planet

Another search for Planet 9 comes up empty

by

A theorized huge, ninth planet beyond the orbit of Neptune once again wasn’t found in a new survey of the solar system‘s outer reaches. Astronomers scanned a large portion of the sky using the 6-meter Atacama Cosmology Telescope (ACT) in Chile to search for Planet 9. The quest came up empty, according to the scientists … Read more

Sadly, Astronomers Just Lost Three Exoplanets. Here’s Why

by

What we thought were three confirmed exoplanets have just been knocked off their perch – and a fourth one is under serious doubt. According to a new analysis using revised characteristics, the objects Kepler-854b, Kepler-840b, and Kepler-699b seem to be too big to be exoplanets after all. That means they must be stars. The fourth … Read more

NASA’s Perseverance Mars rover nabs 8th rock sample on the Red Planet

by

NASA’s top-notch Red Planet geology rover is moving on to explore an ancient river delta now that its eighth rock sample is secured for future analysis. “Stashing my latest rock core sample (#8!) and finishing up at this location. I’m packing up and making my way to the dry river delta. Off we go,” the … Read more

Mars helicopter Ingenuity aces 21st Red Planet flight

by

The Ingenuity helicopter’s Red Planet flight tally is up to 21. The 4-pound (1.8 kilograms) NASA chopper just aced another Mars sortie, agency officials announced today (March 11). “#MarsHelicopter can’t be stopped! Ingenuity successfully completed its 21st flight on the Red Planet. The small rotorcraft traveled 370 meters [1,214 feet] at a speed of 3.85 … Read more

Fix the Planet newsletter: Carbon capture power stations are back

by

Will gas power stations equipped with carbon capture and storage be the future of power plants in the UK? Environment 11 March 2022 By Adam Vaughan Keadby 2 gas-fired power station David Soulsby / Alamy This is Fix the Planet, the weekly climate change newsletter that reminds you there are reasons for hope in science … Read more

What if There’s an Earth-Like Planet at One of Our Closest Stars?

by

Just over four light-years away, our Solar System’s closest neighboring stars can be found. There’s red dwarf Proxima Centauri, at a distance of 4.2 light-years; and, just a little farther, at 4.37 light-years, a binary system of Sun-like stars – Alpha Centauri AB.   We don’t yet know if there are any Earth-like worlds orbiting … Read more

An Earthlike planet may be orbiting in a dead star’s ‘habitable zone’

by

Planetary debris, including some objects the size of moons, may hint at a rocky exoplanet within the habitable zone of a stellar zombie, a new study suggests. The star in question is a white dwarf called WD1054–226, a cooling remnant of a star that exhausted all fuel at its core. If an exoplanet is confirmed … Read more

NASA’s Mars rover Perseverance snags 7th Red Planet rock sample

by

NASA’s Perseverance rover now has seven Mars rock samples in its collection. The car-sized robot drilled into another Martian rock and socked away the resulting core, mission team members announced via Twitter today (March 8). It’s the seventh drilled sample that Perseverance has collected since touching down on the floor of the Red Planet’s Jezero … Read more