Friday, 25 May, 2012

New pix from Mars show sand dunes on the move. Mars has been dry for 1.5 billion years; could massive erosion be due to wind? Yes, says a new report that tracked dunes with precise new images. Surprise: dunes move as fast on Mars as on Earth!

A planet newly found in the southern sky is perilously close to its star, orbiting in less than 1 Earth day. Within 10 years, this planet may force a new understanding of star-guts.

Yes, this is a real picture. More accurately, it’s 165 pictures pasted together from NASA’s Cassini spacecraft’s flyby of Saturn as the planet between the probe and the sun. From this unique vantage point, the contrast of light and shadow enabled astronomers to discern new bands of ice and dust — perhaps the remnants of [...]

“The answer is rooted in the fact that our planet is a ‘living’ planet, which is still cooling,” says Laurel Goodwin, professor of geology at UW-Madison. She describes Earth as a series of shells, like a peanut M&M. “The candy shell is the crust, on which we live. The chocolate beneath is the mantle, and [...]

How do dragonflies fly? How do bats catch insects hidden behind leaves? How do you make a temperature of 2 billion degrees? Why would anyone care?

Losing count: New study finds object larger than Pluto in the distant solar system. Do we now have 10 planets — or 8?

Scientists have found ice on Mars. The frozen water, whose quantity may equal Lake Michigan, is within a meter of the surface.

The discovery of a planet that could resemble Jupiter in its size and orbit is focusing attention on this ageless question: are we alone in the universe?