Nature Astronomy Archives - Astrobiology

Today’s Picture of the Week tells a story of redemption for one lonely star. The young star MP Mus (PDS 66) was thought to be all alone in the Universe, surrounded by nothing but a featureless band of gas and dust called a protoplanetary disc. -- ESO

Astrogeology, Astronomy & Telescopes, Exoplanets, -moons, -comets, Gaia Mission, Status Report

MP Mus (PDS 66): You Can’t Judge A star By Its Protoplanetary Disc

by Keith CowingJuly 15, 2025July 14, 2025

In most cases, the material inside a protoplanetary disc condenses to form new planets around the star, leaving large gaps where the gas and dust used to be. These features […]

Modelled planet-to-star fluxes The 15 Fp/F* simulations shown assume an airless, rocky exoplanet with a homogeneous surface temperature and a surface composition equivalent to each laboratory-measured rock sample in this study. R = 100. The PHOENIX stellar model of red dwarf LHS 3844 and the planetary parameters of its close-in rocky planet LHS 3844b were used as a representative star–planet system. The black body curve was calculated using the LHS 3844 PHOENIX stellar model and a planetary black body. Inset, Magnification of the Fp/F* models for three representative samples: relatively fresh, unaltered basalt LC10; amphibole-rich sample SE20; and serpentinized sample TO01. Dots are simulated MIRI LRS observations of a surface composed of sample SE20. High and low error bars show the estimated observation precision, assuming five eclipse observations of a planet like LHS 3844b, binned to R = 20 (Methods). The LRS simulation highlights the expected spectral deviation among the three basaltic samples near 10 μm. Symbols at top right are a reminder of which samples come from the same locality (as indicated by the symbol shape). The 15 modelled flux line colours correspond to symbol colours. Source data -- Nature astronomy

Astrogeology, Astronomy & Telescopes, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Exoplanets, -moons, -comets, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Status Report

Potential For Observing Geological Diversity From Mid-infrared Spectra Of Rocky Exoplanets

by Keith CowingNovember 19, 2024November 19, 2024

The James Webb Space Telescope can potentially explore the geological diversity of the surfaces of rocky exoplanets, especially due to its access to mid-infrared wavelengths.

This computer-generated 3D model of Venus’ surface shows the volcano Sif Mons, which is exhibiting signs of ongoing activity. Using data from NASA’s Magellan mission, Italian researchers detected evidence of an eruption while the spacecraft orbited the planet in the early 1990s. Credit: NASA/JPL

Astrogeology, Atmospheres, Climate, Weather, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Caves, Craters, Mountains, Subsurface, Lava Tubes, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Lava / magma ocean / Volcanic Worlds, Mapping, Geodesy, Cartography, Bathymetry, Missions & Hardware, Status Report, Venus

Ongoing Venus Volcanic Activity Discovered With NASA’s Magellan Data

by Keith CowingMay 31, 2024May 31, 2024

Direct geological evidence of recent volcanic activity on Venus has been observed for a second time. Scientists in Italy analyzed archival data from NASA’s Magellan mission to reveal surface changes […]

Jodie Foster in "Contact" 1997 -- Warner Brothers.

Astrobiology (general), Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Intelligence & Language, SETI & Technosignatures, Status Report

Is The Apparent Absence Of Extraterrestrial Technological Civilizations Down To The Zoo Hypothesis Or Nothing?

by Keith CowingJanuary 4, 2024January 4, 2024

The ‘Fermi paradox’ refers to the mismatch between a widely held expectation that advanced technological life should be common in the Universe—recently given impetus by the discovery that other planetary […]

Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Mars, Missions & Hardware, Press Release, Robotics/Rovers/UAVs

Mars Curiosity Detects Organic Molecules

by Keith CowingNovember 1, 2021March 25, 2023

Organic molecules revealed in Mars’s Bagnold Dunes by Curiosity’s derivatization experiment, Nature Astronomy ” .. No amino-acid derivatives were detected. However, chemically derivatized benzoic acid and ammonia were detected. Mass […]