Planets
Something as simple as bumpy space dust generated a great deal of interest and a lot of the recent astronomy articles. Why so much interest? Scientists have long known that hydrogen is the most abundant element in the universe. But hydrogen has to bond to form the larger molecules observed in the universe. Because of the cold in space, hydrogen needs a little push. Scientists now realize that bumpy molecules may fit that bill. Nobody thinks of dust being bumpy when they vacuum.
One of Saturn’s moons is known as the Death Star. With its huge crater, it resembles the famous movie prop. Recent astronomy articles focused on Cassini’s mission to this moon, called Mimas. Some stunning images and a lot of new data resulted. It was a popular story. This information will help shed light on the number of impact objects that pass through Saturn’s orbit. We’ll learn a lot about how planets like Saturn clean debris from the solar system.
For years people have studied dark matter. It contributes to the expansion of the universe, but scientists don’t really know how. Dark matter was a popular headline in recent astronomy articles. There was a plan to study distant supernovae to learn about dark matter. It’s important because about 70% of the stuff in the universe is dark matter.
Before our sun was really a star it was a condensing mass of space matter called a protosun. Emissions of heat and light as well as solar winds from this proto-sun have long been a matter of contention. Recent astronomy articles answer this question with a resounding yes. Scientists have used new techniques to discover that the protosun did indeed emit ultraviolet and other particles in an early form of the solar wind. So the sun helped create life before it ever became a sun.