Kepler 452-b the exoplanet that has been discussed so much lately is the one that is supposed to be most similar to Earth (that we have spotted). And this pic is really cool as astronomers spotted a gas giant in orbit: A team of astronomers has given us our best view yet of an exoplanet…
Rocky Planets May Be Able To Harbor Extraterrestrials (Under These Circumstances)
Most of the attention lately in regards to the search for extraterrestrial intelligence is in regards to exoplanets. None have gotten more attention than Kepler 452-b. However, this team may have a different approach in broadening our search criteria: The quest for potentially habitable planets is often interpreted as the search for an Earth twin.…
Are Advanced Alien Civilizations Rare?
These folks seem to think so.. Astronomers are using a technique to detect energy use as a sign of advanced alien civilizations. Here is a bit more information on their methods: Advanced civilizations harnessing energies on galactic scales (so-called Kardashev Type III civilizations) are expected to be detectable in the mid-Infrared part of the spectrum…
Was Mars Once A Blue Planet?
This video takes an interesting look into the past of the planet Mars. Currently it has no atmosphere and the theories of why this is the case are all over the place: For decades, planetary scientists have suspected that ancient Mars was a much warmer, wetter environment than it is today, but estimates of just…
Mercury Rotates Much Faster Than They Thought
Astronomers have just made a discovery that although may seem small, has significant implications for our solar system as well as others: By analyzing data collected by NASA’s MESSENGER spacecraft, scientists have found that, on average, Mercury spins on its axis 9 seconds faster than had previously been anticipated. The precise measurement of the rotation…
S.E.T.I. (Search For Extraterrestrial Intelligence) Is Starting Up Again
After some mysteries starting in the 1970s the S.E.T.I. program took a pause. Now, the program is getting restarted and they are very ambitious: A new influx of money has saved the Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence (SETI) from collapse, but what does the future hold for our quest to discover intelligent life in the Universe?…
They Found Petrified Sand Dunes On Mars
The pics from the Curiosity rover keep coming in and now they have a decision to make: NASA’s SUV-sized Curiosity rover has arrived at a beautiful Martian vistadisplaying a huge deposit of magnificently petrified sand dunes that look remarkably like some commonly found on Earth and native to the deserts of the U.S. Southwest. The…
Mars Rover And Earth Could Have A Direct Connection
With the new pics of Mars and Ceres coming in, there is a big buzz about the planet and the interesting surface. And now apparently they may be able to communicate with future Mars probes much more efficiently: Walking to rovers on the surface of Mars could become much easier, thanks to a new type of antenna…
When Will We Be Able To Travel To Other Galaxies?
The question of when or if we will be able to travel to other galaxies is often debated. There is that question many of us ask, not just astronomers, if we are alone? Traveling to galactic formations light years away would enable us to study different terrain and solar systems up close. A famous scientific…
Could There Be Life On Jupiter’s Moons?
NASA has an ambitious notion in that there might be life on one or all of Jupiter’s moons. And, they plan to to explore them further to possibly find out in this time horizon: It will launch in 2022 and head for the ocean-bearing worlds of Europa, Ganymede and Callisto. Dubbed the Juice (JUpiter ICy…
NASA Just Released New Detailed Pics Of Pluto
The New Horizons mission has yielded a treasure trove of pics from Pluto and there are some new, never seen before detailed ones that just came in: NASA has released a whole new set of Pluto images that were taken by its New Horizons spacecraft during its historic fly-by in July, and these things are…
Unusual Group Of Galaxies Is Seen 10 Billion Light Years Away
They just discovered a surprising and very cool formation of galaxies. And they are almost 10 billion light years away: A multinational group of astronomers has discovered a distant cluster of galaxies with active star formation occurring in close proximity to the cluster’s central galaxy. The discovery is the first to show that galaxies at…
As New Images Of Pluto Come One Puzzle Piece May Be Solved
What causes the mysterious “dark pole” on Charon? That is one of the mysteries of this tiny planet at the edge of our solar system and now astronomers may have the answer: As we await new imagery and data from the New Horizons’ flyby of the Pluto system to be transmitted to Earth, one piece…
How Is A Dwarf Galaxy Able To Produce Brilliant Star Clusters?
A team of astronomers have used the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) and likely solved a big universal mystery about dwarf galaxies: How is it able to form brilliant star clusters without the dusty, gas-rich environments found in larger galaxies? The answer, astronomers believe, lies in densely packed and previously unrecognized nuggets of star-forming material sprinkled throughout…
Ceres Update – Latest New Close Ups Of Mysterious Spots
Many of you have been following the mysterious pics from the dwarf planet Ceres, and in particular the famous bright spots. Now they have just released the closest pics of those spots ever: A stunning new image from NASA’s Dawn spacecraft shows a cluster of bright spots on Ceres’ surface in unprecedented detail. The intriguing…
Massive Amount Of Data From Pluto Flyby Are Coming In
The most extensive and detailed pics of the small planet Pluto are really starting to come in! On July 14, New Horizons became the first probe ever to fly by Pluto, zooming within 7,800 miles (12,550 kilometers) of the dwarf planet’s enigmatic surface. New Horizons sent some images and measurements back to its handlers immediately…
Astronomers Consider A New Way To Detect Distant Comets
Astronomers have come up with a possible way to observe comets in other solar systems, which is very difficult if not impossible with current methods: During the impact of comet Shoemaker-Levy 9 on Jupiter in 1994, a noticeable flash of light was produced. “After the impact, sunlight that would have normally been absorbed by the…
A Big Meteor Exploded Over Thailand This Weekend [Video]
Many of us in the U.S. were celebrating the holiday weekend with traditional Labor Day festivities. However in Bangkok, some people witnessed a big meteor and it is on video: If you were driving through the streets of Bangkok in Thailand yesterday, you might have been lucky enough to see a huge fireball zoom towards…
Could This Be Actual Water On Mars?
This is a very cool video of some footage that may indicate the presence of water on the surface of Mars: Here is rotating globe of Mars and we’re going to zoom in on the middle Southern latitudes, the part of Mars where we find these active slope features, and we’re zooming in on the…
A Cool New Star Cluster Was Just Spotted!
They just discovered this incredible star cluster at the ESO observatory in Chile. For astronomy fans, here is a bit more information on this exciting news: IC 4651, also known as Melotte 169, was discovered by the American astronomer Solon Irving Bailey, and catalogued in 1896 by the Danish-Irish astronomer John Louis Emil Dreyer. The…
