Universe Today
• Bruce Dorminey
An analysis argues that even with BepiColombo’s upcoming visit to Mercury, the solar system’s innermost planet will remain incompletely understood without a lander mission. It makes the case that a spacecraft visiting Mercury is not enough to answer the questions surrounding the planet.
Space Exploration & Science Missions
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An analysis argues that even with BepiColombo’s upcoming visit to Mercury, the solar system’s innermost planet will remain incompletely understood without a lander mission. It makes the case that a spacecraft visiting Mercury is not enough to answer the questions surrounding the planet.
Researchers using the James Webb Space Telescope tracked water-cloud changes in a brown dwarf about 7.5 light-years away, while separate studies describe deformed atmospheres on ultra-hot exoplanets and gemstone-forming conditions on a scorching, low-density world. Together, the findings extend observations of weather and atmospheric structure beyond the planets in our solar system.
A strange radio formation beyond the Zone of Avoidance, nicknamed the Treble Clef for its resemblance to the musical symbol, has been identified in new research as a radio phoenix. The finding links the unusual cosmic structure to radio waves associated with a supermassive black hole.
Two leading space scientists argue that the solar system’s edge should be reassessed using the Milky Way’s gravity, including the influence of dark matter. Their proposal reframes where the solar system ends in terms of the galactic environment rather than relying solely on its familiar outer limits.
An international team working through the ALMA COMPASS Large program has reported the first detection in space of a rare form of methanol, also known as wood alcohol. The finding adds a previously undetected variant of the molecule to observations of space chemistry.
High activity
NASA’s Cassini spacecraft lifted off from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station aboard a Titan 4B rocket on Oct. 15, 1997. The mission was designed to explore Saturn and its moons, beginning a journey that would take seven years to reach the planet.
Research finds that planetary systems in the Milky Way largely fall into two groups, with the host star’s mass linked to which group a system belongs to. The findings offer a more detailed framework for comparing and understanding exoplanet systems.
NASA’s SkyFall helicopters are expected to extend exploration beyond areas accessible to ground vehicles, covering distance quickly and reaching terrain that may otherwise be difficult or impossible to examine. Scientists say the aircraft could give researchers views of parts of Mars not previously seen.
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