![Top view schematic of the experimental geometry at the PWK1 plasma wind tunnel facility. The geometrical thickness 𝑠 denotes the extent of the radiating plasma along the line of sight as observed by the Echelle spectrometer. -- [astro-ph.EP]](https://i0.wp.com/astrobiology.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/09/Determining.png?resize=1200%2C718&ssl=1)
[astro-ph.EP] Laboratory simulations of meteor ablation provide a critical quantitative link between the chemical composition of meteoroids and their observed spectral features.
Impact events
Posted inCaves, Craters, Mountains, Subsurface, Lava Tubes
An Accidental Impact Crater Discovery
[NASA]. There are roughly 200 confirmed impact structures on Earth, but geologists estimate that hundreds more lurk undiscovered. Now, there’s at least one more—and a large one, at that—in the […]
Posted inEnceladus
The Enceladian Crater Production Function
[Icarus] Interpreting Enceladus’s past and present surface history and interior state remains challenging, owing to uncertain prescription of its impact bombardment history and limited interpretation of its crater statistics.
Posted inIcy Worlds
SwRI Simulations Indicate That Large Impacts May Limit Ocean Formation In Icy Moons
[SwRI] Southwest Research Institute (SwRI) scientists provided simulations to understand the role disruptive impacts play on icy moons with subsurface oceans in our solar system.
![Plot of the frequency vs. diameter for all asteroids with known or estimated rotation period with quality code 𝑈 ≥ 1. File data from the ALCDB of 1 Oct 2023, the last release (https://alcdef.org/). The two near-Earth asteroids, 2000 RD34 and 2000 DN8 (both with 𝑈 = 1), are shown together with the five LSFR from Rubin observations (red) and the candidate LSFR or almost candidate (due to borderline diameter as for 2015 RG36 and 2024 WB), which we have characterized at the Loiano Astronomical Station, managed by INAF-OAS in Italy (cyan). The curves for the rubble pile model with cohesion strength are from Eq. 12 (Sánchez and Scheeres, 2014). Our candidates LSFR has a cohesive strength between 102–104 Pa. -- [astro-ph.EP]](https://i0.wp.com/astrobiology.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/09/Photometric.png?resize=1200%2C721&ssl=1)
Posted inComets and Asteroids
Photometric Characterization Of Near-Earth Asteroids: Rotation, Taxonomy, And Candidate Evidence For Internal Cohesion
[astro-ph.EP] We present the results of a survey of previously uncharacterized near-Earth asteroids (NEAs) conducted between the second half of 2024 and the first months of 2026 using broadband BVRcIc […]
Posted inIcy Worlds
The Role of Disruptive Impacts on Ocean Generation and Longevity in Icy Moons
[Nature Astronomy] Among icy moons of the outer Solar System, subsurface water oceans and large collisions both seem to be common, but the impact of the latter on the presence […]
Posted inMars
A Mars Impact Crater Surrounded By Chunks Of Water Ice
[NASA] Boulder-size blocks of water ice can be seen around the rim of this giant meteoroid impact crater on Mars, as viewed by the High-Resolution Imaging Science Experiment (HiRISE camera) […]
Posted inMars
An Interesting Crater In Valles Marineris
[ESA] Along the equator of Mars, CaSSIS spotted a couple of interesting craters in Ganges Chasma, a mineralogically diverse canyon in the far-eastern portion of Valles Marineris.
Posted inMars
Subsurface Sediment Mobilization On Mars
[NASA/JPL/UA] This image covers a pie-like feature that thought to be the result of subsurface sediment mobilization.
![Inclination vs. semimajor axis for the NEOs. The main asteroid families that have been linked to ordinary chondrites are represented by gray squares. The ν6 secular resonance with Saturn and the 3:1 and 5:2 mean motion resonances with Jupiter are represented with dashed lines. -- [astro-ph.EP]](https://i0.wp.com/astrobiology.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/Size-Constraints.png?resize=1200%2C718&ssl=1)
Posted inAstrogeology
Size Constraints For The Pre-atmospheric Parent Bodies Of Ordinary Chondrites
[astro-ph.EP] The study of S-complex near-Earth objects (NEOs), the parent bodies of ordinary chondrites, has shown that they are dominated by asteroids with LL chondrite-like compositions. This is surprising because […]