[University of Birmingham] Astronomers have discovered that a rocky lava planet once thought to be too extreme to have any atmosphere appears to be wrapped in a reflective layer of […]
University of Birmingham
Posted inBiochemistry & Organic Chemistry
Chaos To Coordination: Vibrating Material Organizes Itself Into A Single Rhythm
[University of Birmingham] Scientists have developed a material that can grow and coordinate its own movement until the entire structure pulses in unison, paving the way for versatile robots that […]
Posted inAstronomy & Telescopes, Atmospheres, Climate, Weather, Exoplanets, -moons, -comets, Gas Giants, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Press Release
Giant Planet TOI-5205 b Orbits A Small Red Star
Massive exoplanet reveals new insights into the formation of planets and their relationship to a host star.
Posted inAtmospheres, Climate, Weather, Biochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Extinction events, Fossils & Paleontology, Gaia - Planetary Perspectives, Press Release, Water/Hycean Worlds & Oceanography
Fossilized Oysters Hold The Key To Mass Extinction
In the first and only reconstruction of ocean pH ever carried out, new research from the University of St Andrews and the University of Birmingham has discovered that a rapid […]
Posted inAstrogeology, Exoplanets, -moons, -comets, Press Release
Space Pebbles And Rocks Played A Pivotal Role In A Giant Planet’s Formation
Scientists analysing an ultra-hot giant planet believe it was formed by absorbing lightweight gases like methane evaporating from tiny space pebbles, whilst being bombarded with large rocky objects.
Posted inAstronomy & Telescopes, Atmospheres, Climate, Weather, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Exoplanets, -moons, -comets, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Press Release
Astronomers Discover A New Earth-sized World Orbiting Ultra-cool Star SPECULOOS-3
A new, Earth-sized planet orbiting an ultra-cool red dwarf star, has been detected by an international team of astronomers – just 55 light years away.
Posted inAstrochemistry, Astrogeology, Atmospheres, Climate, Weather, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Exoplanets, -moons, -comets, Habitable Zones, Icy Worlds, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Press Release, Water/Hycean Worlds & Oceanography
A New Way To Identify Liquid Water On Exoplanets
Scientists have devised a new way to identify habitable planets and potentially inhabited planets, by comparing the amount of carbon dioxide in their atmosphere, to neighbouring planets.
![Planets capable of supporting high O2 concentrations and, hence, technological civilizations. This figure shows the likely composition of planetary atmospheres based on mass and equilibrium temperature. For planets whose temperature and mass would lead to primarily CO2/N2/H2O atmospheres, high oxygen levels require a biological origin, i.e. photosynthesis. For higher equilibrium temperatures, high O2 levels can occur via the runaway greenhouse effect and the photolysis of water vapor at high altitudes. (Figure adapted with permission from [7], Royal Society Publishing.) -- astro-ph.EP](https://i0.wp.com/astrobiology.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/Is-oxygen-the-cosmic-key.png?resize=1200%2C717&ssl=1)
Posted inBiosignatures & Paleobiology, Intelligence & Language, Press Release, Science Fiction, SETI & Technosignatures
Is Oxygen The Cosmic Key To Alien Technology?
In the quest to understand the potential for life beyond Earth, researchers are widening their search to encompass not only biological markers, but also technological ones.
Posted inAstrogeology, Atmospheres, Climate, Weather, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Exoplanets, -moons, -comets, Gaia - Planetary Perspectives, Habitable Zones, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Press Release, TRAPPIST-1, Water/Hycean Worlds & Oceanography
A Carbon-lite Atmosphere Could Be A Sign Of Water And Life On Other Terrestrial Planets
Scientists at MIT, the University of Birmingham, and elsewhere say that astronomers’ best chance of finding liquid water, and even life on other planets, is to look for the absence, […]
Posted inAstrochemistry, Astronomy & Telescopes, Biochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Press Release
Massive Space Explosion Observed Creating Elements Needed For Life
Scientists have observed the creation of rare chemical elements in the second-brightest gamma-ray burst ever seen – casting new light on how heavy elements are made.