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How long is a day on Venus? Scientists crack mysteries of our closest neighbor

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Venus is an enigma. It’s the planet next door and yet reveals little about itself. An opaque blanket of clouds smothers a harsh landscape pelted by acid rain and baked at temperatures that can liquify lead.

Now, new observations from the safety of Earth are lifting the veil on some of Venus’ most basic properties.

By repeatedly bouncing radar off the planet’s surface over the last 15 years, a UCLA-led team has pinned down the precise length of a day on Venus, the tilt of its axis and the size of its core. The findings are published today in the journal Nature Astronomy. [Read more…] about How long is a day on Venus? Scientists crack mysteries of our closest neighbor

Small galaxies likely played important role in evolution of the Universe

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A new study led by University of Minnesota astrophysicists shows that high-energy light from small galaxies may have played a key role in the early evolution of the Universe.

The research gives insight into how the Universe became reionized, a problem that astronomers have been trying to solve for years.

The research is published in The Astrophysical Journal, a peer-reviewed scientific journal of astrophysics and astronomy. [Read more…] about Small galaxies likely played important role in evolution of the Universe

Star light, star bright… as explained by math

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Not all stars shine brightly all the time. Some have a brightness that changes rhythmically due to cyclical phenomena like passing planets or the tug of other stars. Others show a slow change in this periodicity over time that can be difficult to discern or capture mathematically.

KAUST’s Soumya Das and Marc Genton have now developed a method to bring this evolving periodicity within the framework of mathematically “cyclostationary” processes.

“It can be difficult to explain the variations of the brightness of variable stars unless they follow a regular pattern over time,” says Das. “In this study we created methods that can explain the evolution of the brightness of a variable star, even if it departs from strict periodicity or constant amplitude.” [Read more…] about Star light, star bright… as explained by math

Life on Venus? First we need to know more about molecules in the atmosphere

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The search for life on other planets has received a major boost after scientists revealed the spectral signatures of almost 1000 atmospheric molecules that may be involved in the production or consumption of phosphine, a study led by UNSW Sydney revealed.

Scientists have long conjectured that phosphine – a chemical compound made of one phosphorous atom surrounded by three hydrogen atoms (PH3) – may indicate evidence of life if found in the atmospheres of small rocky planets like our own, where it is produced by the biological activity of bacteria.

So when an international team of scientists last year claimed to have detected phosphine in the atmosphere of Venus, it raised the tantalising prospect of the first evidence of life on another planet – albeit the primitive, single-celled variety. [Read more…] about Life on Venus? First we need to know more about molecules in the atmosphere

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  • On the quest for other Earths
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    On the quest for other EarthsIn the search for planets capable of sustaining life, an international research team with members from ETH has taken a significant step forward. As the researchers reported recently in the journal Nature Communications, they found signs of a Neptune-sized planet in the Alpha Centauri star system, a mere 4.4 light years…
    Tags: planets, life, light, data, planet, telescope, study, atmosphere, exoplanets, team
  • Carbon-rich exoplanets may be made of diamonds
    36
    Carbon-rich exoplanets may be made of diamondsAs missions like NASA's Hubble Space Telescope, TESS and Kepler continue to provide insights into the properties of exoplanets (planets around other stars), scientists are increasingly able to piece together what these planets look like, what they are made of, and if they could be habitable or even inhabited. In…
    Tags: planets, exoplanets, space, life, study, telescope, team, scientists, planet's
  • There might be many planets with water-rich atmospheres
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    There might be many planets with water-rich atmospheresAn atmosphere is what makes life on Earth's surface possible, regulating our climate and sheltering us from damaging cosmic rays. But although telescopes have counted a growing number of rocky planets, scientists had thought most of their atmospheres long lost. However, a new study by University of Chicago and Stanford…
    Tags: planets, atmosphere, scientists, telescope, planet, telescopes, universe, planet's
  • Earth has a hot new neighbour – and it's an astronomer's dream
    33
    Earth has a hot new neighbour – and it's an astronomer's dreamA newly discovered planet could be our best chance yet of studying rocky planet atmospheres outside the solar system, a new international study involving UNSW Sydney shows. The planet, called Gliese 486b (pronounced Glee-seh), is a “super-Earth”: that is, a rocky planet bigger than Earth but smaller than ice giants…
    Tags: planet, atmosphere, dr, planets, life, study, space, planet's
  • First transiting exoplanet's 'chemical fingerprint' reveals its distant birthplace
    32
    First transiting exoplanet's 'chemical fingerprint' reveals its distant birthplaceAstronomers have found evidence that the first exoplanet that was identified transiting its star could have migrated to a close orbit with its star from its original birthplace further away. Analysis of the planet's atmosphere by a team including University of Warwick scientists has identified the chemical fingerprint of a…
    Tags: atmosphere, planet, species, molecules, planets, life, team, planet's, universe

Study warns of ‘oxygen false positives’ in search for signs of life on other planets

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In the search for life on other planets, the presence of oxygen in a planet’s atmosphere is one potential sign of biological activity that might be detected by future telescopes.

A new study, however, describes several scenarios in which a lifeless rocky planet around a sun-like star could evolve to have oxygen in its atmosphere.

The new findings, published April 13 in AGU Advances, highlight the need for next-generation telescopes that are capable of characterizing planetary environments and searching for multiple lines of evidence for life in addition to detecting oxygen. [Read more…] about Study warns of ‘oxygen false positives’ in search for signs of life on other planets

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  • First transiting exoplanet's 'chemical fingerprint' reveals its distant birthplace
    48
    First transiting exoplanet's 'chemical fingerprint' reveals its distant birthplaceAstronomers have found evidence that the first exoplanet that was identified transiting its star could have migrated to a close orbit with its star from its original birthplace further away. Analysis of the planet's atmosphere by a team including University of Warwick scientists has identified the chemical fingerprint of a…
    Tags: atmosphere, planet, water, oxygen, planets, life, planet's, universe
  • Earth has a hot new neighbour – and it's an astronomer's dream
    45
    Earth has a hot new neighbour – and it's an astronomer's dreamA newly discovered planet could be our best chance yet of studying rocky planet atmospheres outside the solar system, a new international study involving UNSW Sydney shows. The planet, called Gliese 486b (pronounced Glee-seh), is a “super-Earth”: that is, a rocky planet bigger than Earth but smaller than ice giants…
    Tags: planet, atmosphere, planets, life, science, planet's
  • On the quest for other Earths
    42
    On the quest for other EarthsIn the search for planets capable of sustaining life, an international research team with members from ETH has taken a significant step forward. As the researchers reported recently in the journal Nature Communications, they found signs of a Neptune-sized planet in the Alpha Centauri star system, a mere 4.4 light years…
    Tags: planets, life, planet, atmosphere, water, planet's, universe
  • There might be many planets with water-rich atmospheres
    40
    There might be many planets with water-rich atmospheresAn atmosphere is what makes life on Earth's surface possible, regulating our climate and sheltering us from damaging cosmic rays. But although telescopes have counted a growing number of rocky planets, scientists had thought most of their atmospheres long lost. However, a new study by University of Chicago and Stanford…
    Tags: planets, atmosphere, water, planet, universe, planet's
  • The seven rocky planets of TRAPPIST-1 seem to have very similar compositions
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    The seven rocky planets of TRAPPIST-1 seem to have very similar compositionsA new international study led by astrophysicist Eric Agol from the University of Washington has measured the densities of the seven planets of the exoplanetary system TRAPPIST-1 with extreme precision, the values obtained indicating very similar compositions for all the planets. This fact makes the system even more remarkable and…
    Tags: planets, water, planet, planet's, science

CO2 mitigation on Earth and magnesium civilization on Mars

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Excessive CO2 emissions are a major cause of climate change, and hence reducing the CO2 levels in the Earth’s atmosphere is key to limit adverse environmental effects.

Rather than just capture and store CO2, it would be desirable to use it as carbon feedstock for fuel production to achieve the target of “net-zero-emissions energy systems”.

The capture and conversion of CO2 (from fuel gas or directly from the air) to methane and methanol simply using water as a hydrogen source under ambient conditions would provide an optimal solution to reduce excessive CO2 levels and would be highly sustainable. [Read more…] about CO2 mitigation on Earth and magnesium civilization on Mars

Related Posts

  • Study warns of 'oxygen false positives' in search for signs of life on other planets
    31
    Study warns of 'oxygen false positives' in search for signs of life on other planetsIn the search for life on other planets, the presence of oxygen in a planet's atmosphere is one potential sign of biological activity that might be detected by future telescopes. A new study, however, describes several scenarios in which a lifeless rocky planet around a sun-like star could evolve to…
    Tags: water, life, surface, universe

First transiting exoplanet’s ‘chemical fingerprint’ reveals its distant birthplace

by

Astronomers have found evidence that the first exoplanet that was identified transiting its star could have migrated to a close orbit with its star from its original birthplace further away.

Analysis of the planet’s atmosphere by a team including University of Warwick scientists has identified the chemical fingerprint of a planet that formed much further away from its sun than it currently resides.

It confirms previous thinking that the planet has moved to its current position after forming, a mere 7 million km from its sun or the equivalent of 1/20th the distance from the Earth to our Sun. [Read more…] about First transiting exoplanet’s ‘chemical fingerprint’ reveals its distant birthplace

Related Posts

  • Study warns of 'oxygen false positives' in search for signs of life on other planets
    48
    Study warns of 'oxygen false positives' in search for signs of life on other planetsIn the search for life on other planets, the presence of oxygen in a planet's atmosphere is one potential sign of biological activity that might be detected by future telescopes. A new study, however, describes several scenarios in which a lifeless rocky planet around a sun-like star could evolve to…
    Tags: oxygen, atmosphere, water, life, planet, planets, universe, planet's
  • There might be many planets with water-rich atmospheres
    41
    There might be many planets with water-rich atmospheresAn atmosphere is what makes life on Earth's surface possible, regulating our climate and sheltering us from damaging cosmic rays. But although telescopes have counted a growing number of rocky planets, scientists had thought most of their atmospheres long lost. However, a new study by University of Chicago and Stanford…
    Tags: planets, atmosphere, atmospheres, hydrogen, water, star, university, planet, universe, planet's
  • On the quest for other Earths
    33
    On the quest for other EarthsIn the search for planets capable of sustaining life, an international research team with members from ETH has taken a significant step forward. As the researchers reported recently in the journal Nature Communications, they found signs of a Neptune-sized planet in the Alpha Centauri star system, a mere 4.4 light years…
    Tags: planets, life, planet, atmosphere, exoplanet, team, water, star, planet's, universe
  • Life on Venus? First we need to know more about molecules in the atmosphere
    32
    Life on Venus? First we need to know more about molecules in the atmosphereThe search for life on other planets has received a major boost after scientists revealed the spectral signatures of almost 1000 atmospheric molecules that may be involved in the production or consumption of phosphine, a study led by UNSW Sydney revealed. Scientists have long conjectured that phosphine – a chemical…
    Tags: life, molecules, planet, atmosphere, planets, team, species, universe, planet's
  • Astronomers detect first ever hydroxyl molecule signature in an exoplanet atmosphere
    32
    Astronomers detect first ever hydroxyl molecule signature in an exoplanet atmosphereAn international collaboration of astronomers led by a researcher from the Astrobiology Center and Queen's University Belfast, and including researchers from Trinity College Dublin, has detected a new chemical signature in the atmosphere of an extrasolar planet (a planet that orbits a star other than our Sun). The hydroxyl radical…
    Tags: atmosphere, planet, planets, astronomers, water, university, exoplanet, star, vapour, detect

Researchers discover new type of ancient crater lake on Mars

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Researchers from Brown University have discovered a previously unknown type of ancient crater lake on Mars that could reveal clues about the planet’s early climate.

In a study published in Planetary Science Journal, a research team led by Brown Ph.D. student Ben Boatwright describes an as-yet unnamed crater with some puzzling characteristics.

The crater’s floor has unmistakable geologic evidence of ancient stream beds and ponds, yet there’s no evidence of inlet channels where water could have entered the crater from outside, and no evidence of groundwater activity where it could have bubbled up from below. [Read more…] about Researchers discover new type of ancient crater lake on Mars

Launch of Europe’s largest astronomy network

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Until now, Europe has had two major collaborative networks for ground-based astronomy, one in the optical wavelength domain and the other in the radio-wave domain. OPTICON and RadioNet have now come together to form Europe’s largest ground-based astronomy collaborative network.

Launched with funding to the tune of €15 million under the H2020 programme, the project aims to harmonise observational methods and tools, and provide access to a wider range of astronomy facilities.

As our knowledge of the Universe advances, astronomers increasingly need a range of complementary techniques in order to analyse and understand astronomical phenomena. As a result, the European Union has decided to bring together the optical and radio networks OPTICON and RadioNet, who have successfully served their respective communities over the past twenty years. [Read more…] about Launch of Europe’s largest astronomy network

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  • A blazar in the early universe
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    A blazar in the early universeThe supersharp radio "vision" of the National Science Foundation's Very Long Baseline Array (VLBA) has revealed previously unseen details in a jet of material ejected at three-quarters the speed of light from the core of a galaxy some 12.8 billion light-years from Earth. The galaxy, dubbed PSO J0309+27, is a…
    Tags: universe, radio, astronomers, astronomy, news

Three bacterial strains discovered on space station may help grow plants on Mars

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In order to withstand the rigors of space on deep-space missions, food grown outside of Earth needs a little extra help from bacteria. Now, a recent discovery aboard the International Space Station (ISS) has researchers may help create the ‘fuel’ to help plants withstand such stressful situations.

Publishing their findings to Frontiers in Microbiology, researchers working with NASA described the discovery and isolation of 4 strains of bacteria belonging to the family Methylobacteriaceae from different locations aboard the ISS across two consecutive flights.

While 1 strain was identified as Methylorubrum rhodesianum, the other 3 were previously undiscovered and belong to a novel species novel. The rod-shaped, motile bacteria were given the designations IF7SW-B2T, IIF1SW-B5, and IIF4SW-B5 with genetic analysis showing them to be closely related to Methylobacterium indicum. [Read more…] about Three bacterial strains discovered on space station may help grow plants on Mars