The Ocean Worlds Working Group (OWWG) has released a draft traceability matrix that defines the OWWG’s driving science questions for future Ocean Worlds exploration, and the science investigations, measurements, instruments, […]
While recent planet-formation models broadly reproduce the observed population of super-Earths and mini-Neptunes, as well as the bimodal radius distribution (the “radius valley”), it remains unclear whether all these planets […]
Molecular hydrogen (H2) is a widespread, energetically efficient reductant supporting microbial metabolism across most known ecosystems. Although seafloor hydrothermal vents are major energy providers for H2-oxidizing microorganisms, the diversity of […]
The demographics of Kepler planets provide a key testbed for models of planet formation and evolution, particularly for explaining the radius valley separating super-Earths and sub-Neptunes.
The current image of Mars as an arid and hostile desert contrasts with the history revealed by its surface. Channels, minerals altered by water, and other geological traces indicate that […]
As the only known habitable (and inhabited) planet in the universe, Earth informs our search for life elsewhere. Future telescopes like the Habitable Worlds Observatory (HWO) will soon look for […]
Approximately two-thirds of the Earth, the only known inhabited planet, is covered in ocean. Why not 0.01% or 99.99%? It has been previously suggested that this may represent a certain […]
Sub-Neptune planets are often modeled with a dense rocky or metal-rich interior beneath a thick hydrogen/helium (H/He) atmosphere; though their bulk densities could also be explained by a water-rich interior […]
The tropical oceans that once served as oxygen-rich havens for Earth’s earliest complex life have become the planet’s largest marine dead zones. The dramatic reversal occurred hundreds of millions of […]
Climate change has many culprits, from agriculture to transportation to energy production. Now, add another: the deep ocean salty blob.
