Clouds and hazes are abundant in the thin and cold atmospheres of Triton and Pluto, where they are thought to be produced by interactions between atmospheric gases and ultraviolet photons […]
Pluto
Posted inAtmospheres, Climate, Weather, Icy Worlds, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Pluto, Status Report, Titan, Triton
Atmospheres of Solar System Moons and Pluto
The atmospheres within our Solar System can be categorized into four distinct climate regimes: “terrestrial”, “Jovian”, “condensable”, and “exosphere”.
Posted inAstrochemistry, Astrogeology, Astronomy & Telescopes, Icy Worlds, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Pluto, Status Report
Detection Of Carbon Dioxide And Hydrogen Peroxide On The Stratified Surface Of Charon With JWST
Charon, Pluto’s largest moon, has been extensively studied, with research focusing on its primitive composition and changes due to radiation and photolysis.
Posted inAlpha Centauri, Astrogeology, Beta Pictoris, Ceres, Exoplanets, -moons, -comets, Gas Giants, Icy Worlds, Jupiter, Lava / magma ocean / Volcanic Worlds, Mapping, Geodesy, Cartography, Bathymetry, Mars, Mercury, Neptune, Pluto, Proxima Centauri, Saturn, Status Report, tau Ceti, TRAPPIST-1, Uranus, Venus, Water/Hycean Worlds & Oceanography
Classifications For Exoplanet and Exoplanetary Systems
When a star is described as a spectral class G2V, we know its approximate mass, temperature, age, and size. At more than 5,700 exoplanets discovered, it is a natural developmental […]
Posted inIcy Worlds, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Mapping, Geodesy, Cartography, Bathymetry, Neptune, Pluto, Saturn, Status Report, Triton, Water/Hycean Worlds & Oceanography
Twin Worlds, Divergent Fates: How Obliquity has Differently Shaped Pluto’s and Triton’s Landscapes and Climates
Triton and Pluto are believed to share a common origin, both forming initially in the Kuiper Belt but Triton being later captured by Neptune. Both objects display similar sizes, densities, […]
Posted inAstrogeology, Comets and Asteroids, Ganymede, Icy Worlds, Impact events, Jupiter, Pluto, Press Release, Water/Hycean Worlds & Oceanography
A Gigantic Asteroid Impact Shifted The Axis Of Ganymede
Around 4 billion years ago, an asteroid hit the Jupiter moon Ganymede. Now, a Kobe University researcher realized that the Solar System’s biggest moon’s axis has shifted as a result […]
Posted inAstrochemistry, Astrogeology, Biochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Comets and Asteroids, Icy Worlds, Neptune, Pluto, Status Report, Triton, Water/Hycean Worlds & Oceanography
Triton and Pluto: Same Origin But Separated At Birth [Two Possible Ocean Worlds]
Assessing the origin of Pluto and Triton has profound implications for the bigger picture of Solar System formation and evolution.
Posted inAstrogeology, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Habitable Zones, Icy Worlds, Pluto, Press Release, Water/Hycean Worlds & Oceanography
Peering Into Pluto’s Ocean
An ocean of liquid water deep beneath the icy surface of Pluto is coming into focus thanks to new calculations by Alex Nguyen, a graduate student in earth, environmental and […]
Posted inAstrochemistry, Astrogeology, Callisto, Comets and Asteroids, Enceladus, Europa, Ganymede, Habitable Zones, Icy Worlds, Press Release, Water/Hycean Worlds & Oceanography
SwRI Scientists Find Evidence Of Geothermal Activity Within Icy Dwarf Planets
A team co-led by Southwest Research Institute found evidence for hydrothermal or metamorphic activity within the icy dwarf planets Eris and Makemake, located in the Kuiper Belt. Methane detected on […]
Posted inAstrochemistry, Icy Worlds, Pluto, Status Report, Triton, Water/Hycean Worlds & Oceanography
Surface Volatile Composition as Evidence for Hydrothermal Processes Lasting Longer in Triton’s Interior Than Pluto’s
Ocean worlds, or icy bodies in the outer solar system that have or once had subsurface liquid water oceans, are among the most compelling topics of astrobiology. Typically, confirming the […]