NASA’s Io Volcano Observer: Following the Heat and Hunting Clues to Planet Evolution
A proposed mission called Io Volcano Observer (IVO) would visit Jupiter’s moon Io, which is a true volcanic wonderland with hundreds of erupting volcanoes gushing…
Exoplanet
Nearest Exoplanet to Our Solar System: Jupiter-Mass Planet Orbiting Epsilon Eridani
This artist’s concept is of a Jupiter-mass planet orbiting the nearby star Epsilon Eridani. Located 10.5 light-years away, it was the closest known exoplanet to…
“Chemical Fingerprint” of First Transiting Exoplanet Reveals Its Distant Birthplace
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…
Size of Raindrops Help Identify Potentially Habitable Planets Outside Our Solar System
Raindrops Also Keep Fallin’ on Exoplanets One day, humankind may step foot on another habitable planet. That planet may look very different from Earth, but…
Hubble Space Telescope Sees Volcanic Activity Reforming the Atmosphere on a Rocky Exoplanet
For the first time, scientists using the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope have found evidence of volcanic activity reforming the atmosphere on a rocky planet around…
Earth Has a Hot New Neighbor: Discovery of a Nearby Exoplanet Suitable for Atmospheric Investigation
Using both transit and radial velocity data, researchers discovered Gliese 486 b — a super-Earth exoplanet orbiting the nearby red dwarf star Gliese 486. At…
NASA’s Roman Space Telescope Predicted to Find 100,000 Transiting Planets
NASA’s Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope will create enormous cosmic panoramas, helping us answer questions about the evolution of our universe. Astronomers also expect the…
NASA’s Pandora Mission Would Help Probe Alien Worlds
In the quest for habitable planets beyond our own, NASA is studying a mission concept called Pandora, which could eventually help decode the atmospheric mysteries…
Gigantic, Scorching-Hot Planet May Be Orbiting Vega, One of the Brightest Stars in the Night Sky
Astronomers have discovered new hints of a giant, scorching-hot planet orbiting Vega, one of the brightest stars in the night sky. The research, published this…
Planetary Scientists Discover There May Be Many Planets With Water-Rich Atmospheres
University of Chicago study finds way that hot, rocky planets in other systems could form and keep atmospheres. An atmosphere is what makes life on…
On the Quest for Other Earths in the Search for Extraterrestrial Life
An international research team with members from ETH has developed a new method for directly imaging smaller planets in the habitable zone of a neighboring…
Search for Alien Life: How the Habitability of Exoplanets Is Influenced by Their Rocks
The weathering of silicate rocks plays an important role to keep the climate on Earth clement. Scientists led by the University of Bern and the…
Hubble Finds Earth-Sized Planet That May Be on Its Second Atmosphere
The Earth-sized exoplanet may have lost its original atmosphere but gained a second one through volcanism. Orbiting a red dwarf star 41 light-years away is…
Tiny New Photonic Device Could Help Discover Exoplanets and Detect Diseases
Tiny photonic devices could be used to find new exoplanets, monitor our health, and make the internet more energy efficient. Researchers from Chalmers University of…
Earth Has a Hot New Neighbor – And It Could Change How We Look for Life in the Universe
A rocky planet discovered in the Virgo constellation is an astronomer’s dream. A newly discovered planet could be our best chance yet of studying rocky…
Volcanoes Might Light Up the Night Sky of This Super-Earth Exoplanet
Until now, researchers have found no evidence of global tectonic activity on planets outside our solar system. Under the leadership of the University of Bern…
Alien Super-Earth Planet Discovered Just 26 Light Years Away – Probably Has an Atmosphere
During the past 25 years astronomers have discovered a wide variety of exoplanets, made of rock, ice, and gas, thanks to the construction of astronomical…
Astronomers See Whirlwind of Dust and Pebbles Around Possible Exoplanet-in-the-Making
An international team of astronomers led by researchers from the Leiden University has discovered a whirlwind of dust and pebbles in orbit around a young…