For the first time, astronomers have caught a baby planet in the process of growing. This isn’t just a newly developing planet, located in a gap in a star’s disk of primordial dust and gas. That’s been done before. This is direct evidence that such a …
When it comes to searching for evidence of alien life, the phrase follow the water is often quoted as a guiding principle. All life on Earth depends on water, so it makes sense to focus on other places where water exists as well. This has …
Nearly 4,000 exoplanets have been discovered so far, orbiting distant stars. One question that has inevitably come up is, how similar are those planets and solar systems to ours, in particular to Earth? Are they comparable in composition or completely different? A new study, presented …
Read MoreEarth’s ingredients ‘pretty normal,’ say astronomers
Rogue planets are free-floating worlds, drifting in space between the stars. A growing number of these odd objects have been discovered in recent years, not gravitationally tethered to any star. Now, a weird new one has been found and observed more closely, as discussed in …
Read MoreAstronomers find weird rogue world with wild auroras
Chorus waves are electromagnetic waves that can be converted to sound. When that’s done, and we “hear” the chorus waves around Earth, they sound like singing or chirping birds. Chorus waves can also produce beautiful auroras at the poles of a planet. In addition to …
Plate tectonics have long been thought to have been necessary for the development of life on Earth, in part due to making it easier for volcanoes to release essential gases into the atmosphere. But now, new research suggests that may not be the case after …
Thousands of exoplanets are now being discovered – there are 3,815 confirmed as of August 1, 2018 – but how many of them have the right conditions to life? The data so far shows that the most common planets are super-Earths (larger than Earth but …
Read MoreScientists identify best exoplanets for Earth-like life