Planet Earth

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  A New 'Earth' Next Door? Scientists Detect Possible Habitable Planet Around Closest Sun-Like Star

  Astronomers using JWST have detected a giant exoplanet in the habitable zone of Alpha Centauri A, our nearest Sun-like star.

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  Meteorite That Crashed Into A Home In The US Is Older Than Earth, Study Finds

  The meteorite, which formed 4.56 billion years ago, is approximately 20 million years older than Earth.

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  NASA Missions Uncover a Diverse Galaxy of Super-Earths, Raising New Questions About Planetary Evolution

  Super-Earths are among the most common planets in the galaxy, yet none exist in our solar system. Larger than Earth but smaller than Neptune, they range from ocean-covered worlds to scorched, atmosphere-less rocks. Some orbit within habitable zones, making them prime candidates for life. NASA’s Kepler and TESS missions, along with upcoming telesc...

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  Habitable Zone Explained: The ‘Goldilocks Zone’ Where Life-Friendly Planets May Exist

  The habitable zone, or “Goldilocks zone”, is the region around a star where conditions allow liquid water to exist. Varying with star type, this zone is key in the search for life. Earth’s location in the Sun’s habitable zone has made life possible, and astronomers seek similar rocky exoplanets in other systems to explore the possibility of...

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  Scientists Explore Role of Space Radiation in Powering Alien Microbial Life

  A new study proposes that life may exist far from sunlight in a “radiolytic habitable zone” deep beneath the icy surfaces of Mars, Europa, and Enceladus. Cosmic rays, which can penetrate rock and ice, break water molecules apart to release hydrogen, oxygen, and energy-rich electrons. These can fuel microbes in subsurface water, much like bacter...

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  Exoplanet 35 Light-Years Away Offers Hope for Life Beyond Earth

  The exoplanet has a minimum mass 2.8 times that of Earth and has been categorised as a super-Earth.

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  Doomed Exoplanet TOI-2109b Spirals Toward Its Star with Three Possible Fates

  The gas giant TOI-2109b, over five times Jupiter’s mass, is spiraling closer to its star in a rare planetary death spiral. With a 16-hour orbit and blistering heat, the exoplanet could either plunge into its host star, be torn apart by tidal forces, or evolve into a rocky super-Earth through photoevaporation. NASA’s TESS and ESA’s Cheops data...

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  Chandra Spots Distant Baby Planet Losing Its Atmosphere Under Intense X-ray Assault

  NASA’s Chandra X-ray Observatory has captured a rare glimpse of TOI 1227 b, a young, Jupiter-sized exoplanet losing its atmosphere under intense stellar radiation. Just 8 million years old, the planet is shrinking rapidly as X-rays strip away its mass. Scientists warn it may become a barren rocky core in about a billion years.

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  Young Exoplanet Spotted Shedding Atmosphere Under Stellar Radiation

  NASA’s Chandra X-ray Observatory and Hubble Space Telescope have captured a dramatic cosmic event: a baby exoplanet, TOI 1227 b, is being stripped of its atmosphere by powerful X-rays from its host star. Only 8 million years old and orbiting a red dwarf, this Jupiter-sized planet is losing gas at a rate equal to Earth’s entire atmosphere every ...

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  This Arctic Town Has The World's Northernmost Brewery And A Ban On Death

  Some places on Earth are wild in more ways than one, and Svalbard Bryggeri in Norway - the northernmost brewery on the planet - is one of them.

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  Crystalline Ice Discovered in Space: New Study Reveals Hidden Order in Cosmic Ice

  A groundbreaking study from University College London and the University of Cambridge reveals that water ice in space, long believed to be completely amorphous due to extreme cold, may actually contain up to 25% crystalline structure. Simulations and X-ray diffraction experiments confirm the presence of nanocrystals in so-called low-density amorpho...

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  Earth’s Spin to Speed Up Briefly, Causing Shorter Days This Summer

  Scientists report that Earth will briefly spin faster on July 9, 22, and August 5, shortening those summer days by 1.3 to 1.5 milliseconds. Though undetectable in daily life, this shift offers clues to how lunar gravity and seasonal changes affect planetary dynamics. Experts note that while timekeeping systems like GPS are unaffected, this rare spe...

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  Meteorite From Outer Solar System Challenges Planet Formation Timeline in Early Solar System

  A meteorite from the outer solar system may upend long-held beliefs about planetary formation. New research shows rocky planets like Earth may have formed at the same time as those beyond Jupiter. The findings challenge previous models and suggest a more synchronised origin for rocky worlds across the solar system, with major implications for plane...

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  When The Sun Dies: What It Means For Earth

  The eventual death of the Sun might prompt humanity to search for new homes in other star systems.

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  Oldest Rock On Earth Confirmed To Be Over 4 Billion Years Old

  Earth formed about 4.6 billion years ago, during the geological eon known as the Hadean. The name "Hadean" comes from the Greek god of the underworld, reflecting the extreme heat that likely characterized the planet at the time.