Plate tectonics is a fundamental factor in the sustained habitability of Earth, but its time of onset is unknown, with ages ranging from the Hadean to...
A team of U.S. astronomers has discovered that two-thirds of the planets around M dwarfs (red dwarf stars) could be roasted by extreme tidal forces, sterilizing...
The aftermaths of supernovae always produce X-rays, but if the supernova’s blast wave strikes dense surrounding gas, it can produce a particularly large...
Atmospheric ozone and oxygen protect the biosphere of our planet against harmful ultraviolet radiation. In new research, astronomers modeled atmospheres...
Rocky exoplanets orbiting red dwarf (M-dwarf) stars are among the most promising and abundant astronomical targets for detecting habitable climates. Planets...
Wolf 1069b is the sixth closest Earth-mass exoplanet situated in the conservative habitable zone of its parent star, after Proxima Centauri b, Gliese 1061d,...
The two temperate Earth-mass planets are located within the habitably zone of Gliese 1002, a red dwarf star that lies just 4.84 parsecs (16 light-years)...
The triple star system LTT 1445, at a distance of 22.5 light-years, hosts some of the nearest rocky planets.
This Chandra image shows the LTT 1445 system:...
The subsurface of Mars during the Noachian period was likely to have been habitable for microorganisms that feed on hydrogen and produce methane, according...
Enceladus is one of the prime targets in the search for life in our Solar System. Observations made by NASA’s Cassini spacecraft show that this small...
University of Toronto astronomer Evelyn Macdonald and her colleagues have identified substantial differences in surface temperature, sea ice and water...
Possible lifeforms in the Venusian clouds could be setting off a cascade of chemical reactions that is making the environment much more habitable, according...
In a paper published this week in the journal Astrobiology, researchers focused on the possible existence of the Earth-like phototrophy — the process...
Massive floods from overflowing crater lakes were responsible for eroding at least 24% of the volume of incised valleys on early Mars, according to new...
The habitability of Mars is limited by its small size, according to new research by Washington University in St. Louis planetary scientists.
This artist’s...
Hycean worlds are composed of water-rich interiors with massive oceans underlying hydrogen-rich atmospheres; with densities between those of rocky super-Earths...
Astronomers using NASA’s Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS) have studied large, long-duration flares in white light on red dwarfs, a class...
Earth’s sphere tilts on its axis at an angle of 23.5 degrees; this gives us our seasons, with parts of the planet receiving more direct sunlight in summer...
