Did an asteroid collision cause an ice age on Earth?
Could a collision between 2 asteroids millions of miles away cause an ice age on Earth, some 460 million years ago? A new study of earthly rocks and sediments – plus micrometeorites that fell in Antarctica – suggest it’s possible.
Earth's ozone layer still in trouble, study finds
We’ve got good news and bad news. There’s more evidence that the hole in the ozone layer over Antarctica is recovering and that humans’ efforts are making a difference. At the same time, however, one study suggests the ozone layer…
No, asteroid 2007 FT3 wonât hit Earth in October
Why is the internet so chock-full of stories about asteroids on a collision course with Earth? At this rate, we should have been obliterated many times over already. Here comes the newest scare story: asteroid 2007 FT3. No, it won’t hit us, either.
Here comes the first known comet from outside of our solar system
Our solar system is getting another visitor from a faraway galaxy. An amateur astronomer from Crimea named Gennady Borisov first spotted the fast-moving fleck in the night sky last month. Since then, both Hawaii’s Gemini Observatory and Spain’s William Herschel…
Will a huge volcano on Jupiterâs moon Io erupt this month?
Loki, the largest volcano on Jupiter’s moon Io, erupts on a more or less regular schedule. Planetary scientists are predicting an eruption this month. Here’s what we know.
12 incredible images of Saturn
Nice rings Saturn is the hipster of our solar system. The second largest planet, its flashy rings make it the cooler cousin to the lumbering gas giant Jupiter or to the sizzling Venus. Saturn is visible with the naked eye…
Are Saturnâs rings young or old?
Cassini data suggested that Saturn’s rings were only 10 to 100 million years old. A new study suggests that a “ring rain” onto Saturn makes the rings look younger than they really are, and that in fact Saturn’s rings date back billions of years.
Mystery green blob appears and disappears in distant galaxy
What is ULX-4 – a mystery green blob of X-ray light that appeared in the Fireworks Galaxy – and then soon disappeared again? A black hole or neutron star are 2 possibilities.
Milky Wayâs black hole appears to be getting hungrier
“We have never seen anything like this in the 24 years we have studied the supermassive black hole. Itâs usually a pretty quiet, wimpy black hole on a diet. We donât know what is driving this big feast.”
Is K2-18b really a habitable super-Earth?
It was exciting last week when scientists announced water vapor in a super-Earth’s atmosphere. But, even as the announcement came, other scientists were cautioning that the planet – K2-18b – is probably less like a super-Earth and more like a mini-Neptune.
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