All articles tagged with #habitability
A comprehensive survey of over 2,000 nearby K-type stars reveals many are stable, long-lived, and prime candidates for hosting habitable planets, making them key targets for future exoplanet studies despite current observational biases.
A study predicts that in about 250 million years, Earth's continents will form a supercontinent called Pangea Ultima, leading to extreme global temperatures, widespread heat stress, and reduced habitability, which could threaten mammalian survival and offer insights into planetary habitability beyond Earth.
A new analysis of data from NASA's Cassini spacecraft suggests that Saturn's moon Titan does not have a subsurface ocean of liquid water, as previously thought, but instead has a thick ice crust with a layer of slush and meltwater pockets, which could significantly alter the search for life on Titan.
Scientists have identified a new tectonic regime called the 'episodic-squishy lid' that could explain how planets like Earth and Venus evolve differently, impacting their habitability. This regime describes a planet's outer shell cycling between quiet and active phases, which may have played a role in Earth's development of plate tectonics and could help identify potentially habitable exoplanets. The findings, published in Nature Communications, offer new insights into planetary geology and the conditions that support life.
Astronomers have observed the first confirmed coronal mass ejection (CME) from an alien star, a red dwarf 130 light-years away, which was powerful enough to strip a planet's atmosphere, raising concerns about the habitability of planets around such active stars and advancing our understanding of stellar space weather.
A new study suggests that water can naturally form during planet formation through rock-gas interactions, potentially increasing the likelihood of habitable worlds in the universe, as water may be more common than previously thought.
New research suggests that planets orbiting white dwarf stars may be more habitable than previously thought due to the effects of Einstein's general relativity, which stabilizes their orbits and prevents excessive tidal heating that would otherwise render them uninhabitable.
Scientists are increasingly optimistic about the potential for life on Saturn's moon Enceladus, which exhibits conditions conducive to life, and argue that studying nearby celestial bodies offers valuable insights for the search for extraterrestrial life beyond our solar system.
Scientists have found evidence that the icy moon Enceladus contains organic molecules and the necessary conditions for life, such as liquid water and chemical building blocks, suggesting it could be habitable and warranting future exploration.
Scientists analyzing new ice grains from Saturn's moon Enceladus, based on data from NASA's Cassini spacecraft, found organic molecules that suggest the moon's subsurface ocean may have conditions suitable for life, bolstering its status as a prime candidate in the search for extraterrestrial habitability.
New research suggests that organic molecules found in the plumes of Saturn's moon Enceladus may be produced by surface radiation rather than originating from its subsurface ocean, complicating assessments of its habitability.
Research suggests that plate tectonics and balanced atmospheric CO2 are crucial for long-term habitability and the emergence of technological civilizations, making such planets extremely rare in the galaxy. The study estimates that for multiple civilizations to coexist, they would need to last tens of millions of years, and the closest ETI could be about 33,000 light-years away, highlighting the challenges in detecting extraterrestrial intelligence.
Astronomers using the James Webb Space Telescope are investigating the atmosphere of the Earth-sized exoplanet TRAPPIST-1e, located 40 light-years away in the habitable zone of its star. Initial data suggest two possible scenarios: the planet may have a secondary atmosphere with heavy gases like nitrogen, or it might be a bare rock with no atmosphere. Further observations are planned to clarify its potential habitability and the presence of conditions suitable for life.
The article explores the potential for life on planets orbiting white dwarfs, which are common stellar remnants. Despite challenges like tidal heating and past planetary destruction during the star's red giant phase, some planets could retain liquid water and support life, making white dwarfs promising targets in the search for extraterrestrial life. Advances in telescope technology, such as the James Webb Space Telescope, may soon help identify such habitable worlds.
New research suggests that billions of years ago, the dwarf planet Ceres may have had the right ingredients and energy sources to support simple microbial life, due to past hydrothermal activity driven by radioactive decay, despite its current icy and cold state.