Scientists using the European Space Agency’s Mars Express, in combination with a state-of-the-art meteorological model of the Red Planet, have found that there may be some exotic physics behind Mars’ most curious cloud. The paper, “Homogeneous ice Nucleation from Water Vapour Suggested by Elongated Clouds on Mars,” is published in Nature Geoscience.

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Transporting material from Earth to the moon is an expensive proposition: By some estimates, moving a single kilogram (2.2 pounds) can cost more than $1 million. Any plan to build a permanent human habitat up there will depend on bringing that sky-high cost down.

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The NASA/ESA/CSA James Webb Space Telescope has unveiled numerous stars formerly hidden by clouds of dust in a stellar nursery known as NGC 7129—a cauldron of cosmic creation, 3,300 light-years from Earth. Webb captured infrared light, which pierces through the dense matter that scatters or absorbs other types of light. This region, rife with stellar […]

Evidence for hypernovae, theorized to be the most powerful explosions in the universe, has been disputed in two papers by University College London (UCL) researchers.

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The only known supernova remnant of its kind in the Milky Way has an unexpectedly intricate structure: chains of gas knots resembling pearls on a string, each wide enough to fit the solar system multiple times. Using the Gemini North telescope, an international team co-led by Ilaria Caiazzo, assistant professor at the Institute of Science […]

Earth seems like a troubled place right now, but at least our cosmic surroundings appear peaceful. This is not universally true, as explosions, collisions and other dangers lurk in other places and times.

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The universe may be trapped in its own comfort zone, and a researcher in the College of Engineering and Computer Science has helped explain why it cannot seem to leave. A new study suggests the universe could be locked into its current state by the same kinds of quantum effects that scientists study when trying […]

Heat shields are one of the most important parts of any spacecraft that intends to enter an atmosphere. And the material they are made of is critical. Improving them has been a challenge, though, as researchers typically only get “before” and “after” pictures of a heat shield’s job of helping a spacecraft land safely back […]