Earth Archives

February 26, 2020February 26, 2020 by Evan Gough

Solar Storms Might Confuse Whale Navigation, and Make Them More Likely to Strand Themselves

California gray whales like these mothers and calves are 4.3 times more likely to strand themselves during a burst of cosmic radio static from a solar flare, further evidence that they navigate by Earth's magnetic field. Image Credit: Nicholas Metheny NOAA

The Gray Whale is the 10th largest creature alive today, and the 9 creatures larger than it are all whales, too. Gray Whales are known for their epic migration routes, sometimes covering more than 16,000 km (10,000 miles) on their two-way trips between their feeding grounds and their breeding grounds. Researchers don’t have a complete understanding of how whales navigate these great distances, but some evidence suggests that Earth’s magnetism has something to do with it.

February 21, 2020February 21, 2020 by Evan Gough

Nutrient-Poor and Energy-Starved. How Life Might Survive at the Extremes in the Solar System

Artist impression of a sunset over KELT-9b, where the planet’s atmosphere is hot enough to vaporize heavy metals such as iron and titanium. Credit and ©: Denis Bajram

Our growing understanding of extremophiles here on Earth has opened up new possibilities in astrobiology. Scientists are taking another look at resource-poor worlds that appeared like they could never support life. One team of researchers is studying a nutrient-poor region of Mexico to try to understand how organisms thrive in challenging environments.

February 13, 2020February 14, 2020 by Nancy Atkinson

The Pale Blue Dot: Now New and Improved

This updated version of the iconic "Pale Blue Dot" image taken by the Voyager 1 spacecraft uses modern image-processing software and techniques to revisit the well-known Voyager view while attempting to respect the original data and intent of those who planned the images. Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech

Thirty years have now passed since the Voyager 1 spacecraft snapped one of the most iconic and memorable pictures in spaceflight history. Known as the “Pale Blue Dot,” the heart-rending view shows planet Earth as a single, bright blue pixel in the vastness of space, as seen from the outer reaches of the solar system.

Now, NASA and the Jet Propulsion Laboratory have provided a new and improved version, using state of the art image-processing software and techniques to reprocess the thirty-year-old image. JPL software engineer and image processor Kevin Gill, whose images we feature often on Universe Today, led the effort.

February 5, 2020February 5, 2020 by Evan Gough

This is What the World Would Look Like if the Oceans Dried Up

Don’t worry. The oceans aren’t going to dry up. At least not any time soon, so no need to add it to the list of things to worry about.

But, what would our planet look like if they did? Dr. James O’Donoghue from JAXA decided to find out.

January 22, 2020January 22, 2020 by Evan Gough

The Evidence is Leaning More and More Towards an Asteroid Ending the Dinosaurs

What an asteroid hitting the Earth might look like. Image credit: NASA/Don Davis.

Which camp are you in: volcanoes? Or asteroids?

When it comes to the extinction of the dinosaurs, science has whittled it down to those two possibilities. The asteroid strike has been the leading candidate for quite some time now, but those darn volcanoes refuse to stand down.

A new study is presenting even more evidence that it was the impact that wiped out the dinosaurs, and not volcanoes.

January 20, 2020January 20, 2020 by Evan Gough

According to NASA, 2019 Was the Second Hottest Year on Record

According to NASA and the NOAA, 2019 was the second hottest year on record. Image Credit: NASA/GISS

NASA and the NOAA just announced that 2019 was the second hottest year on record. It barely edged out 2016, the previous warmest year. And both 2019 and 2016 are part of the global warming trend: the last five years have been the warmest five years on record. And the last decade was the warmest decade.

January 15, 2020January 15, 2020 by Evan Gough

Underwater Robot Captures its First Sample 500 Meters Below the Surface of the Ocean

The underwater robot Nereid Under Ice (NUI) being lowered into the Aegean Sea. NUI became the first underwater vehicle to take an automated sample from the sea floor. Image Credit: Evan Lubofsky, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution

The Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI) says their underwater robot has just completed the first-ever automated underwater sampling operation. The robot is called Nereid Under Ice (NEI) and it collected the sample in Greece. WHOI is developing Nereid in association with NASA’s Planetary Science and Technology from Analog Research (PSTAR) program.

January 13, 2020January 13, 2020 by Evan Gough

Almost 800,000 Years Ago, an Enormous Meteorite Struck Earth. Now We Know Where.

A map of the Australasian strewnfield, where tektites from a meteor impact are spread over the Earth's surface. Image Credit: By syncmedia - Own work, CC0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=19184380

20% of the surface of Earth’s Eastern Hemisphere is littered with a certain kind of rock. Black, glossy blobs called tektites are spread throughout Australasia. Scientists know they’re from a meteorite strike, but they’ve never been able to locate the crater where it struck Earth.

Now a team of scientists seems to have found it.

January 4, 2020January 4, 2020 by Matt Williams

It’s Snowing Iron Near the Earth’s Core

The Earth's layers, showing the Inner and Outer Core, the Mantle, and Crust. Credit: discovermagazine.com

Scientists theorize that within Earth’s interior, conditions are extremely hot and extremely pressurized. This is what allows for the primarily iron and nickel core to be divided between a solid inner region and liquid outer region. The dynamics of this core are believed to be responsible for driving our planet’s protective magnetosphere, which is why scientists are determined to improve their understanding of it.

Thanks to new research conducted by an international team of scientists, it appears that the core region also gets its fair share of “snow”! To put it another way, their research showed that within the outer core, tiny particles of iron solidify and fall to form piles up to 320 km (200 mi) thick on top of the outer core. These findings could vastly improve our understanding of the forces that affect the entire planet.

December 18, 2019December 18, 2019 by Evan Gough

Cool Photo of Canadarm2 With its Dextre Hand. Oh and the Earth. That’s Nice Too.

The Canadarm 2 with the robotic hand Dextre attached riding shotgun on the International Space Station. Image Credit: NASA

Check out this image of the Canadian Space Agency’s (CSA) Canadarm2 on the International Space Station. The CSA’s Dextre is attached to one end of the arm. The Canadarm2 played a vital role in assembling the ISS, while Dextre helps maintain the ISS, freeing astronauts from routine yet dangerous spacewalks, and allowing them to focus on science.