Why there may be oceans inside dwarf planets beyond Pluto – and what this means for the likely abundance of life

The Solar System could be awash with oceans, not on the surface but hidden inside the most surprising bodies

David Rothery, Professor of Planetary Geosciences, The Open University • conversation
April 4, 2024 • ~8 min

Earth isn't the only planet with seasons, but they can look wildly different on other worlds

You might hate winter, but at least you know what to expect every year. Other planets have wobbly axes that lead to wild, unpredictable seasons.

Gongjie Li, Assistant Professor of Physics, Georgia Institute of Technology • conversation
Jan. 10, 2024 • ~8 min

Mysterious missing component in the clouds of Venus revealed

Researchers may have identified the missing component in the chemistry of the Venusian clouds that would explain their colour and 'splotchiness' in the UV

Cambridge University News • cambridge
Jan. 9, 2024 • ~3 min

How we discovered that Uranus and Neptune are actually nearly identical in colour

It turns out Uranus actually changes colour throughout the year.

Patrick Gerard Joseph Irwin, Professor of Planetary Physics, University of Oxford • conversation
Jan. 5, 2024 • ~7 min

The longstanding mystery of Mars' moons – and the mission that could solve it

A Japanese spacecraft is expected to reach Martian orbit in 2025 to collect material from the surface of the moon Phobos before returning to Earth by 2029.

Ben Rider-Stokes, Post Doctoral Researcher in Achondrite Meteorites, The Open University • conversation
Dec. 7, 2023 • ~6 min

Tilted planets in Earth’s solar system aren’t so weird after all

Scientists have discovered that, even in "pristine" solar systems, planets exhibit a bit of a tilt.

Jim Shelton-Yale • futurity
Nov. 28, 2023 • ~4 min

Unwrapping Uranus and its icy secrets: What NASA would learn from a mission to a wild world

Five of the Uranus moons might be ocean worlds − and if there’s water, there might be life.

Mike Sori, Assistant Professor of Planetary Science, Purdue University • conversation
Nov. 28, 2023 • ~7 min

Is some of the body that collided with Earth to form the Moon still recognisable inside our planet?

The Moon was formed when it collided with Earth billions of years ago.

David Rothery, Professor of Planetary Geosciences, The Open University • conversation
Nov. 10, 2023 • ~6 min

NASA's robotic prospectors are helping scientists understand what asteroids are made of – setting the stage for miners to follow someday

Upcoming NASA missions will help scientists understand the composition of asteroids – which could inform companies one day hoping to commercially mine asteroids.

Valerie Payré, Assistant Professor of Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of Iowa • conversation
Nov. 2, 2023 • ~6 min

Osiris-Rex: Nasa reveals evidence of water and carbon in sample delivered to Earth from an asteroid

Studying the sample could help answer how water arrived on Earth and how life started.

Lucinda King, Space Projects Manager & Mission Design Lead, University of Portsmouth • conversation
Oct. 13, 2023 • ~7 min

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