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Evidence of a Late Heavy Bombardment Occuring in Another Solar System

[/caption] Planetary scientists have not been able to agree that a turbulent period in our solar system’s history called the Late Heavy Bombardment actually occurred. But now, using observations from the Spitzer Space Telescope, scientists have detected activity resembling a similar type of event where icy bodies from the outer solar system are possibly pummeling …

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Pluto or Eris: Which is Bigger?

[/caption] The controversy between Pluto and Eris regarding their status as “largest dwarf planet” continues. During a joint meeting of the American Astronomical Society Division for Planetary Sciences and the European Planetary Science Congress last week in Nantes, France, new data was presented that may help settle the debate. The new findings regarding this size …

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What Would Earth Look Like from a Distant Star?

As the number of discovered extrasolar planets grows, astronomers begin looking at the next step: finding rocky Earth-like planets. In addition, astronomers would ideally like to block out the parent star and detect some of the reflected glow from the planet’s atmosphere in an attempt to characterize the chemical makeup. But what would an “Earth-like” …

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Best Evidence Yet That Comets Delivered Water for Earth’s Oceans

[/caption] The idea isn’t new that Earth’s oceans originated from comets bombarding our planet back in its early days. But astronomers have now found the best evidence yet for this scenario. The Herschel infrared space observatory detected that comet Hartley 2, which originates from the distant Kuiper Belt, contains water with the same chemical signature …

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New Research Finds Venus’ Winds, They Are A-Changin’

  [/caption] Venus, Earth’s hotheaded neighbor, may have more variability in its weather patterns than previously believed. Using infrared data obtained by ground-based telescopes in Hawaii and Arizona researchers have found that Venus’ mesosphere and thermosphere are less consistent in temperature than layers closer to its surface. But first let’s talk about Venus itself. Possibly …

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Kepler Mission Discovers “Tatooine-like” Planet

[/caption] In a news conference today, Kepler mission scientists announced the first confirmed circumbinary planet ( a planet that orbits a binary star system). The planet in question, designated Kepler-16b has been compared to the planet Tatooine from the Star Wars saga. Would it be possible for someone like Luke Skywalker to stand on the …

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NASA launches Twin Lunar Probes to Unravel Moons Core

[/caption] NASA renewed its focus on ground breaking science today with the thunderous blastoff of a pair of lunar bound spacecraft that will map the moons interior with unparalled precision and which will fundamentally alter our understanding of how the moon and other rocky bodies in our solar system – including Earth – formed and …

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‘Invisible’ World Discovered Around a Distant Star

[/caption] There’s a planet out there playing a game of ‘doorbell ditch’ with astronomers. Scientists can’t see this distant world, but they know it’s there because its gravity is having a noticeable effect on the orbit of a neighboring planet. “It’s like having someone play a prank on you by ringing your doorbell and running …

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