Royal Astronomical Society Archives

Comparison of Mars before (left) and during (right) the June 2018 dust storm, which coincided with the solar energetic particle event examined by the Lancaster University team. Images taken by the Mars Color Imager (MARCI), a wide-angle camera aboard NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO), that maps daily weather conditions across the planet. Large image Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/University of Arizona

First Study Hints Solar Storms May Alter The Weather During Martian Dust Storms

by Keith CowingJuly 22, 2026July 22, 2026

[Royal Astronomical Society] Solar storms may affect weather on Mars when they strike at the same time as major Martian dust storms, a new study has suggested for the first […]

This artist's impression shows two Earth-sized worlds passing in front of their parent red dwarf star in the TRAPPIST-1 system 40 light-years away. Credit ESA/Hubble

Astrogeology, Atmospheres, Climate, Weather, Exoplanets, -moons, -comets, Press Release, Stellar Cartography

Red Dwarf Stars Detected ‘Eating’ Earth-like Planets

by Keith CowingMay 29, 2026May 29, 2026

Astronomers have found some of the strongest evidence yet that stars can swallow their own planets.

Computer simulation of a Milky Way-like galaxy from the Auriga suite, cycling between views of the stars, the gas coloured by iron (Fe) abundance, and the gas coloured by magnesium (Mg) abundance. The galaxy has developed a large, flat gas disc that forms a thin disc of young and blue stars. The gas disc was thicker in earlier stages, producing an older and redder population of stars in a thicker stellar disc. A scale bar in the lower-left corner indicates the size of the galaxy. For comparison, the Sun lies about 8 kiloparsecs (kpc) from the centre of our own Milky Way. This image shows the gas disc in a computer simulation of a Milky Way-like galaxy from the Auriga suite. Colours represent the ratio of magnesium (Mg) to iron (Fe), revealing that the galactic centre (pink) is poor in Mg, while the outskirts (green) are Mg-rich. These chemical patterns provide important clues about how the galaxy formed. Milky Way-like galaxy simulation Credit: Matthew D. A. Orkney (ICCUB-IEEC)/Auriga project. Video https://drive.google.com/file/d/1liC_qyPJuXGSyK0u4tkLwoDkoCJ3zH9G/view Licence type Attribution (CC BY 4.0)

Astrochemistry, Astronomy & Telescopes, Biochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Interstellar, Press Release

New Study Sheds Light On The Milky Way’s Mysterious Chemical History

by Keith CowingDecember 10, 2025December 10, 2025

Clues about how galaxies like our Milky Way form and evolve and why their stars show surprising chemical patterns have been revealed by a new study.

This image, which combines infrared data from the James Webb Space Telescope with submillimetre observations from the Atacama Large Millimetre/submillimetre Array (ALMA), shows the doughnut-shaped torus and interconnected bubbles of dusty gas that surround the Butterfly Nebula’s central star. The torus is oriented vertically and nearly edge-on from our perspective, and it intersects with bubbles of gas enclosing the star. The bubbles appear bright red in this image, illuminated by the light from helium and neon gas. Outside the bubbles, jets traced by emission from ionised iron shoot off in opposite directions. Credit ESA/Webb, NASA & CSA, M. Matsuura, ALMA (ESO/NAOJ/NRAO), N. Hirano, M. Zamani (ESA/Webb) larger image

Astrochemistry, Astrogeology, Astronomy & Telescopes, Biochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Biophysics, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Exoplanets, -moons, -comets, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Press Release

Butterfly Nebula (NGC 6302) Reveals Clues To Earth’s Creation

by Keith CowingAugust 28, 2025August 28, 2025

Clues about how worlds like Earth may have formed have been found buried at the heart of a spectacular ‘cosmic butterfly’.

Astronomy & Telescopes, Interstellar, Press Release, Stellar Cartography

Is Earth Inside A Huge Void?

by Keith CowingJuly 14, 2025July 14, 2025

Earth and our entire Milky Way galaxy may sit inside a mysterious giant hole which makes the cosmos expand faster here than in neighbouring regions of the universe, astronomers say.

Top view of the Milky Way galaxy showing the estimated orbits of both our Sun and the 3I/ATLAS comet. 3I/ATLAS is shown in red dashed lines, and the Sun is shown in yellow dotted lines. The large extent of 3I’s orbit into the outer thick disk is clear, while the Sun stays nearer the core of the galaxy. Credit M. Hopkins/Ōtautahi-Oxford team. Base map: ESA/Gaia/DPAC, Stefan Payne-Wardenaar, CC-BY-SA 4.0 Licence type Attribution (CC BY 4.0)

Astrochemistry, Astrogeology, Astronomy & Telescopes, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Icy Worlds, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Interstellar, Press Release

Interstellar Object 3I/ATLAS May Be The Oldest Comet Ever Seen

by Keith CowingJuly 12, 2025July 12, 2025

A mystery interstellar object discovered last week is likely to be the oldest comet ever seen – possibly predating our solar system by more than three billion years, researchers say.

Oblique view of part of a system of FSRs

Astrogeology, Atmospheres, Climate, Weather, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Caves, Craters, Mountains, Subsurface, Lava Tubes, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Mapping, Geodesy, Cartography, Bathymetry, Mars, Press Release, Water/Hycean Worlds & Oceanography

Ancient River Systems Reveal Mars Was Wetter Than We Thought

by Keith CowingJuly 11, 2025July 11, 2025

The discovery of more than 15,000 kilometres of ancient riverbeds on Mars suggests that the Red Planet may once have been much wetter than previously thought.

An artist’s impression of the proposed VERVE mission to Venus the answer whether tiny bacterial lifeforms really do exist in the planet’s clouds. Credit Danielle Futselaar Licence type Attribution (CC BY 4.0)

Atmospheres, Climate, Weather, Biochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Habitable Zones, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Missions & Hardware, Press Release, Venus

The Venus Explorer for Reduced Vapours in the Environment (VERVE)

by Keith CowingJuly 10, 2025July 10, 2025

The answer to whether tiny bacterial lifeforms really do exist in the clouds of Venus could be revealed once-and-for-all by a UK-backed mission.

The average total power of individual airport radar systems, averaged over one-hour intervals as seen from Barnard’s Star. -- Royal Astronomical Society

Astrobiology (general), Barnard's Star, Intelligence & Language, Interstellar, Press Release, Proxima Centauri, SETI & Technosignatures

How Airports Could Help Aliens Spot Earth

by Keith CowingJuly 9, 2025July 9, 2025

Radar systems used by civilian airports and military operations are inadvertently revealing our existence to potential advanced alien civilisations, new research shows.

Astronomy & Telescopes, Atmospheres, Climate, Weather, Extinction events, Habitable Zones, Press Release, Radiation

Violent Supernovae May Have Triggered At Least Two Earth Extinctions

by Keith CowingMarch 13, 2025March 13, 2025

At least two mass extinction events in Earth’s history were likely caused by the “devastating” effects of nearby supernova explosions, a new study suggests.