The Erigone family of asteroids are water-rich space rocks that offer a window into the solar system’s past
A family of primitive asteroids is giving astronomers a window into the past as they seek to unravel the history of these small space rocks that are believed to have once brought water to Earth.
Mars rover Perseverance finds interesting rock that may have harbored microbial life billions of years ago
Analysis by instruments on board the rover shows that the rock has qualities that meet the definition of a possible indicator of ancient life. The rock contains chemical signatures and structures that could have been formed by life billions of years ago, when there was flowing water in the area the rover was exploring. The science team is considering other explanations for the observed features, and further research will be needed to determine whether ancient life is a valid explanation.
As part of the Artemis project, scientists are studying the features of the lunar landscape
A meteorite study shows that in ancient lunar history, the Moon’s crust contained more water than scientists previously thought. Moonquakes are similar to earthquakes. In the case of the Moon, they are caused by folds that form on the Moon’s surface as it shrinks. The Moon is shrinking because the Moon’s interior has cooled over the past few hundred million years.
Features of the landscape on Mars – new discoveries
Olympus Mons is one of a dozen large volcanoes, many of which are ten to a hundred times taller than their Earthly counterparts. If Martian space tourism takes off in the coming decades, Olympus Mons could become a prime destination for adventure enthusiasts. Olympus may once have been a volcanic island surrounded by an ocean nearly 4 miles (6 km) deep, according to geological evidence found in the high cliffs. Another new study found that the rover discovered polygonal wedges 35 kilometers underground – the first time they have been discovered beneath the planet’s surface. Evidence suggests that the wedges formed between 3.7 and 2.9 billion years ago due to major climate changes in Mars’ past. The Mars Express orbiter has discovered enough water ice buried beneath the Red Planet’s equator to cover the entire planet in a shallow ocean if it melted.
Scientists have proven: there are asteroids – piles of rubble that carry water, carbon and amino acids
Scientists have proven that there are asteroids that are resistant to external influences. This means that the tested methods are not suitable for protecting the Earth from such objects. Scientists have discovered possible “seeds of life” in the matter of asteroids: The idea that life originated outside our solar system has been around for a very long time, and now analysis of new asteroid samples is providing evidence for this “panspermia” theory.
Heavy hydrogen used in nuclear energy and water turned out to be older than Earth
In protoplanetary disks, water is virtually omnipresent. Recent studies of the water content of early planetary systems like ours show that water is an abundant and ubiquitous molecule, originally synthesized on the surface of tiny grains of interstellar dust by hydrogenation of frozen oxygen, reports the journal Elements. In the molecular cloud from which a new planetary system will emerge, oxygen attaches and freezes to the dust grains it encounters. Once a hydrogen molecule intersects with this frozen oxygen, water ice is formed.
The Hubble telescope discovered water vapor in the atmosphere of an exoplanet located 97 light years from Earth
Astronomers using NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope have observed the smallest exoplanet to have water vapor in its atmosphere. Planet GJ 9827d, which is only about twice the diameter of Earth, could be an example of potential planets with water-rich atmospheres in other parts of our galaxy. GJ 9827d was discovered by NASA’s Kepler space telescope in 2017. It orbits the red dwarf every 6.2 days. The star GJ 9827 is located 97 light years from Earth in the constellation Pisces.
Researchers are studying layers of water ice on Mars
Mars appears to be a dry world now, but there are plenty of signs on the planet’s surface that there was once plenty of water, including dry river beds, ancient ocean and lake beds, and valleys carved by water. Significant reserves of water ice have also been discovered on Mars, such as huge polar ice caps, buried glaciers closer to the equator, and near-surface ice permeated by the Martian soil.
NASA has recognized the existence of life on Mars in the past and present
The goal of the NIAC project is to collect the necessary samples before human arrival on Mars, planned by NASA, the Chinese National Space Agency and SpaceX, by 2040, by 2033 and before 2030, respectively, according to the space agencies’ respective statements. Human arrival will undoubtedly complicate the search for indigenous Martian life, so from an astrobiological perspective, these planned manned missions to Mars have set a very strict timeline for the search for life on pristine Mars.
The era of liquid water on Mars ended three billion years ago
Chinese scientists have concluded that groundwater on Mars under the Utopia Planitia remained active until the Amazonian (recent) period of the geological history of the Red Planet, which was previously considered cold and dry. In sedimentary deposits of Amazonian age, Zhuzhong instruments identified hydrated sulfates, hydrosilica, ferric oxides and chlorides. These minerals require liquid salt water to form.
Lunar Mission: Polar Moon Craters Become Cold Traps and Capable of Preserving Water Ice
Planetary scientists have found that magnetic anomalies in the region of the Moon’s south pole can protect deposits of water ice in craters from destruction by the solar wind by deflecting ions, according to a report from the 53rd Lunar and Planetary Science Conference.
Far-reaching plans – terraforming Mars
The main problem for changing the appearance of Mars is the lack of a strong magnetic field that can protect the atmosphere from solar winds that burn water in it. The magnetic field creates a kind of bubble that protects the planet from the oncoming solar winds. For example, the Earth’s magnetic field prevents most high-energy particles from reaching the planet’s surface.
Scientists have confirmed the dangers of reusable plastic tableware
Studies have shown that reusable plastic bottles contaminate water with hundreds of potentially dangerous toxic substances from the walls of the vessel. And if the bottle has been in the dishwasher, then the number of such elements increases to thousands.
China, USA and Russia are the main participants in the “moon race”
All three countries have long-term programs, the ultimate goal of which is the creation of a permanent base on the Earth’s satellite. The potential of the Moon as a raw material base for the Earth is enormous – scientists believe so.
Russian-European orbital module found new evidence of the existence of water on Mars
The Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter has discovered signs and minerals in the craters of Mars that suggest that there was once water there, the Roscosmos press service reports.
After a 45-year break, the lunar program is being revived in Russia
At the beginning of October 2021, the Russian automatic station Luna-25 will be launched to search for water ice, a key resource for the construction of a habitable base.
Volcanic activity on Mars prevents water from completely evaporating
Seismic activity on Mars indicates tectonic activity that is similar to that on Earth. The NASA InSight probe detected earthquakes on Mars with an amplitude of up to 4 points.
Environmentalists announce the fight against microplastics
The main sources of microplastics: plastic dishes, synthetic clothing, washing powders, cosmetics and household chemicals with polymers (Acrylates/C10-30, Acrylates Crosspolymer (ACS), Alkyl Acrylate Crosspolymer, Carbomer, Ethylen-Vinylacetat-Copolymere, Nylon-6, Nylon- 12, Polyacrylate, Polymethyl Methacrylate, Polyquaternium, Polyquaternium-7, Polyethylene (PE), Polypropylene (PP), Polyothylenteraphthalat (PET), Polyurethan (PUR), Polyurethan-2, Polyurethan-14, Polyurethan-35, etc.)
Water evaporating from Mars remains on its surface in the form of hydrated minerals
Water on the surface of Mars is conserved in rocks. The cessation of tectonic activity on the Red Planet stopped the circulation of water from the atmosphere back to the surface.