Deep down, in an ocean beneath its ice shell, Jupiter’s moon Europa might be temperate and nutrient-rich, an ideal environment for some form of life — what scientists would call […]
habitability
Posted inAtmospheres, Climate, Weather, Gaia - Planetary Perspectives, Habitable Zones, Status Report
Rate-induced Biosphere Collapse In The Daisyworld Model
There is much interest in the phenomenon of rate-induced tipping, where a system changes abruptly when forcings change faster than some critical rate. Here, we demonstrate and analyse rate-induced tipping […]
Posted inAtmospheres, Climate, Weather, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Habitable Zones, Mars, Missions & Hardware, Press Release, Robotics/Rovers/UAVs
New Insights Into How Mars Became Uninhabitable
NASA’s Curiosity rover, currently exploring Gale Crater on Mars, is providing new details about how the ancient Martian climate went from potentially suitable for life — with evidence for widespread […]
Posted inBiochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Habitable Zones, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Mars, Status Report
Investigating The Stability of Aromatic Carboxylic Acids in Hydrated Magnesium Sulfate under UV Irradiation to Assist Detection of Organics on Mars
The Scanning Habitable Environments with Raman and Luminescence for Organics and Chemicals (SHERLOC) instrument onboard the Mars 2020 Perseverance rover detected so far some of the most intense fluorescence signals […]
Posted inAstronomy & Telescopes, Atmospheres, Climate, Weather, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Exoplanets, -moons, -comets, Habitable Zones, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Status Report
Optical Design Options For Pollux: UV Spectropolarimeter Project For The Habitable Worlds Observatory
Pollux is a project of UV spectropolarimeter proposed as a European contribution for the planned NASA-led Habitable Worlds Observatory.
Posted inBiogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Exoplanets, -moons, -comets, Habitable Zones, Status Report
Tidal Evolution Of Earth-like Planets In The Habitable Zone Of Low-mass Stars
Earth-like planets in the habitable zone of low-mass stars undergo strong tidal effects that modify their spin states.
Posted inAstrogeology, Atmospheres, Climate, Weather, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Exoplanets, -moons, -comets, Habitable Zones, Status Report, TRAPPIST-1
The Erosion Of Large Primary Atmospheres Typically Leaves Behind Substantial Secondary Atmospheres On Temperate Rocky Planets
Exoplanet exploration has revealed that many–perhaps most–terrestrial exoplanets formed with substantial H2-rich envelopes, seemingly in contrast to solar system terrestrials, for which there is scant evidence of long-lived primary atmospheres. […]
Posted inAtmospheres, Climate, Weather, Biochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Biophysics, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Gaia - Planetary Perspectives, Habitable Zones, Lava / magma ocean / Volcanic Worlds, Status Report, Terraforming & Geoengineering, Venus
Stability of 20 Biogenic Amino Acids in Concentrated Sulfuric Acid: Implications for the Habitability of Venus’ Clouds
Scientists have long speculated about the potential habitability of Venus, not at the 700K surface, but in the cloud layers located at 48–60 km altitudes, where temperatures match those found on […]
Posted inAstrochemistry, Astrogeology, Astronomy & Telescopes, Atmospheres, Climate, Weather, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Exoplanets, -moons, -comets, Habitable Zones, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Status Report
The Pale Blue Dot: Using the Planetary Spectrum Generator to Simulate Signals from Hyperrealistic Exo-Earths
Simulating realistic observations of exoplanet atmospheres requires consideration of several physical, astronomical, and technological aspects. The composition and physical structure of an atmosphere has to be modeled using three dimensional […]
Posted inAtmospheres, Climate, Weather, Exoplanets, -moons, -comets, Gaia - Planetary Perspectives, Habitable Zones, Status Report
Eccentric Orbits May Enhance The Habitability Of Earth-like Exoplanets
The detection and characterization of Earth-like planets around Sun-like stars is an important goal of exoplanetary research, given their promise for hosting potentially habitable conditions. Key orbital parameters, such as […]