The ocean underneath the icy shell of Jupiter's moon Europa could be too acid to support life, due to compounds that may regularly migrate downward from its surface, researchers find.
Mar 01, 2012
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March 2012 marks the fortieth anniversary of the launch of one of the most extraordinary spacecraft ever constructed - Pioneer 10 - the first true deep space probe. The story of the Voyager spacecraft is well ...
Feb 27, 2012
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Scientists have long thought that planets had to orbit very close to small and dim red dwarf stars in order to be warm enough for life. New research challenges that assumption.
Feb 24, 2012
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The light scattered off distant worlds could help reveal details about their atmospheres that no other method could uncover, scientists find.
Feb 20, 2012
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To deal with the faint young Sun paradox, researchers are taking a fresh look at an old idea: that the Sun started out larger and more luminous than we thought.
Feb 14, 2012
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Alien planets might experience tidal forces powerful enough to remove all their water, leaving behind hot, dry worlds like Venus, researchers said.
Feb 09, 2012
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Highly-tilted worlds would have extreme seasons, subjecting life to alternating periods of scorching and subzero temperatures. This could make the development of all but hardiest, simplest creatures a long ...
Feb 06, 2012
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By looking at the wavelengths of light from nearby stars, researchers have determined the abundance of certain elements for more than a hundred stars. Trace elements in such stars may influence their habitable ...
Feb 02, 2012
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The pattern of clouds on Earth is largely determined by the arrangement of the continents below. Now, astronomers are modeling the clouds at different periods in Earth's past to better understand what alien ...
Jan 24, 2012
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Most scientists who study the origin of life assume that it occurred in the ocean. But a minority view is that ions in seawater may interfere with prebiotic chemistry, making a freshwater environment more ...
Jan 19, 2012
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Although winter now grips much of the Northern Hemisphere, those who dislike the cold weather can rest assured that warmer months shall return. This familiar pattern of spring, summer, fall and winter does ...
Jan 12, 2012
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As the Kepler space telescope continues to search for potentially habitable planets, it also may reveal moons that could host life. Three new simulations will help astronomers identify rocky satellites that ...
Jan 06, 2012
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Researchers are moving a step closer to solving one of the greatest murder mysteries of all time. It happened roughly 200 million years ago, marking the boundary between the Triassic and Jurassic periods, ...
Dec 16, 2011
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Tidally-locked planets - planets with one side perpetually facing their star while the other remains shrouded in darkness - tend to be warmer on one side than the other. The presence of an atmosphere can help ...
Dec 09, 2011
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The Mars Science Laboratory is on its way to the red planet, and its rover Curiosity should touch down next summer. If the mission hits paydirt and comes across organic material, then one instrument in particular ...
Dec 06, 2011
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