Tag: solar system
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Titan’s Frigid Chemistry Defies a Core Rule: Like Dissolves Like Breaks Down
Titan’s Surprising Chemistry under Frigid Conditions In the hollowed reaches of the outer solar system, Saturn’s largest moon, Titan, harbors a world of ice-coated lakes and a dense, nitrogen-rich atmosphere. Recent research reveals a surprising twist: at Titan’s extreme cold, common rules about how molecules dissolve—the so-called “like dissolves like” principle—do not always apply. This…
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When Water Meets Oil: Titan’s Exotic Chemistry Opens a Solar System Frontier
The Big Idea: Water and Oil On Titan On Saturn’s largest moon, Titan, the cold surface and strange liquids create an environment that challenges our Earth-centric ideas about chemistry. Titan is famous for its methane-ethane lakes and rivers. But beneath the ice shell may lie a hidden reality: water ice behaving like rock, and an…
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Interstellar Comet 3I/ATLAS Brightens as it Passes Behind the Sun: New Study Details Its Fiery Perihelion
Overview: A Rare Visitor with a Blue Glow The interstellar visitor 3I/ATLAS has captivated astronomers and space enthusiasts alike as it journeyed through the inner solar system. A new study analyzes its rapid brightening as the comet zipped behind the Sun, reaching perihelion—the closest point to the Sun—on Thursday, October 30. Unlike comets born in…
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New Gaia Data Sheds Light on Chaotic Asteroid Spins
Understanding the Mystery of Asteroid Rotations Asteroids are not simple spinning tops. A new study led by Wen-Han Zhou from the University of Tokyo leverages the European Space Agency’s Gaia mission data to decode why some asteroids spin smoothly around their largest axis while others tumble chaotically. Presented at the joint Europlanet Science Congress and…
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Why Interstellar Comet 3I/ATLAS Nears the Sun on October 29 Matters for Science
Overview: A rare interstellar visitor makes a Sun-close pass On 29 October 2025, the interstellar comet 3I/ATLAS will reach its closest approach to the Sun, a moment that has captivated astronomers around the world. This event is not just a curious misfit in the solar system’s crowd; it is one of the few chances we…
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Interstellar Comet 3I/ATLAS Nears Sun Perihelion: Why It Matters
Overview: A visitor from beyond our Solar System On 29 October 2025, the interstellar comet known as 3I/ATLAS will reach a perihelion passage that brings it closest to the Sun during its journey through the inner Solar System. This extraordinary event, driven by a highly unusual trajectory and a composition unlike typical comets, offers scientists…
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Interstellar comet 3I/ATLAS nears Sun: Why it matters
Overview: a rare traveler from beyond our Solar System On 29 October 2025, the interstellar comet 3I/ATLAS will reach a critical point as it passes closer to the Sun than any known comet from inside our solar neighborhood. This perihelion passage places the object within roughly 1.36 astronomical units of the Sun, a milestone that…
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Rings in Formation: Chiron Reveals a Four-Ring System Growing Around an Icy Centaur
Groundbreaking Observation: Rings Taking Shape Around Chiron In a discovery that broadens our understanding of where rings can form, scientists have observed a four-ring system and surrounding diffuse material around the small icy body known as Chiron. Orbiting the Sun between Saturn and Uranus, Chiron is a centaur—an object that blends characteristics of both asteroids…
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Rings in the Cold: Astronomers Witness a Ring System Forming Around Chiron
Introduction: A Ringing Surprise Beyond the Giant Planets While Saturn’s majestic rings have long captured imaginations, the solar system is revealing that ring systems can form around much smaller worlds as well. In a landmark observation, scientists have documented a ring system in the process of formation around 2060 Chiron, a small icy body that…
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Rings in Formation: Astronomers Observe Protoplanetary Rings Sprouting Around the Icy Body Chiron
Rings in Real Time Around a Small World In a striking glimpse of planetary dynamics on a much smaller stage than Saturn’s vast system, astronomers have observed a ring system forming around Chiron, a small icy body that orbits the Sun between Saturn and Uranus. This discovery marks the first time scientists have captured rings…