Durham University Archives - Astrobiology

a, Sub-ice topography, corrected for isostatic rebound due to ice removal3, with sharp topographic features enhanced by nonlinear filtering (Methods). The light grey lines are detected topographic lineaments interpreted as longitudinal normal faults forming the structural edges of the basins. The magenta and cyan lines represent detected topographic lineaments interpreted as either transverse strike–slip faults or associated normal faults that characterize the two circular shear belts shown in b (that is, the southern and northern TSCBs).

Analog Studies, Arctic / Antarctic / Alpine, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Caves, Craters, Mountains, Subsurface, Lava Tubes, Exploration Gear & Tech, Gaia - Planetary Perspectives, Habitable Zones, Icy Worlds, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Mapping, Geodesy, Cartography, Bathymetry, Polar / Alpine Expeditions, Press Release, Water/Hycean Worlds & Oceanography

Ice Planet Recon: Giant Fan-shaped Geological Structure Discovered Beneath East Antarctica

by Keith CowingJune 9, 2026June 26, 2026

Editor’s note: there are currently two advanced missions heading for the jovian system – Europa Clipper and ESA Juice – to study icy Europa and the other icy worlds orbiting […]

A reconstruction of the internal anatomy of Y. yuanshi. (Emma J. Long)

Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Fossils & Paleontology, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Microbiology & Virology, Origin & Evolution of Life, Press Release

520-million-year-old worm Fossil Solves Mystery Of How Modern Insects, Spiders and Crabs Evolved

by Keith CowingAugust 9, 2024August 9, 2024

A new study led by researchers at Durham University have uncovered an incredibly rare and detailed fossil, named Youti yuanshi, that gives a peek inside one of the earliest ancestors […]

This artist’s impression shows the HH 1177 system, which is located in the Large Magellanic Cloud, a neighbouring galaxy of our own. The young and massive stellar object glowing in the centre is collecting matter from a dusty disc while also expelling matter in powerful jets. Using the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA), in which ESO is a partner, a team of astronomers managed to find evidence for the presence of this disc by observing its rotation. This is the first time a disc around a young star — the type of disc identical to those forming planets in our own galaxy — has been discovered in another galaxy. CREDIT ESO/M. Kornmesser

Astrogeology, Astronomy & Telescopes, Exoplanets, -moons, -comets, Press Release

Astronomers Discover A Disc Around A Star In Another Galaxy For The First Time

by Keith CowingNovember 30, 2023November 30, 2023

In a remarkable discovery, astronomers have found a disc around a young star in the Large Magellanic Cloud, a galaxy neighbouring ours. It’s the first time such a disc, identical […]

a Surface elevation of the Antarctic Ice Sheet from the Reference Elevation Model of Antarctica68. The black line marks the present-day grounding line74; pale areas are floating ice shelves. b Bed elevation of Antarctica beneath the grounded ice sheet from BedMachine v.364. Surface and bed elevations are relative to the global mean sea level (the EIGEN-6C4 geoid). The black dashed box shows the extent of the maps in Figs. 2 and 5, and lines of latitude are separated by 5°. ASB Aurora Subglacial Basin, DML Dronning Maud Land, GSM Gamburtsev Subglacial Mountains, TAM Transantarctic Mountains, WSB Wilkes Subglacial Basin. c Composite global oxygen isotope record from benthic foraminifera75. Lower (more negative) δ18O values indicate lower ice volume and/or warmer ocean temperatures; higher (more positive) δ18O values indicate greater ice volume and/or cooler ocean temperatures. Labels show the timings of major climate intervals or transitions (red), glacial expansions (black), and prevailing glacial conditions (blue). Plio. = Pliocene; Plt. = Pleistocene; note that the Holocene epoch (0.012–0 Ma) is not shown on the timescale. -- Science

Analog Studies, Arctic / Antarctic / Alpine, Astrogeology, Icy Worlds, Mapping, Geodesy, Cartography, Bathymetry, Press Release, Water/Hycean Worlds & Oceanography

Ancient Landscape Discovered Beneath The East Antarctic Ice Sheet

by Keith CowingNovember 11, 2023November 11, 2023

Editor’s note: of particular interest to Astrobiology mission planners are the ice-covered worlds in our solar system – Enceladus, Europa, Ganymede, Mimas, Titan, etc. and the probability that they have […]

otuba chengjiangensis.

Fossils & Paleontology, Origin & Evolution of Life, Press Release

Fossils Explain The Evolution Of Earth Life During The Early Cambrian Period

by Keith CowingFebruary 1, 2023February 1, 2023

Ancient fossils have shed new light on a type of sea worm linking it to the time of an evolutionary explosion that gave rise to modern animal life.

Astrobiology (general), Press Release

Could A Multiverse Be Hospitable To Life?

by Keith CowingMay 13, 2018March 7, 2023

A Multiverse – where our Universe is only one of many – might not be as inhospitable to life as previously thought, according to new research.