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Two giant swaths of radiation, known as the Van Allen Belts, surrounding Earth were discovered in 1958. New observations from the Van Allen Probes showed that a third belt can sometimes appear (NASA / Van Allen Probes / Goddard Space Flight Center)

Mysterious Electron Storage Ring Found in Earth’s Magnetosphere

Mar 7, 2013 by Sci-News.com

U.S. researchers have discovered a long-lived zone of high-energy electrons stored between Earth’s Van Allen radiation belts. Two giant swaths of radiation,...

Based on new evidence from Jupiter's moon Europa, astronomers hypothesize that chloride salts bubble up from the icy moon's global liquid ocean and reach the frozen surface where they are bombarded with sulfur from volcanoes on Jupiter's innermost large moon, Io (NASA / JPL-Caltech)

More Evidence for Salty Ocean on Jupiter’s Moon Europa

Mar 6, 2013 by Sci-News.com

A new study by Prof Mike Brown from the California Institute of Technology and Dr Kevin Hand from the Jet Propulsion Laboratory suggests that salty water...

Members of the Belgo-Japanese meteorite team with an 18kg meteorite found during a field trip on the Nansen Ice Field, 140km south of Princess Elisabeth Antarctica (© International Polar Foundation)

Big Meteorite Found in Antarctica

Mar 1, 2013 by Sergio Prostak

Scientists working at Princess Elisabeth Antarctica research station have found an 18 kg chondrite embedded in the East Antarctic ice sheet. Members of...

Composite image of Mercury taken by NASA’s MESSENGER spacecraft (NASA / APL)

Mercury May Have Harbored Magma Ocean in Distant Past

Feb 22, 2013 by Natali Anderson

Planetary scientists at Massachusetts Institute of Technology have proposed that Mercury may have harbored a large ocean of magma shortly after its formation...

Comet-like ionosphere of Venus (ESA / Y. Wei et al)

New Observations Shed Light on Ionosphere of Venus

Feb 4, 2013 by Sergio Prostak

New observations of the second planet from the Sun made with ESA’s Venus Express spacecraft during a period of reduced solar wind pressure have provided...

This 3D image of an impact crater in the Nilosyrtis area on the Red Planet shows long pipe-like ridges, fossilized evidence of ancient subsurface water flow (NASA Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter)

Martian Ridges Point to Ancient Flowing Water

Jan 31, 2013 by Natali Anderson

Narrow ridges found in Martian impact craters in the Nilosyrtis highlands and the Nili Fossae region are the fossilized remnants of underground cracks...

Herschel’s view of the asteroid Apophis at wavelengths 70, 100 and 160 microns (ESA / Herschel / PACS / MACH-11 / MPE / B.Altieri / ESAC / C. Kiss / Konkoly Observatory)

Herschel: Asteroid Apophis More Massive Than Thought

Jan 10, 2013 by Sergio Prostak

New observations of the asteroid Apophis made with ESA’s Herschel Space Observatory as it approached our planet few days ago show the asteroid to be...

Fragments of Northwest Africa 7034 meteorite (Institute of Meteoritics UNM via encyclopedia-of-meteorites.com)

Study Links Water-Rich NWA 7034 Meteorite to Martian Crust

Jan 4, 2013 by Sergio Prostak

U.S. scientists have identified a new class of meteorite that fell to Earth and likely originated from the crust of the Red Planet. Fragments of the meteorite...