I’ve said many times in the past that the Earth is the best planet in the universe. No matter where we go, we’ll never find a planet that’s a better home to Earth life than Earth. Of course, that’s because we, and all other Earth life evolved in this environment. Evolution adapted us to this planet, and it’s unlikely we could…
Tag: Astronomy Astrobiology
Introducing VPLanet: A virtual planet simulator for modeling distant worlds across time
University of Washington astrobiologist Rory Barnes has created software that simulates multiple aspects of planetary evolution across billions of years, with an eye toward finding and studying potentially habitable worlds. Source: https://phys.org/news/2019-09-vplanet-virtual-planet-simulator-distant.html…
Research redefines lower limit for planet size habitability
In The Little Prince, the classic novella by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry, the titular prince lives on a house-sized asteroid so small that he can watch the sunset any time of day by moving his chair a few steps. Source: https://phys.org/news/2019-09-redefines-limit-planet-size-habitability.html…
Fluorescent glow may reveal hidden life in the cosmos
Astronomers have uncovered a new way of searching for life in the cosmos. Harsh ultraviolet radiation flares from red suns, once thought to destroy surface life on planets, might help uncover hidden biospheres. Their radiation could trigger a protective glow from life on exoplanets called biofluorescence, according to new Cornell University research. Source: https://phys.org/news/2019-08-fluorescent-reveal-hidden-life-cosmos.html…
Name an exoplanet
In recent years, astronomers have discovered thousands of planets and planetary systems orbiting around nearby stars. Some are small and rocky like the Earth, whilst others are gas giants like Jupiter. It is now believed that most stars in the Universe could have planets orbiting them and that some of them may have physical characteristics that resemble those of the Earth….
Elusive molecule, first in Universe, detected in space
In the beginning, more than 13 billion years ago, the Universe was an undifferentiated soup of three simple, single-atom elements. Source: https://phys.org/news/2019-04-elusive-molecule-universe-space.html…
Powerful particles and tugging tides may affect extraterrestrial life
Since its discovery in 2016, planetary scientists have been excited about TRAPPIST-1, a system where seven Earth-sized rocky planets orbit a cool star. Three of the planets are in the habitable zone, the region of space where liquid water can flow on the planets’ surfaces. But two new studies by scientists in the University of Arizona’s Lunar and Planetary Laboratory…