China’s Tianwen-1 Mars orbiter successfully imaged the third interstellar object, 3I/ATLAS, during its close encounter with Mars using the onboard HiRIC CMOS camera. This is China’s first deep-space observation of […]
astrogeology
Posted inAstrogeology, Atmospheres, Climate, Weather, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Mars, Status Report
Martian Concretion Sizes Predicted From Two Independently Constrained Inputs: Atmospheric Dust Grain Size And Obliquity-forced Wetting Duration
Diagenetic concretions have been identified at multiple widely separated sites on Mars, including Meridiani Planum (Opportunity), Gale crater (Curiosity), and Jezero crater (Perseverance).
![[Top] The boulder-covered moon Dimorphos as seen 8.55 seconds before the impact of the DART space craft. [Bottom] The same image after correcting for lighting conditions across the surface and shadows cast by boulders, revealing a fan-shaped pattern of streaks (highlighted in color for emphasis). Credit: NASA/JHU-APL/UMD.](https://i0.wp.com/astrobiology.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/New-NASA-DART-Mission-Data.png?resize=1200%2C722&ssl=1)
Posted inAstrochemistry, Astrogeology, Biochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Comets and Asteroids, Exoplanets, -moons, -comets, Icy Worlds, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Meteorites & Asteroids, Missions & Hardware, Panspermia, Press Release, Sample Return
New NASA DART Mission Data Reveals that Asteroids Throw ‘Cosmic Snowballs’ at Each Other
About 15% of asteroids near Earth have small moons orbiting them, making binary asteroid systems common in our cosmic neighborhood.
Posted inAstrochemistry, Astrogeology, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Comets and Asteroids, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Mapping, Geodesy, Cartography, Bathymetry, Meteorites & Asteroids, Space Weather & Heliophysics, Status Report
Hydration Features on Near-Earth Objects: Integrating New Data with Prior Results
Near-Earth objects (NEOs) are excellent laboratories for testing processes that affect airless bodies, as well as informing us about solar system history.
![Values from an experimental series in large-volume press experiments (LVP), separated arbitrarily at 9 GPa into lower (LP) and higher pressures (HP) [in circles; (9)], and our experiments (in pentagons, DH16 to DH12) show different metal-silicate partitioning behaviors. As equilibration temperature and pressure increase S, Se, and Te, partition coefficients converge to similar, less siderophile values. -- Science Advances via PubMed](https://i0.wp.com/astrobiology.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/Accretion-of-volatile-elements.png?resize=1200%2C716&ssl=1)
Posted inAstrochemistry, Astrogeology, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Habitable Zones, Origin & Evolution of Life, Status Report
Accretion Of Volatile Elements On Earth Without The Need Of A Late Veneer
Volatile elements are essential for life development and planetary evolution. However, the timing of their delivery to terrestrial planets remains unclear. Sulfur, selenium, and tellurium are volatiles, but also siderophile […]
Posted inAstrogeology, Atmospheres, Climate, Weather, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Exoplanets, -moons, -comets, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Lava / magma ocean / Volcanic Worlds, Status Report
Mantle Convection And Nightside Volcanism On Lava World K2-141 b
Ultra-short period lava worlds offer a unique window into the coupled evolution of planetary interior and atmospheres under extreme irradiation.
Posted inAstrochemistry, Astrogeology, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Comets and Asteroids, Icy Worlds, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Status Report
Time-Domain Photometry and Activity Evolution of Interstellar Comet 3I/ATLAS with BHTOM
Time-domain photometric monitoring is essential for characterizing cometary evolution, particularly for rare interstellar objects with limited observing opportunities.
Posted inAstrochemistry, Astrogeology, Biochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Comets and Asteroids, Genomics, Proteomics, Bioinformatics, Meteorites & Asteroids, Missions & Hardware, Origin & Evolution of Life, Sample Return, Status Report
Multiple Formation Pathways For Amino Acids In The Early Solar System Based On Carbon And Nitrogen Isotopes In Asteroid Bennu Samples
Samples collected from the carbonaceous near-Earth asteroid Bennu and delivered to Earth by NASA’s OSIRIS-REx mission contain organic molecules relevant to prebiotic chemistry.
Posted inAstrochemistry, Astrogeology, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Comets and Asteroids, Icy Worlds, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Press Release
Hayabusa2 Asteroid Samples Offer New Insights Into Conditions When The Solar System Formed
To uncover the history of our solar system, it is necessary to study the dynamic evolution of the ancient solar nebula materials.
Posted inAstrochemistry, Astrogeology, Biochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Comets and Asteroids, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Mapping, Geodesy, Cartography, Bathymetry, Missions & Hardware, Planetary Protection & Biosafety, Sample Return, Status Report
Bundle Adjustment Of Hayabusa2’s ONC Images And Controlled Color Mosaic Map Of Ryugu
JAXA’s Hayabusa2 mission successfully returned samples from the asteroid Ryugu in December 2020. It executed two touchdowns to collect the surface and subsurface materials, one close to the crater created […]