The newfound alien worlds, designated TOI-4377 b and TOI-4551 b, both orbit distant red-giant stars. The finding was reported November 8 in the Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society. https://phys.org/news/2023-11-astronomers-hot-jupiters-orbiting-red-giant.html Astronomy Planetary Sciences Thu, 23 Nov 2023 13:00:01 EST news619782575 For the first time in history, two planets have been home to testing future aircraft designs. In this world, a new rotor that could be used with next-generation Mars helicopters was recently tested at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California, spinning at near-supersonic speeds (0.95 Mach). Meanwhile, the agency's Ingenuity Mars Helicopter has achieved new altitude and airspeed records on the Red Planet in the name of experimental flight testing. https://phys.org/news/2023-11-nasa-worlds-future-mars-helicopter.html Space Exploration Planetary Sciences Wed, 22 Nov 2023 16:07:42 EST news619891657 The James Webb Space Telescope observed the exoplanet WASP-80 b as it passed in front of and behind its host star, revealing spectra indicative of an atmosphere containing methane gas and water vapor. While water vapor has been detected in over a dozen planets to date, until recently, methane—a molecule found in abundance in the atmospheres of Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune within our solar system—has remained elusive in the atmospheres of transiting exoplanets when studied with space-based spectroscopy. https://phys.org/news/2023-11-webb-methane-exoplanet-atmosphere.html Planetary Sciences Wed, 22 Nov 2023 12:50:04 EST news619879801 Commonly thought to be long-lived satellites of our galaxy, a new study now finds indications that most dwarf galaxies might, in fact, be destroyed soon after their entry into the Galactic halo. https://phys.org/news/2023-11-radically-view-dwarf-galaxies-milky.html Astronomy Planetary Sciences Tue, 21 Nov 2023 13:49:43 EST news619796977 A team of volcanologists and planetary scientists from NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology, the University of Arizona, and Arizona State University has found via study of a newly created global view of Io's volcanic activity that its tidal heating is likely concentrated within its upper mantle. In their study, reported in the journal Nature Astronomy, the group analyzed data from sensors measuring heat emission from the closest of Jupiter's innermost moons. https://phys.org/news/2023-11-global-view-io-volcanic-tidal.html Astronomy Planetary Sciences Tue, 21 Nov 2023 13:47:56 EST news619796872 U.S. Naval Research Laboratory (NRL) researchers have discovered solar-wind hydrogen in lunar samples, which indicates that water on the surface of the moon may provide a vital resource for future lunar bases and longer-range space exploration. Space-based resource identification is a key factor in planning for civilian- and government-led space exploration. https://phys.org/news/2023-11-hydrogen-lunar-samples-resource-availability.html Space Exploration Planetary Sciences Tue, 21 Nov 2023 12:19:02 EST news619791541 Scientists from the Planetary Science Institute have uncovered evidence of potential salt glaciers on Mercury, opening a new frontier in astrobiology by revealing a volatile environment that might echo habitability conditions found in Earth's extreme locales. https://phys.org/news/2023-11-unveiling-mercury-geological-mysteries-salt.html Astrobiology Planetary Sciences Fri, 17 Nov 2023 12:48:37 EST news619447714 A team of aerospace and mechanical engineers from the University of Arizona, California Institute of Technology, Project Pluto and the Planetary Science Institute has found evidence strongly suggesting that the March 4, 2022, WE0913A moon impactor was a Chinese booster rocket with an unknown object attached to its side. https://phys.org/news/2023-11-we0913a-moon-impactor-chinese-booster.html Space Exploration Planetary Sciences Fri, 17 Nov 2023 09:37:56 EST news619436271 NASA's Hubble Space Telescope has measured the size of the nearest Earth-sized exoplanet that passes across the face of a neighboring star. This alignment, called a transit, opens the door to follow-on studies to see what kind of atmosphere, if any, the rocky world might have. https://phys.org/news/2023-11-nasa-hubble-size-nearest-transiting.html Astronomy Planetary Sciences Thu, 16 Nov 2023 11:46:03 EST news619357561 One of the primary goals of the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) is to study the formation and evolution of planetary systems. Young stars are often surrounded by a disk of gas and dust, out of which planets can form. https://phys.org/news/2023-11-alma-young-star-reveals-grains.html Astronomy Planetary Sciences Thu, 16 Nov 2023 10:28:04 EST news619352881 A new study could explain the "missing" exoplanets between super-Earths and sub-Neptunes. https://phys.org/news/2023-11-nasa-reveal-exoplanets.html Planetary Sciences Wed, 15 Nov 2023 16:06:04 EST news619286762 Scientists are following neon signs in a search for clues to one planetary system's future and the past of another—our own solar system. Following up on a peculiar reading by NASA's previous infrared flagship observatory, the now-retired Spitzer Space Telescope, the agency's James Webb Space Telescope detected distinct traces of the element neon in the dusty disk surrounding the young sun-like star SZ Chamaeleontis (SZ Cha). https://phys.org/news/2023-11-webb-neon-planet-formation.html Astronomy Planetary Sciences Wed, 15 Nov 2023 12:30:31 EST news619273826 A team of European astronomers, co-led by researchers from the Institute of Astronomy, KU Leuven, used recent observations made with the James Webb Space Telescope to study the atmosphere of the nearby exoplanet WASP-107b. Peering deep into the fluffy atmosphere of WASP-107b they discovered not only water vapor and sulfur dioxide, but even silicate sand clouds. These particles reside within a dynamic atmosphere that exhibits vigorous transport of material. https://phys.org/news/2023-11-jwst-vapor-sulfur-dioxide-sand.html Planetary Sciences Wed, 15 Nov 2023 11:00:01 EST news619262980 How did the molecular building blocks for life end up on Earth? One long-standing theory is that they could have been delivered by comets. Now, researchers from the University of Cambridge have shown how comets could deposit similar building blocks to other planets in the galaxy. https://phys.org/news/2023-11-comets-blocks-life-exoplanets.html Astrobiology Planetary Sciences Tue, 14 Nov 2023 19:00:01 EST news619178354 A team of space scientists, astronomers and astrophysicists affiliated with multiple institutions across the U.S., working with a colleague from Italy, has determined that a celestial object spotted by citizen scientists back in 2016 is neither a comet nor an asteroid, but an object that lies on the boundary between both. In their paper published in the journal The Astrophysical Journal Letters, the group describes the multiple tests they did to determine the nature of the object and what they learned about it as a result. https://phys.org/news/2023-11-citizen-scientist-discovery-boundary-comet.html Planetary Sciences Tue, 14 Nov 2023 15:20:01 EST news619197148 A Lancaster University Ph.D. student has measured the optical depth of Saturn's rings using a new method based on how much sunlight reached the Cassini spacecraft while it was in the shadow of the rings. https://phys.org/news/2023-11-eclipses-transparency-saturn.html Planetary Sciences Tue, 14 Nov 2023 09:13:02 EST news619175581 Immigration to and living on Mars have long been depicted in science fiction. But before that dream turns into reality, there is a hurdle humans have to overcome—the lack of chemicals such as oxygen essential for long-term survival on the planet. However, the recent discovery of water activity on Mars is promising. https://phys.org/news/2023-11-ai-chemist-catalyst-oxygen-production.html Space Exploration Planetary Sciences Mon, 13 Nov 2023 11:00:02 EST news619091924