A Kuiper Belt object might contain ribose and glucose on its surface—the same elements that could have seeded life on Earth.
unsolved mysteries
Posted inResearch Spotlights
Studying the Mystery of Uranus’s Curiously Weak Radiation Belts
The belts may not be weak at all—instead, they may be simply changing speed thanks to the planet’s asymmetric magnetic field.
Posted inResearch Spotlights
Fifty-Three Experts Weigh in on the Global Methane Budget
A survey of experts revealed that uncertainty in estimates of global methane levels stems largely from data on fresh water, vegetation, and coastal areas.
Posted inNews
Radioactive Sediments May Have Built Earth’s Cratons
Weathering of the earliest continents could have set in motion the formation of cratons, the immutable roots of continents.
Posted inNews
Magnetic Barriers Might Explain Mysterious Hot Jupiters
Hot Jupiters might end up very close to stars because a magnetic field halts their progress—and future observations could confirm the idea.
Posted inNews
Spiral Waves May Explain the Sun’s Baffling Rotation
New observations and models show a connection between high-latitude waves in the Sun’s interior and the different rates of spin between the solar equator and poles.
Posted inNews
A Step Closer to Solving the Fermi Paradox
Finding evidence of complex life elsewhere in the Milky Way galaxy hinges on locating rocky planets with plate tectonics and a mixture of landmasses and oceans, new research suggests.
Posted inNews
The Moon’s Mantle Did a Flip—and Scientists May Now Have Evidence
For decades, a lunar whodunit has puzzled scientists: Did the Moon’s internal layers flip during its formation? Old data might hold the evidence to solve this cold case.
Posted inNews
Middle-of-the-Road Mountains Form the Best Carbon Sinks
Silicate rock weathering has a sweet spot: erosion that isn’t too fast or too slow.
Posted inNews
Fiber-Optic Networks Could Reveal the Moon’s Inner Structure
Distributed acoustic sensing offers a cost-effective alternative to traditional seismic arrays, and building such a network on the Moon might be possible.