Latest news with #ThePlanetaryScienceJournal
NDTV
29-07-2025
- Science
- NDTV
Study Reveals What Presence Of CO2 On Eight Saturn Moons Means
Researchers used data obtained from NASA's James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) to analyse carbon dioxide (CO2) detected on eight mid-sized satellites of Saturn, including Mimas, Enceladus, Tethys, Dione, Rhea, Hyperion, Iapetus and Phoebe. Researchers have identified four distinct types of trapped CO2 on these satellites based on wavelength shifts in JWST's data. Scientists believe that Saturn's moons provide an "ideal laboratory" for studying this trapped CO2, which would allow them to examine objects under similar conditions. "The satellites of Saturn have at least two separate sources of CO2 and at least four separate trapping mechanisms," researchers wrote in the study. According to a recent study submitted to The Planetary Science Journal, CO2 on inner satellites like Dione and Rhea is associated with amorphous ice sourced from Saturn's E-ring and dark material on their trailing hemispheres. On the other hand, CO2 on outer satellites like Phoebe is produced by irradiation of organics, which is then transported to the dark regions of Iapetus and Hyperion. The CO2 gas is also trapped within water ice on Iapetus and Hyperion. "These observations have interesting implications for the icy Galilean satellites and the state of their CO2 as well. Interpretations for the CO2 detected on the Galilean satellites are sometimes similar to the interpretations we have made here for the Saturnian satellites, though in some cases the similarity of the interpretation is in spite of large spectral differences," researchers in the study noted. The study aims to help scientists understand the existence of CO2 on planetary bodies, the process of formation and evolution. It would also shed light on whether these objects could support life. The findings also highlight the need for laboratory studies to better understand the sources and trapping mechanisms of CO2 in the outer solar system.
Yahoo
16-07-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
Giant space 'boulders' unleashed by NASA's DART mission aren't behaving as expected, revealing hidden risks of deflecting asteroids
When you buy through links on our articles, Future and its syndication partners may earn a commission. Three years ago, NASA made history by deliberately smashing a spacecraft into a large asteroid, altering its course and demonstrating humankind's ability to protect our planet from "potentially hazardous" space rocks in the future. But a new analysis hints that the debris from this monumental collision is not behaving as expected, raising doubts about the success of future asteroid-deflecting missions. On Sept. 26, 2022, NASA's Double Asteroid Redirection Test (DART) spacecraft purposefully collided with the asteroid Dimorphos, crashing directly into the middle of the space rock at around 15,000 mph (24,000 km/h). The mission was a smashing success: Not only did DART alter Dimorphos' trajectory — shortening its trip around its partner asteroid Didymos by around 30 minutes — it also completely changed the shape of the asteroid. The collision, which occurred more than 7 million miles (11 million kilometers) from Earth, demonstrated that this type of action, known as the "kinetic impactor" method, was a conceivably viable option for protecting our planet from potentially hazardous asteroids. However, a new study, published July 4 in The Planetary Science Journal, has revealed a hidden complication: Dozens of large "boulders," which were knocked loose from the asteroid by the spacecraft are apparently traveling with greater momentum than predicted and have configured into surprisingly non-random patterns. Related: Could scientists stop a 'planet killer' asteroid from hitting Earth? The researchers analyzed images from the European Space Agency's (ESA) Light Italian Cubesat for Imaging of Asteroids (LICIACube), which flew alongside DART to monitor the collision. This allowed them to track 104 boulders — each between 0.7 and 11.8 feet (0.2 to 3.6 meters) across — as they shot away from the asteroid. The big takeaway was that these boulders had around three times more momentum than predicted, likely as the result of "an additional kick" the boulders received as they were pushed away from the asteroid's surface, study lead author Tony Farnham, an astronomer at the University of Maryland, said in a statement. "That additional factor changes the physics we need to consider when planning these types of missions," he added. The team also noted that the boulders were arranged into unexpected patterns: "We saw that the boulders weren't scattered randomly in space," Farnham said. "Instead, they were clustered in two pretty distinct groups, with an absence of material elsewhere, which means that something unknown is at work here." The researchers want to learn more about what happened so that we have all the necessary information at hand if and when we need to make decisions about using a kinetic impactor to protect our planet from an incoming space rock in the future. "If an asteroid was tumbling toward us, and we knew we had to move it a specific amount to prevent it from hitting Earth, then all these subtleties become very, very important," study co-author Jessica Sunshine, an astronomer at the University of Maryland, said in the statement. "You can think of it as a cosmic pool game," she added. "We might miss the pocket if we don't consider all the variables." This is not the first time scientists have noticed something unexpected about the fallout from the DART mission. In April 2024, researchers noted that some of the largest boulders might have been set on a collision course with Mars and could smash into the Red Planet in around 6,000 years, potentially endangering any future human colonies that may live there. In August last year, simulations using LICIACube data also suggested that some of the smaller fragments from the asteroid could hit Earth in around 30 years, potentially triggering a spectacular meteor shower without posing a real threat to our planet. However, despite all these uncertainties, the kinetic impactor method is still the most viable option to protect ourselves from any real threat of being hit by an asteroid. RELATED STORIES —'City killer' asteroid 2024 YR4 could shower Earth with 'bullet-like' meteors if it hits the moon in 2032 —An 'invisible threat': Swarm of hidden 'city killer' asteroids around Venus could one day collide with Earth, simulations show —'God of Chaos' asteroid Apophis could still hit Earth in 2029, study hints — but we won't know for 3 more years This topic was discussed earlier this year when the "city killer" asteroid 2024 YR4 was temporarily believed to have a roughly 3% chance of hitting Earth in 2032. The odds of a collision are now zero, but experts are keen to keep the conversation going, especially as the severe cuts to NASA's budget proposed by the Trump administration could limit our ability to spot dangerous space rocks. Researchers will get a better idea of what is happening with the Dimorphos debris next year, when ESA's Hera spacecraft arrives at the asteroid to properly study the fallout from the DART collision.
The Sun
16-07-2025
- Science
- The Sun
Dozens of BOULDERS now flying through space at high speed after Nasa test to shield Earth from asteroid smash goes wrong
THERE may be a flaw in Nasa's only defence against Earth-shattering asteroids, according to new analysis. In 2022, the US space agency showed for the first time that Earth could indeed shield itself and mankind from "potentially hazardous" space rocks. 3 The Double Asteroid Redirection Test (DART) spacecraft intentionally collided with the asteroid Dimorphos, to knock it off its course. The spacecraft rammed into the middle of the more than 500ft asteroid at around 15,000 mph (24,000 km/h), around 7million miles away from Earth. The mission was declared a success, as it altered Dimorphos' trajectory, but it also completely changed the shape of the asteroid. But in doing so, chunks of debris were knocked loose from the asteroid by the impact. Now, there are dozens of large "boulders" traveling in space with even greater momentum than predicted, a new study, published in The Planetary Science Journal, has cautioned. The study raises doubts about the success of future asteroid-deflecting missions. Analysing images captured by the European Space Agency's LICIACube satellite during DART, researchers were able track 104 boulders as they shot away from the asteroid. Each hunk of celestial debris measured between 0.7 and 11.8 feet (0.2 to 3.6 meters) across. They are moving with around three times more momentum than predicted, which is could be the result of "an additional kick" the boulders received as they were pushed away from the asteroid's surface, study lead author Tony Farnham, an astronomer at the University of Maryland, said in a statement. "That additional factor changes the physics we need to consider when planning these types of missions," he added. Terrifying video reveals what the impact of city-killer asteroid 2024YR4 hitting Earth in 2032 might look like The team also noted that the boulders were arranged into unusual patterns. "We saw that the boulders weren't scattered randomly in space," Farnham said. "Instead, they were clustered in two pretty distinct groups, with an absence of material elsewhere, which means that something unknown is at work here." To avoid any future asteroid doom, researchers must consider all the data - no matter how seemingly insignificant it seems. "If an asteroid was tumbling toward us, and we knew we had to move it a specific amount to prevent it from hitting Earth, then all these subtleties become very, very important," study co-author Jessica Sunshine, an astronomer at the University of Maryland, said in the statement. "You can think of it as a cosmic pool game. We might miss the pocket if we don't consider all the variables." This is not the first time scientists have noticed something unexpected about the fallout from the DART mission. In April 2024, researchers noted that some of the largest boulders might have been set on a collision course with Mars. The debris could smash into the Red Planet in around 6,000 years, which may endanger any future human colonies living there - if Elon Musk gets his way. Simulations based on LICIACube data also suggested that some of the smaller asteroid fragments could hit Earth in around 30 years. Although these pose no threat to our planet, and might instead trigger an epic meteor shower. However, despite all these uncertainties, smashing a spacecraft into an asteroid is still humanity's most viable option to protect ourselves from any real asteroid threat. 3
Gizmodo
11-07-2025
- Science
- Gizmodo
Deflecting a Killer Asteroid Is More Complicated Than NASA Thought
In 2022, NASA rammed a spacecraft into an asteroid to see if it could alter its orbital period around its parent asteroid. The mission, dubbed the Double Asteroid Redirection Test (DART), aimed to determine whether humanity could theoretically save itself from a catastrophic asteroid impact. DART collided with Dimorphos, a small moonlet orbiting a larger asteroid called Didymos, on September 26, 2022. The results of the impact blew NASA's expectations out of the water, shortening Dimorphos's orbital period by 32 minutes. Such a change would be more than enough to deflect a dangerous asteroid away from Earth, indicating that this strategy—the kinetic impactor technique—could save us if necessary. New research, however, complicates this success story. An investigation into the debris DART left behind suggests this technique, when applied to planetary defense, isn't as straightforward as scientists initially thought. 'We succeeded in deflecting an asteroid, moving it from its orbit,' said study lead author Tony Farnham, a research astronomer at the University of Maryland, in a statement. 'Our research shows that while the direct impact of the DART spacecraft caused this change, the boulders ejected gave an additional kick that was almost as big. That additional factor changes the physics we need to consider when planning these types of missions.' Farnham and his colleagues published their findings in The Planetary Science Journal on July 4. Dimorphos is a 'rubble pile' asteroid, a loose conglomeration of material such as rocks, pebbles, and boulders held together by gravity. This study only applies to this type of asteroid. Had DART collided with a more coherent, solid body, the impact wouldn't have produced these bizarre effects. Still, there are plenty of other rubble pile asteroids in the galaxy, so understanding how they respond to the kinetic impactor technique is important. The researchers analyzed images taken by LICIACube, an Italian Space Agency satellite that was mounted on the DART spacecraft. About two weeks before the impact, LICIACube separated and began following about three minutes behind the spacecraft, allowing the satellite to beam images of the collision and its effects back to Earth. In addition to observing the crater DART punched into the surface of Dimorphos, LICIACube captured the ejecta plume, or the cloud of debris ejected from the asteroid when DART hit it. These images allowed Farnham and his colleagues to track 104 boulders ranging from 1.3 to 23.6 feet (0.4 to 7.2 meters) wide. The rocks shot away from the asteroid at speeds up to 116 miles per hour (187 kilometers per hour). Strangely, the distribution of this ejected debris was not random, defying the researchers' expectations. 'We saw that the boulders weren't scattered randomly in space,' Farnham said. 'Instead, they were clustered in two pretty distinct groups, with an absence of material elsewhere, which means that something unknown is at work here.' The larger of the two clusters, which contained 70% of the debris, shot southward away from the asteroid at high speeds and shallow angles. The researchers believe these objects came from a specific source on Dimorphos—perhaps two large boulders called Atabaque and Bodhran that shattered when DART's solar panels slammed into them moments before the main body of the spacecraft hit. When the team compared this outcome to that of NASA's Deep Impact (EPOXI) mission, which punched a probe into a comet to study its interior structure, the distribution of the debris made more sense. Whereas Deep Impact hit a surface made up of very small, uniform particles, DART hit a rocky surface packed with large boulders. This 'resulted in chaotic and filamentary structures in its ejecta patterns,' coauthor Jessica Sunshine, a professor of astronomy and geology at the University of Maryland who served as principal investigator for Deep Impact, explained in the statement. 'Comparing these two missions side-by-side gives us this insight into how different types of celestial bodies respond to impacts, which is crucial to ensuring that a planetary defense mission is successful,' she said. The 104 ejected boulders carried a total kinetic energy equal to 1.4% of the energy of the DART spacecraft, and 96% of that energy was directed to the south, representing 'significant momentum contributions that were not accounted for in the orbital period measurements,' the researchers state in their report. The force of debris exploding away from Dimorphos upon DART's impact could have tilted the asteroid's orbital plane by up to one degree, potentially causing it to tumble erratically in space. 'Thus, a full accounting of the momentum in all directions and understanding the role played by surface boulders will provide better knowledge of how the specifics of the impact could alter—either reducing or enhancing—the effects of a kinetic impactor,' the researchers write. Astronomers have catalogued roughly 2,500 potentially hazardous asteroids in our corner of the galaxy. These are space rocks that can come alarmingly close to Earth and are large enough to cause significant damage upon impact. While there is currently no known risk of one of these asteroids hitting our planet within the next century, developing strategies to prevent such a catastrophe could someday prove lifesaving. The success of the DART mission suggests that NASA is on the right track, but this new study shows we still have much to learn about the effects of the kinetic impactor technique.
Yahoo
27-05-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Scientists Puzzled by Mysterious Motion in Atmosphere of Saturn's Moon
Researchers have found that the thick and hazy atmosphere enveloping Saturn's largest moon, Titan, behaves in a very peculiar way. As detailed in a new paper published in The Planetary Science Journal, a team of scientists analyzed 13 years' worth of thermal infrared observations recorded by NASA and the European Space Agency's Cassini-Huygens mission. Their finding: that Titan's atmosphere wobbles like a gyroscope as it shifts with the seasons of its nearly 30 Earth-year cycle, instead of spinning in line with its surface. "The behavior of Titan's atmospheric tilt is very strange," said lead author and University of Bristol postdoctoral researcher Lucy Wright in a statement about the work. "Titan's atmosphere appears to be acting like a gyroscope, stabilizing itself in space." The discovery makes the moon, which has already captured the attention of astronomers for its suspected bodies of liquid and planet-like dimensions — it's larger in diameter than Mercury — an even more intriguing candidate for a closer look, since it appears to have its own, independent climate system. Given the latest discovery, though, scientists are now facing even more riddles about the unusual celestial body. "We think some event in the past may have knocked the atmosphere off its spin axis, causing it to wobble," Wright posited. "Even more intriguingly, we've found that the size of this tilt changes with Titan's seasons." "What's puzzling is how the tilt direction remains fixed in space, rather than being influenced by the Sun or Saturn," coauthor and University of Bristol planetary scientist Nick Teanby added. "That would've given us clues to the cause. Instead, we've got a new mystery on our hands." The findings could influence NASA's upcoming Dragonfly mission, which is tentatively scheduled to launch no sooner than 2028, and will see a massive rotorcraft attempt to descend through Titan's extremely dense atmosphere to explore its surface. It won't be a walk in the park, as it will have to endure temperatures around -300 Fahrenheit while keeping itself airborne with a surface pressure one and a half times that on Earth and winds of up to 20 times faster than the moon's rotation. How the atmosphere "wobbles" on its own could allow scientists to get a better idea of how to keep Dragonfly operational, and where to touch down. The new findings could also have far-reaching implications, forcing us to reevaluate our understanding of the Earth's atmosphere. "The fact that Titan's atmosphere behaves like a spinning top disconnected from its surface raises fascinating questions — not just for Titan, but for understanding atmospheric physics more broadly, including on Earth," said coauthor and NASA Goddard planetary scientist Conor Nixon in the statement. As for the chances that we'll encounter extraterrestrial life on the surface of Titan, astronomers aren't exactly hopeful. In a recent study, scientists concluded that Titan's rivers and lakes of liquid methane make it quite inhospitable to life as we know it. However, they found that a tiny amount of glycine-consuming microbes could, in theory, survive in its oceans. More on Titan: Titan Covered With Fragments of Obliterated Moons, Scientists Say
