With All These New Planets Found in the Habitable Zone, Maybe it's Time to Fine Tune the Habitable Zone
In the past few decades, thousands of extra-solar planets have been discovered within our galaxy. As of July 28th, 2018, a total of 3,374 extra-solar planets have been confirmed in 2,814 planetary systems. While the majority of these planets have been gas giants, an increasing number have been terrestrial (i.e. rocky) in nature and were found to be orbiting within their stars’ respective habitable zones (HZ).
Eta Carinae
Eta Carinae: New View of Doomed Star Credit: X-ray: NASA/CXC/GSFC/M.Corcoran et al.; Optical: NASA/STScI Eta Carinae is a mysterious, extremely bright and unstable star located a mere stone's throw - astronomically speaking - from Earth at a distance of only about 7,500 light years. The star is thought to be consuming its nuclear fuel at an incredible rate, while quickly drawing closer to its ultimate explosive demise. When Eta Carinae does explode, it will be a spectacular fireworks display seen from Earth, perhaps rivaling the moon in brilliance.
Uh oh, Mars Doesn't Have Enough Carbon Dioxide to be Terraformed
For almost a century now, the concept of terraforming has been explored at length by both science fiction writers and scientists alike. Much like setting foot on another planet or traveling to the nearest star, the idea of altering an uninhabitable planet to make it suitable for humans is a dream many hope to see accomplished someday. At present, much of that hope and speculation is aimed at our neighboring planet, Mars. But is it actually possible to terraform Mars using our current technology? According to a new NASA-sponsored study by a pair of scientists who have worked on many NASA missions, the answer is no.
Elementary Einstein
At the beginning of the twentieth century, Albert Einstein revolutionized the way scientists think about space and time. "Elementary Einstein" takes you on a tour of his surprising ideas and their coolest applications. In his special theory of relativity, Einstein showed that time and length are not as absolute as everyday experience would suggest: Moving clocks run slower, and moving objects are shorter.
Just discovered! "Farout", the Farthest Object Ever Seen in the Solar System
Astronomers have discovered a distant body that’s more than 100 times farther from the Sun than Earth is. Its provisional designation is 2018 VG18, but they’ve nicknamed the planet “Farout.” Farout is the most distant body ever observed in our Solar System, at 120 astronomical units (AU) away. The International Astronomical Union’s Minor Planet Center announced Farout’s discovery on Monday, December 17th, 2018. This newly-discovered object is the result of a team of astronomers’ search for the elusive “Planet X” or “Planet 9,” a ninth major planet thought to exist at the furthest reaches of our Solar System, where its mass would shape the orbit of distant planets like Farout.
Mysterious New 'Dark Flow' Discovered in Space
As if the mysteries of dark matter and dark energy weren't vexing enough, another baffling cosmic puzzle has been discovered. Patches of matter in the universe seem to be moving at very high speeds and in a uniform direction that can't be explained by any of the known gravitational forces in the observable universe. Astronomers are calling the phenomenon "dark flow."
Saturn’s rings are WAY younger than the planet itself… and they’re disappearing.
Saturn is a pretty weird place, full of mysteries that seem to multiply the more we investigate them. One of the biggest is literally one of the biggest things Saturn has: its rings. Surprisingly, despite them being the single most obvious and iconic feature of the planet, we don’t know the answers to two basic questions about them: How old are they, and how did they form? But now, using data from the Cassini spacecraft and applying them to subtle models of the planet, scientists have determined an important fact about the rings: They’re young. Very young, far younger than the planet.
First Image of Another Multi-Planet Solar System
Want to stay on top of all the space news? Follow @universetoday on Twitter Here’s what we’ve all been waiting for: for the first time, astronomers have taken pictures of a multi-planet solar system, much like ours, orbiting another star. This coincides with announcement of the first visible light image of an extrasolar planet taken by the Hubble Space Telescope. This new solar system orbits a dusty young star named HR8799, which is 140 light years away and about 1.5 times the size of our sun.
Steam-Powered Spacecraft Could Explore the Asteroid Belt Forever, Refueling Itself in Space
The era of renewed space exploration has led to some rather ambitious proposals. While many have been on the books for decades, it has only been in recent years that some of these plans have become technologically feasible. A good example is asteroid mining, where robotic spacecraft would travel to Near-Earth Asteroids and the Main Asteroid Belt to harvest minerals and other resources.
Hubble Takes First Visible Light Image of Extrasolar Planet
Want to stay on top of all the space news? Follow @universetoday on Twitter Fomalhaut and orbiting planet. Credit: NASA, ESA and P. Kalas (University of California, Berkeley, USA) Persistence has paid off for astronomer Paul Kalas.
We Don’t Really Know When the Sun Rises
Hundreds of sunrise and sunset times reveal that there’s something amiss with our calculations. S&T Gallery contributor Margit Steig captured sunset over a pond in Wellfleet, Massachusetts, in 2012. margit l. steig Every 24 hours, most of us plunge into darkness.
Discovered: Cosmic Rays from a Mysterious, Nearby Object
+ Play Audio | + Download Audio | + Join mailing list Nov. 19, 2008: An international team of researchers has discovered a puzzling surplus of high-energy electrons bombarding Earth from space. The source of these cosmic rays is unknown, but it must be close to the solar system and it could be made of dark matter. Their results are being reported in the Nov. 20th issue of the journal Nature.
