Some pools of salty water on the Red Planet could contain enough dissolved oxygen for microorganisms and sponges to survive, new calculations suggest.
Space & Planets
Posted inNews
Huge Blades of Ice May Partially Cover Jupiter’s Moon Europa
Conditions are right for “penitentes” up to 15 meters high to form on the Jovian moon, new research shows. The spires might prevent a lander from exploring Europa’s equatorial region.
Posted inNews
U.S. Mint Unveils Design for Special Apollo 11 Coin
The showcase of a commemorative coin kicks off national celebrations of the Apollo anniversaries.
Posted inNews
Mercury Mission Will Map Morphology and Measure Magnetics
BepiColombo may launch as early as this weekend. It seeks to unravel the mysteries of Mercury’s geologic and magnetic past and map the small planet’s cratered surface.
Posted inEditors' Vox
Seeing Mars in a Grain of Sand
The second phase of Curiosity’s campaign at the Bagnold Dunes brought new observations of windblown sands during Mars’s windy season.
Posted inEditors' Highlights
Energetic Electrons Can Penetrate the Stratosphere
Precipitations of electrons with energies greater than 30 kiloelectron volts from the slot region penetrate at low altitude and can contribute to destroy ozone.
Posted inScience Updates
How Do We Accomplish System Science in Space?
Exploring Systems-Science Techniques for the Earth’s Magnetosphere-Ionosphere-Thermosphere; Los Alamos, New Mexico, 24–26 July 2018
Posted inEditors' Highlights
Double Threat to Solar Panels in Space
Protons accelerated in solar storms and electrons accelerated in geospace storms can reduce space mission lifetimes. What is the likelihood of extreme events during geospace storms?
Posted inNews
Large Exomoon Likely Orbits a Faraway World
This Neptune-sized object would be the first moon discovered to orbit a planet outside the solar system, provided that additional observations continue to support the claim.
Posted inEditors' Highlights
Extreme Space Conditions at Mars: The 10 Largest Electron Events
A solar cycle of data was scoured for the biggest electron energy fluxes seen in the Mars space environment.