Universe Today

July 27, 2024July 27, 2024 by Mark Thompson

Kepler Sketched the Sun in 1607. Astronomers Pinpointed the Solar Cycle

The earliest datable sunspot drawings based on Johannes Kepler's solar observations with camera obscura in May 1607.

Johannes Kepler is probably most well known for developing the laws of planetary motion. He was also a keen solar observer and in 1607 made some wonderful observations of our nearest star using a camera obscura. His drawings were wonderfully precise and enabled astronomers to pinpoint where the Sun was in its 11-year cycle. Having taken into account Kepler’s location and the location of sunspots, a team of researchers have identified the Sun was nearing the end of solar cycle-13.

July 27, 2024July 27, 2024 by Matt Williams

Mercury Could be Housing a Megafortune Worth of Diamonds!

Image of Mercury taken by NASA's MESSENGER mission. Credit: NASA/JHUAPL/ASU/Carnegie Institution of Washington

Mercury, the closest planet to our Sun, is also one of the least understood in the Solar System. On the one hand, it is similar in composition to Earth and the other rocky planets, consisting of silicate minerals and metals differentiated between a silicate crust and mantle and an iron-nickel core. But unlike the other rocky planets, Mercury’s core makes up a much larger part of its mass fraction. Mercury also has a mysteriously persistent magnetic field that scientists still cannot explain. In this respect, Mercury is also one of the most interesting planets in the Solar System.

But according to new research, Mercury could be much more interesting than previously thought. Based on new simulations of Mercury’s early evolution, a team of Chinese and Belgian geoscientists found evidence that Mercury may have a layer of solid diamond beneath its crust. According to their simulations, this layer is 15 km (9 mi) thick sandwiched between the core and the mantle hundreds of miles beneath the surface. While this makes the diamonds inaccessible (for now, at least), these findings could have implications for theories about the formation and evolution of rocky planets.

July 27, 2024July 27, 2024 by Evan Gough

Webb Directly Images a Jupiter-Like Planet

The gas-giant exoplanet Epsilon Indi Ab imaged using the MIRI instrument on NASA’s Webb telescope. A star symbol marks the location of the host star, whose light has been blocked by MIRI’s coronagraph, resulting in the dark circle with a dashed white line. The planet is to the left of the star. Credit: NASA, ESA, CSA, STScI, E. Matthews (Max Planck Institute for Astronomy)

The JWST has directly imaged its first exoplanet, a temperate super Jupiter only about 12 light-years away from Earth. It could be the oldest and coldest planet ever detected.

July 27, 2024July 27, 2024 by Andy Tomaswick

Floating LEAVES Could Characterize Venus’s Atmosphere

Venus’s atmosphere has drawn a lot of attention lately. In particular, the consistent discovery of phosphine in its clouds points to potential biological sources. That, in turn, has resulted in numerous suggested missions, including floating a balloon into the atmosphere or having a spacecraft scoop down and suck up atmospheric samples. But a team of engineers led by Jeffrey Balcerski, now an adjunct at Kent State University but then part of the Ohio Aerospace Institute, came up with a different idea years ago – use floating sensor platforms shaped like leaves to collect a wide variety of data throughout Venus’ atmosphere.

July 27, 2024July 27, 2024 by Mark Thompson

Update your Desktop Wallpaper with 25 New Images from Chandra

This collection of images was released to commemorate the 25th anniversary of Chandra. Image credit: NASA / CXC / SAO.

It’s not always possible to observe the night sky from the surface of the Earth. The blocking effects of the atmosphere mean we sometimes need to put telescopes out into space. The Chandra X-Ray Observatory is one such telescopes and it has just completed its 25th year of observations. To celebrate, NASA have just released 25 never-before-seen images of various celestial objects in x-rays. The collection includes images showing the region around black holes, giant clouds of hot gas and extreme magnetic fields. Sadly though, NASA is planning on shutting down the mission to save budget so best to enjoy the images while you can.

July 27, 2024July 27, 2024 by Alan Boyle

SpaceX Resumes Falcon 9 Rocket Launches After FAA Go-Ahead

SpaceX Falcon 9 liftoff — SpaceX's Falcon 9 rocket lifts off from NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. (Credit: SpaceX via X)

SpaceX is flying again after the Federal Aviation Administration ruled that the company can resume Falcon 9 rocket launches while the investigation into a failed July 11 mission continues.

The FAA’s go-ahead came on July 25 after SpaceX reported that the failure was caused by a crack in a sense line for a pressure sensor attached to the upper stage’s liquid-oxygen system. That resulted in an oxygen leak that degraded the performance of the upper-stage engine. As a near-term fix, SpaceX is removing the sense line and the sensors for upcoming Falcon 9 launches.

It didn’t take long for SpaceX to get back to its flight schedule. The company launched a Falcon 9 rocket from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida at 1:45 a.m. ET (05:45 GMT) today. Like the July 11 mission, this one sent a batch of SpaceX’s Starlink satellites to low Earth orbit.

The launch appeared to proceed without incident. After stage separation, the first-stage booster descended to a landing on a drone ship in the Atlantic Ocean, while the second stage proceeded to orbit and deployed 23 satellites for the Starlink high-speed internet network.

July 25, 2024July 25, 2024 by Carolyn Collins Petersen

Is This How You Get Hot Jupiters?

This artist’s impression shows a Jupiter-like exoplanet that is on its way to becoming a hot Jupiter — a large, Jupiter-like exoplanet that orbits very close to its star. Courtesy: NOIRLab/NSF/AURA/J. da Silva

When we think of Jupiter-type planets, we usually picture massive cloud-covered worlds orbiting far from their stars. That distance keeps their volatile gases from vaporizing from stellar heat, similar to what we’re familiar with in our Solar System. So, why are so many exoplanets known as “hot Jupiters” orbiting very close to their stars? That’s the question astronomers ask as they study more of these extreme worlds.

July 25, 2024July 25, 2024 by Mark Thompson

Now Uranus’ Moon Ariel Might Have an Ocean too

An image mosaic of Uranus’ moon Ariel, taken by the narrow-angle camera on Voyager 2 on Jan. 24, 1986. Credit: NASA/Jet Propulsion Laboratory

Venus is known for being really quite inhospitable with high surface temperatures and Mars is known for its rusty red horizons. Even the moons of some of the outer planets have fascinating environments with Europa and Enceladus boasting underground oceans. Recent observations from the James Webb Space Telescope show that Ariel, a moon of Uranus, is also a strong candidate for a sub surface ocean. How has this conclusion been reached? Well JWST has detected carbon dioxide ice on the surface on the trailing edge of features trailing away from the orbital direction. The possible cause, an underground ocean!

July 25, 2024July 25, 2024 by Mark Thompson

Why is JWST Having So Much Trouble with the TRAPPIST-1 System?

A new step-by-step roadmap describes how to improve the efficiency of data gathering with the JWST to benefit the astronomy community at large. “Our hope now is that a large-scale community effort guided by the roadmap can be initiated to yield deliverables at a timely pace,” says MIT Associate Professor Julien de Wit. Credits:Image components courtesy of NASA/JPL-Caltech.

When the James Webb Space Telescope was launched it came with a fanfare expecting amazing things, much like the Hubble Space Telescope. One of JWST’s most anticipated target was TRAPPIST-1. This inconspicuous star is host to seven Earth-sized planets, with at least three in the habitable zone. The two inner planets are airless worlds but so far there has been no word of the third planet, the first in the habitable zone. The question is why and what makes it so tricky to observe?

July 25, 2024July 25, 2024 by Matt Williams

Planetary Habitability Depends on its Star’s Magnetic Field

Earth's magnetosphere is the region defined by our planet's magnetic field. Image Credit: NASA

The extrasolar planet census recently passed a major milestone, with 5500 confirmed candidates in 4,243 solar systems. With so many exoplanets available for study, astronomers have learned a great deal about the types of planets that exist in our galaxy and have been rethinking several preconceived notions. These include the notion of “habitability” and whether Earth is the standard by which this should be measured – i.e., could there be “super habitable” exoplanets out there? – and the very concept of the circumsolar habitable zone (CHZ).

Traditionally, astronomers have defined habitable zones based on the type of star and the orbital distance where a planet would be warm enough to maintain liquid water on its surface. But in recent years, other factors have been considered, including the presence of planetary magnetic fields and whether they get enough ultraviolet light. In a recent study, a team from Rice University extended the definition of a CHZ to include a star’s magnetic field. Their findings could have significant implications in the search for life on other planets (aka. astrobiology).