Washington DC (SPX) Jul 22, 2025
NASA research has shown that cell-like compartments called vesicles could form naturally in the lakes of Saturn's moon Titan. Titan is the only world apart from Earth that is known to have liquid on its surface. However, Titan's lakes and seas are not filled with water. Instead, they contain liquid hydrocarbons like ethane and methane. On Earth, liquid water is thought to have been e

Los Angeles CA (SPX) Jul 22, 2025
A rare celestial body drifting far beyond Neptune, designated 2020 VN40, has been identified by astronomers from the Center for Astrophysics | Harvard and Smithsonian as the first confirmed object to complete one orbit around the sun for every ten orbits made by Neptune. This discovery adds a new chapter to the understanding of orbital resonances in the outer solar system. The trans-Neptun

Tokyo, Japan (SPX) Jul 22, 2025
Subaru Telescope has uncovered a rare celestial object far beyond Pluto, offering new insights into the ancient history and structure of the outer Solar System. Discovered through the FOSSIL survey project, the object-designated 2023 KQ14-was identified in observations from March to August 2023. FOSSIL (Formation of the Outer Solar System: An Icy Legacy) leverages the wide-field capabiliti

Orlando FL (SPX) Jul 22, 2025
Lunar dust is more than a mild irritant or hallmark of an untidy room like dust found on Earth. Lunar dust particles are sharp and abrasive due to the lack of atmosphere gradually dulling their surfaces, leading them to potentially damaging critical lunar equipment or causing respiratory issues for astronauts. Managing lunar dust (also known as regolith) and safeguarding astronauts or sens

Tokyo, Japan (SPX) Jul 22, 2025
A team of astronomers has revealed an intricate network of supersonic gas filaments within a very-high-velocity cloud (VHVC) in the Milky Way, using the Five-hundred-meter Aperture Spherical radio Telescope (FAST). The discovery sheds new light on the dynamic structure of the interstellar medium in the galaxy's quieter outer regions. Led by the Shanghai Astronomical Observatory (SHAO) of t

Greenbelt MD (SPX) Jul 22, 2025
July will see the launch of the groundbreaking Solar EruptioN Integral Field Spectrograph mission, or SNIFS. Delivered to space via a Black Brant IX sounding rocket, SNIFS will explore the energy and dynamics of the chromosphere, one of the most complex regions of the Sun's atmosphere. The SNIFS mission's launch window at the White Sands Missile Range in New Mexico opens on Friday, July 18.

Los Angeles CA (SPX) Jul 22, 2025
Astronomers have discovered a highly unusual space object named CHIME J1634+44, a Long Period Radio Transient (LPT) exhibiting behavior never before seen in this class of cosmic phenomena. Led by Fengqiu Adam Dong, a Jansky Fellow at the NSF Green Bank Observatory, the research reveals that CHIME J1634+44 is spinning up-its rotation rate is accelerating-contrary to established astrophysical expe

Los Angeles CA (SPX) Jul 22, 2025
NASA has awarded $621,000 to University of Massachusetts Amherst microbiologist James Holden to investigate what life might look like on Europa, Jupiter's ice-covered moon. To pursue answers, Holden is focusing his research on Earth's deep-sea volcanic hydrothermal vents-environments that may closely resemble Europa's subsurface conditions. Europa, beneath its frozen exterior, is believed

Houston TX (SPX) Jul 22, 2025
A new study led by University of Houston researchers, in collaboration with planetary scientists worldwide, suggests Uranus does have its own internal heat - an advance that not only informs NASA's future missions but also deepens scientists' understanding of planetary systems, including processes that influence Earth's climate and atmospheric evolution. The discovery resolves a long-stand

Tokyo, Japan (SPX) Jul 22, 2025
A new study published in Earth and Planetary Physics by Shenzhen University researchers Shibang Du and Chunyu Ding offers a detailed overview of the internal characteristics of asteroids and comets, emphasizing the crucial role of China's Tianwen-2 mission in their exploration. The paper underscores how radar observations of the near-Earth asteroid 2016 HO3 (Kamo'oalewa) and the active asteroid