Habitability
Earth’s Past and Future Habitability Depends on Our Protection from Space Weather
A bewildering number of factors and variables led up to the planet we occupy today, where life finds a way…
Enceladus has All the Raw Materials for Life
Saturn's ocean moon, Enceladus, is attracting increasing attention in the search for life in our Solar System. Most of what…
White Dwarfs Could Support Life. So Where are All Their Planets?
Astronomers have found plenty of white dwarf stars surrounded by debris disks. Those disks are the remains of planets destroyed…
What’s the Best Way to Find Planets in the Habitable Zone?
Despite the fact that we've discovered thousands of them, exoplanets are hard to find. And some types are harder to…
If Earth is Average, We Should Find Extraterrestrial Life Within 60 Light-Years
A new study estimates that there could be 11,000 habitable planets within 100 parsecs of our Sun, the nearest being…
When did the First Continents Appear in the Universe?
On Earth, continents are likely necessary to support life. Continents 'float' on top of the Earth's viscous mantle, and heat…
Is it Time for a New Definition of “Habitable?”
Things tend to move from the simple to the complex when you're trying to understand something new. This is the…
Forget the Habitable Zone – We Need to Find the Computational Zone
Astronomers are currently searching for signs of life in the "habitable zones" of nearby stars, which is defined as the…
Even the Calmest Red Dwarfs are Wilder than the Sun
There's something menacing about red dwarfs. Human eyes are accustomed to our benevolent yellow Sun and the warm light it…
Do Red Dwarfs Provide Enough Sunlight for Plants to Grow?
A new study has shown the photosynthesis can take place on planets orbiting Red Dwarfs.