All articles tagged with #planetary evolution
The article explores how ancient rocks in South Africa reveal Earth's early history, showing a planet with extensive oceans, volcanic activity, and microbial life over 3 billion years ago, highlighting the violent yet life-sustaining beginnings of our blue planet.
The Moon is gradually drifting away from Earth at about 3.8 centimeters per year, a process driven by tidal interactions that have influenced Earth's rotation and the Moon's orbit over billions of years. This slow migration will eventually lead to a longer day length and possibly a tidal lock, with profound implications for Earth's future and the solar system's stability, especially as the Sun ages.
Research shows Earth's atmospheric particles have been traveling to the moon for billions of years via magnetic field lines, potentially creating a long-term record of Earth's atmospheric history on the lunar surface and offering resources for future lunar bases.
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.
Scientists have discovered that Mars has a solid inner core enclosed by a liquid outer core, similar to Earth's internal structure, which provides new insights into the planet's geological history and past magnetic field, helping to explain its evolution and loss of atmosphere.
NASA's InSight mission has discovered that Mars has a solid inner core about 600 km across, contrary to previous beliefs that it was entirely soft, providing new insights into the planet's internal structure and evolution.
Astronomers are studying lava planets—hot, rocky exoplanets with surface magma oceans—using models and upcoming observations from the James Webb Space Telescope to understand their formation, evolution, and atmospheric composition, revealing insights into their internal dynamics and age.
New research indicates Earth's oxygen-rich atmosphere may collapse within the next billion years, with initial signs of decline possibly starting as soon as 10,000 years from now, driven by the Sun's increasing luminosity and resulting climate changes, which could make Earth inhospitable for complex life and revert it to a microbial-dominated world.
A new study introduces a framework for understanding lava planets, extreme rocky worlds with molten surfaces, by examining their internal chemistry and atmospheric interactions. The James Webb Space Telescope will test these models by analyzing their atmospheres, potentially revealing their internal states and advancing our knowledge of planetary evolution.
Astronomers using the James Webb Space Telescope have discovered a young exoplanet, V1298 Tau b, that may evolve into either a gas-rich mini-Neptune or a dense rocky super-Earth, providing insights into planetary formation and atmospheric changes during early development stages.
Scientists used a new computer simulation called the Bambari model to recreate Earth's early molten state 4.5 billion years ago, revealing how layered structures and chemical patterns formed, which influence today's mantle features and volcanic activity, and providing insights into the evolution of other planets.
Scientists have used advanced computer modeling to simulate Earth's first days, revealing that the planet's mantle retained a molten, magma ocean for hundreds of millions of years, leaving chemical and seismic signatures that inform our understanding of Earth's formation and evolution, and providing insights applicable to other rocky planets.
NASA research reveals a surprising correlation between Earth's magnetic field fluctuations over the past 540 million years and atmospheric oxygen levels, suggesting deep Earth processes may influence conditions vital for life, with further studies planned to explore this connection and its implications for understanding Earth's history.
Scientists have discovered traces of gold and other metals in Hawaiian lava, indicating that some core-derived materials are slowly migrating upward through Earth's mantle and volcanic activity, challenging previous notions of the core's isolation and offering new insights into Earth's internal processes and mineral distribution.
A new study published in Nature Astronomy suggests that Venus has likely been inhospitable throughout its history, challenging previous theories that it may have once supported liquid water. Researchers found that Venus's volcanic gases contain at most 6% water, indicating a dehydrated interior, which implies the planet was never habitable. This discovery impacts the search for life beyond Earth, suggesting astronomers should focus on more Earth-like planets. The upcoming NASA DAVINCI mission aims to further explore Venus's history and composition.