How can we know if we"re looking at habitable exo-Earths or hellish exo-Venuses?
The differences between Earth and Venus are obvious to us. One is radiant with life and adorned with glittering seas, and the other is a scorching, glowering hellhole, its volcanic surface shrouded by thick clouds and visible only with radar. But the.....»»
Could stars hotter than the sun still support life?
Although most potentially habitable worlds orbit red dwarf stars, we know larger and brighter stars can harbor life. One yellow dwarf star, for example, is known to have a planet teaming with life, perhaps even intelligent life. But how large and bri.....»»
Europa Clipper: 8 things to know about NASA"s mission to an ocean moon of Jupiter
The first NASA spacecraft dedicated to studying an ocean world beyond Earth, Europa Clipper aims to find out whether the ice-encased moon Europa could be habitable......»»
An Amazon river dries up, creating hellish crossing for villagers
Only the youngest and strongest villagers now brave the crossing of a vast, blistering stretch of sand where, in normal times, the waters of the mighty Madeira River flow in the Brazilian Amazon......»»
Formation of super-Earths proven limited near metal-poor stars
In a new study, astronomers report novel evidence regarding the limits of planet formation, finding that after a certain point, planets larger than Earth have difficulty forming near low-metallicity stars......»»
How vegetation could impact the climate of exoplanets
The term "habitable zone" is a broad definition that serves a purpose in our age of exoplanet discovery. But the more we learn about exoplanets, the more we need a more nuanced definition of habitable......»»
Earth-like exoplanets might be in short supply for the Habitable Worlds Observatory
How common are Earth-like exoplanets—also called exo-Earths—and which exoplanetary systems should we target to find them?.....»»
Astronomers discover two new super-Earths orbiting nearby stars
Using NASA's Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS), an international team of astronomers has detected two new super-Earth exoplanets orbiting nearby M-dwarf stars. The newfound exoplanets, designated TOI-6002 b and TOI-5713 b, are two times la.....»»
The discovery of a new Earth-like planet could shed further light on what makes a planet habitable
In an exciting breakthrough for astronomy and the search for extraterrestrial life, a team of international scientists has announced the discovery of Gliese 12 b, a temperate, Earth-sized exoplanet just 40 light-years away—a relatively neighborly 3.....»»
Effects of stellar magnetism could expand criteria for exoplanet habitability
Interest in Earth-like planets orbiting within the habitable zone of their host stars has surged, driven by the quest to discover life beyond our solar system. But the habitability of such planets, known as exoplanets, is influenced by more than just.....»»
Astronomers find surprising ice world in the habitable zone with JWST data
A team of astronomers has identified a temperate exoplanet as a promising super-Earth ice or water world......»»
Potentially habitable "exo-Venus" with Earth-like temperature discovered
Astronomers have made the rare and tantalizing discovery of an Earth-like exoplanet 40 light-years away that may be just a little warmer than our own world. The new paper "Gliese 12 b, A Temperate Earth-sized Planet at 12 Parsecs Discovered with TESS.....»»
The habitable worlds observatory could see lunar and solar "exo-eclipses"
A future space observatory could use exo-eclipses to tease out exomoon populations......»»
NASA tool prepares to image faraway planets
The Roman Coronagraph Instrument on NASA's Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope will help pave the way in the search for habitable worlds outside our solar system by testing new tools that block starlight, revealing planets hidden by the glare of their.....»»
See a flyby of Io, a hellish moon with lakes of lava and an otherworldly mountain
NASA's Juno spacecraft has been investigating Jupiter's moon Io, the most volcanically active body in the solar system, and has observed some dramatic features......»»
How to keep Earth from being cooked by the ever-hotter Sun
Here are two options for future humans to keep us in the habitable zone. I’d wager a guess that we are, as a species, rather fond of our home planet (our wanton carbon emissions notwithstanding). But the ugly truth is that the Eart.....»»
First indications of a rare, rainbow ‘glory effect’ on hellish exoplanet
Researchers believe they may have identified a set of rainbow-like colorful rings, called a glory, on a planet outside our solar system for the first time......»»
Astronomers detect potential "glory effect" on a hellish distant world for the first time
Potential signs of the rainbow-like "glory effect" have been detected on a planet outside our solar system. Glory are colorful concentric rings of light that occur only under peculiar conditions......»»
In a distant stellar system, the JWST sees the end of planet formation
Every time a star forms, it represents an explosion of possibilities. Not for the star itself; its fate is governed by its mass. The possibilities it signifies are in the planets that form around it. Will some be rocky? Will they be in the habitable.....»»
A holistic look at Earth"s chemical cycling sheds light on how the planet stays habitable
We all know Earth is special, but we may not fully appreciate how good we have it on this planet. Unlike its planetary neighbors, Earth has remained habitable for billions of years thanks to a complicated, ever-changing dance of elements......»»
Could Earth life survive on a red dwarf planet?
Even though exoplanet science has advanced significantly in the last decade or two, we're still in an unfortunate situation. Scientists can only make educated guesses about which exoplanets may be habitable. Even the closest exoplanet is four light-y.....»»