Mars once had salt lakes similar to those on Earth
Mars once had salt lakes that are similar to those on Earth and has gone through wet and dry periods.
Read moreAsteroids, Comets and Meteors
Ancient stars shed light on Earth's similarities to other planets
Earth-like planets may be common in the universe, a new study implies. The team of astrophysicists and geochemists presents new evidence that the Earth is not unique.
Read moreHubble observes first confirmed interstellar comet
Hubble has given astronomers their best look yet at an interstellar visitor — comet 2I/Borisov — whose speed and trajectory indicate it has come from beyond our solar system. Comet 2I/Borisov is only the second such interstellar object known to have passed through the solar system.
African evidence support Younger Dryas Impact Hypothesis
A team of scientists from South Africa has discovered evidence partially supporting a hypothesis that Earth was struck by a meteorite or asteroid 12,800 years ago, leading to global consequences including climate change, and contributing to the extinction of many species of large animals at the time of an episode called the Younger Dryas.
Read moreLife's building blocks may have formed in interstellar clouds
An experiment shows that one of the basic units of life — nucleobases — could have originated within giant gas clouds interspersed between the stars.
Read moreNaming of new interstellar visitor: 2I/Borisov
A new object from interstellar space has been found within the Solar System, only the second such discovery of its kind. Astronomers are turning their telescopes towards the visitor, which offers a tantalising glimpse beyond our Solar System and raises some puzzling questions. The object has been given the name 2I/Borisov by the IAU.
Read moreDust from a giant asteroid crash caused an ancient ice age
About 466 million years ago, long before the age of the dinosaurs, the Earth froze. The seas began to ice over at the Earth's poles, and new species evolved with the new temperatures. The cause of this ice age was a mystery, until now: a new study argues that the ice age was caused by global cooling, triggered by extra dust in the atmosphere from a giant asteroid collision in outer space.
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