Earth and Planetary Science

In 1992, 1,700 scientists including almost all of the living Nobel laureates at the time, signed a World Scientists Warning to Humanity. Global trends have only worsened since then. Deforestation, changing climate, loss of fresh water sources, extinction of species, human population growth, and growing waste are just some of the factors that contribute to environmental harm. 

Researchers have been studying planets for decades now in a quest to discover how they are formed. A few mysteries related to planet formation may have been answered in the form of images of a fairly new planet, V1247 Orionis.

There are countless theories by scientists about how life first appeared and evolved on the Earth. But now a new study that specifically focuses on how animals appeared on the Earth points to the formation of algae.  

As of August 2, 2017, humans have used up their annual allowance for water, soil, and clean air. So from this day forward, the resources we consume are not sustainable.

According to a new study, a supernova explosion caused an intergalactic transfer i.e. there was movement of matter between galaxies. This implies that humans as well as much of the material in the Milky Way is made up of “extragalactic matter.”

The physical and chemical properties of real space dirt cannot be replicated by artificial space dirt. This is a cause of concern as it could lead to misleading research results. An asteroid-mining company has started making near-authentic space dirt in a scientific manner; this dirt is meant to represent the surfaces of four classes of asteroids.

Sleep is extremely important for humans to remain healthy. Nick Obradovich, a postdoctoral fellow at Harvard's Kennedy School of Government and a research scientist at the MIT Media Lab, conducted a study based on data collected by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Obradovich found that an increase in temperature led to insufficient sleep. Read more about his research here. 

While it is known that a large bulk of the mass of our galaxy lies in the dark matter i.e. matter that does not emit any electromagnetic radiation of any kind, until now it has been difficult to detect it. Now astronomers Huanian Zhang and Dennis Zaritsky at the University of Arizona have reported that our galaxy, the Milky Way, is surrounded by a vast halo of hydrogen. Read more about their research here.

Mars is known as the red planet while Jupiter is the one with rings. However, according to a latest theory by Prudue University researchers – David Minton, assistant professor of Earth, atmospheric and planetary sciences, and Andrew Hesselbrock, a doctoral student in physics and astronomy – this might have been different. According to the pair, it possible that Mars was surrounded by rings and some day might get them back. Read more about their theory here.

NASA’s Spritzer Space Telescope has discovered seven Earth-sized exoplanets that are likely to have liquid water. All seven planets closely circle around a single dwarf star Trappist-1. The system is about 40 light years away from Earth in the constellation Aquarius. Of the seven, three planets are in the habitable zone and have the highest chances of having life. Read more about this discovery here.