Featured
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Article |
Remote detection of a lunar granitic batholith at Compton–Belkovich
Measurements from the Chang’e-1 and Chang’e-2 microwave instruments reveal an anomalously hot geothermal source on the Moon that is best explained by a roughly 50-kilometre-diameter granitic system below the geological feature known as Compton–Belkovich.
- Matthew A. Siegler
- , Jianqing Feng
- & Mackenzie N. White
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Article
| Open AccessMartian dunes indicative of wind regime shift in line with end of ice age
Evidence for a stratigraphic sequence involving initial barchan dune formation, with the transition in wind regime consistent with the end of the ice age is found, compatible with the Martian polar stratigraphic record.
- Jianjun Liu
- , Xiaoguang Qin
- & Chunlai Li
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Article |
A close-in giant planet escapes engulfment by its star
The giant planet 8 Ursae Minoris b seems to have avoided engulfment by its giant host star through a stellar merger that either affected the evolution of the host star or produced 8 Ursae Minoris b as a second-generation planet.
- Marc Hon
- , Daniel Huber
- & Lauren M. Weiss
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News |
Mars mission snaps striking ultraviolet view — image of the week
The spacecraft is boosting understanding of the Martian surface and atmosphere.
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Career Q&A |
Women in engineering: using hydrology to manage Jordan’s scarce water
Esraa Tarawneh says research and data gathering can improve her country’s resilience to droughts and rare flash floods.
- Jacqui Thornton
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News |
Life in the cosmos: JWST hints at lower number of habitable planets
Observations from the James Webb Space Telescope suggest that a second world in a seven-planet system lacks an atmosphere.
- Alexandra Witze
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Article
| Open AccessNo thick carbon dioxide atmosphere on the rocky exoplanet TRAPPIST-1 c
The detection of thermal emission from the rocky exoplanet TRAPPIST-1 c using the Mid-Infrared Instrument on the James Webb Space Telescope reveals a dayside brightness temperature that disfavours a thick, CO2-rich atmosphere.
- Sebastian Zieba
- , Laura Kreidberg
- & Gabrielle Suissa
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News |
Rampant groundwater pumping has changed the tilt of Earth’s axis
Human depletion of underground reservoirs has shifted the global distribution of water so much that the North Pole has drifted by more than 4 centimetres per year.
- Davide Castelvecchi
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Article |
Vanadium oxide and a sharp onset of cold-trapping on a giant exoplanet
Analysis of transits of an ultra-hot giant exoplanet reports the precise abundance constraints of 14 major refractory elements, showing distinct deviations from proto-solar, along with a sharp transition temperature at which those elements are depleted.
- Stefan Pelletier
- , Björn Benneke
- & Julian Stürmer
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News & Views |
Phosphate discovery hints at geochemistry and origin of Enceladus
Evidence of phosphates in the subsurface ocean of Enceladus, an icy moon of Saturn, confirms that the water is alkaline. The finding provides clues about the geochemistry and origin of this moon and its ability to support life.
- Mikhail Yu. Zolotov
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Article |
Spin state and deep interior structure of Mars from InSight radio tracking
Analysis of radio science data from the NASA InSight Mars lander reveals details of the rotation of the planet, which have been used to determine fundamental information about its core, mantle and atmosphere.
- Sébastien Le Maistre
- , Attilio Rivoldini
- & W. Bruce Banerdt
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Article
| Open AccessDetection of phosphates originating from Enceladus’s ocean
Cassini’s Cosmic Dust Analyzer mass spectra of ice grains emitted by Enceladus show the presence of sodium phosphates, suggesting that phosphorus is readily available in Enceladus’s ocean in the form of orthophosphates.
- Frank Postberg
- , Yasuhito Sekine
- & Shuya Tan
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Article
| Open AccessSilicon isotope constraints on terrestrial planet accretion
The nucleosynthetic composition of silicon in meteorites indicates that material akin to early-formed differentiated asteroids must represent a major constituent of terrestrial planets such as Earth and Mars.
- Isaac J. Onyett
- , Martin Schiller
- & Martin Bizzarro
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Research Highlight |
A storm is whirling atop Uranus
Strongly flowing winds are detected inside a bright spot at the giant planet’s north pole.
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Article
| Open AccessA broadband thermal emission spectrum of the ultra-hot Jupiter WASP-18b
The dayside thermal emission spectrum and brightness temperature map of the ultra-hot Jupiter WASP-18b obtained from the NIRISS instrument on the JWST showed water emission features, an atmosphere consistent with solar metallicity, as well as a steep and symmetrical decrease in temperature towards the nightside.
- Louis-Philippe Coulombe
- , Björn Benneke
- & Peter J. Wheatley
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Article |
Uncovering the Ediacaran phosphorus cycle
Reconstruction of oceanic phosphorus concentrations during a large negative carbon-isotope excursion co-occurring with global oceanic oxygenation and evolution of some of Earth’s earliest animals suggests that decoupled phosphorus and ocean anoxia cycles during the Ediacaran may have prolonged the rise of atmospheric oxygen.
- Matthew S. Dodd
- , Wei Shi
- & Timothy W. Lyons
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Research Highlight |
Jupiter’s lightning has rhythm — just like Earth’s
Bolts begin as a series of short pulses both on Earth and on its much bigger, gassier neighbour in the Solar System.
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News |
JWST spots biggest water plume yet spewing from a moon of Saturn
The huge watery cloud spurting from Enceladus could carry the ingredients for life farther into space than previously known.
- Alexandra Witze
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Article |
A temperate Earth-sized planet with tidal heating transiting an M6 star
The authors report on a temperate Earth-sized planet orbiting the cool M6 dwarf LP 791-18 with a radius of 1.03 ± 0.04 R⊕ and an equilibrium temperature of 300–400 K, with the permanent night side plausibly allowing for water condensation.
- Merrin S. Peterson
- , Björn Benneke
- & Thomas Barclay
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Article
| Open AccessSpectroscopic identification of water emission from a main-belt comet
Using James Webb Space Telescope observations, spectroscopic identification of a coma of water vapour but no significant CO2 gas coma is found for the main-belt comet 238P/Read, indicating water–ice sublimation.
- Michael S. P. Kelley
- , Henry H. Hsieh
- & Heidi B. Hammel
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Article
| Open AccessResolved imaging confirms a radiation belt around an ultracool dwarf
This study presents high-resolution imaging of the ultracool dwarf LSR J1835 + 3259 at 8.4 GHz, demonstrating that its quiescent radio emission is spatially resolved and traces a double-lobed and axisymmetrical structure with properties consistent with radiation belt observations and modelling.
- Melodie M. Kao
- , Amy J. Mioduszewski
- & Evgenya L. Shkolnik
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Article |
A reflective, metal-rich atmosphere for GJ 1214b from its JWST phase curve
A spectroscopic thermal phase curve of GJ 1214b obtained with the JWST in the mid-infrared is reported and a planet with a high metallicity atmosphere blanketed by thick and reflective clouds or haze is found.
- Eliza M.-R. Kempton
- , Michael Zhang
- & Peter McGill
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Editorial |
In space, failure is an option — often the only one
Space companies should not lose heart when things go wrong. The first Moon missions failed repeatedly — and provided lessons on how to achieve success in space and beyond.
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News |
Hard feelings over mission change for NASA’s Pluto spacecraft
US space agency plans to shift the New Horizons planetary probe to studying heliophysics, and some scientists don’t agree.
- Alexandra Witze
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Article |
The lunar solid inner core and the mantle overturn
By combining geophysical and geodetic constraints for different models of the internal structure of the Moon, evidence is provided supporting the lunar mantle overturn scenario and the existence of a solid inner core.
- Arthur Briaud
- , Clément Ganino
- & Nicolas Rambaux
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News Explainer |
Moon mission failure: why is it so hard to pull off a lunar landing?
The ispace lander’s failed touchdown highlights the challenges Moon landings pose, especially for private companies.
- Alexandra Witze
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Article
| Open AccessPhotochemically produced SO2 in the atmosphere of WASP-39b
Observations from the JWST show the presence of a spectral absorption feature at 4.05 μm arising from SO2 in the atmosphere of the gas giant exoplanet WASP-39b, which is produced by photochemical processes and verified by numerical models.
- Shang-Min Tsai
- , Elspeth K. H. Lee
- & Sergei N. Yurchenko
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News Feature |
Rewilding the planet: how seven artificial islands could help a dying Dutch lake
An archipelago constructed of sand and mud is bringing new life to a dead lake but can this bold experiment have a lasting impact?
- Aisling Irwin
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News |
First up-close images of Mars’s little-known moon Deimos
Images from the UAE’s Hope mission suggest that the moonlet’s composition is similar to that of the red planet’s surface.
- Davide Castelvecchi
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News |
JWST spots planetary building blocks in a surprising galaxy
Planets might be more common throughout the Universe than previously thought, suggest results from the James Webb Space Telescope.
- Myriam Vidal Valero
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Article |
Bipolar impact and phasing of Heinrich-type climate variability
Ice-core data show that extreme iceberg discharge events in the North Atlantic had no detectable impact on Greenland temperatures but are synchronous with abrupt acceleration of Antarctic warming.
- Kaden C. Martin
- , Christo Buizert
- & Todd A. Sowers
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News & Views |
DART’s data verify its smashing success at deflecting asteroid moon Dimorphos
A strategy for deflecting asteroids on a path towards Earth has passed its first test. The results confirm predictions about how asteroids respond to impact — and offer useful insights.
- Coralie D. Adam
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News Feature |
Private companies are flocking to the Moon — what does that mean for science?
A raft of commercial lunar missions are taking off in 2023. The first lander is set to touch down this month, signalling a new era for Moon science and exploration.
- Alexandra Witze
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News |
Mega rocket Starship could enable new types of astrophysics
SpaceX’s Starship is poised to launch. As well as ferrying astronauts to the Moon and one day Mars, it could launch heavy science payloads, such as telescopes.
- Alexandra Witze
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News |
Tonga volcano eruption triggered ‘mega-tsunami’
Detailed analysis of the January 2022 event shows how underwater blasts generated huge waves that battered coastlines throughout the island nation.
- Gemma Conroy
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Article |
Earth shaped by primordial H2 atmospheres
Thermodynamic modelling shows that Earth’s water, core density and overall oxidation state can be explained by the formation of Earth from planetary embryos with hydrogen-rich primary atmospheres and underlying magma oceans.
- Edward D. Young
- , Anat Shahar
- & Hilke E. Schlichting
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News & Views |
Earth’s molten youth had long-lasting consequences
A model shows that key physical properties of our planet, from the density of its iron core to its water, could have been set by interactions between a magma ocean and an early hydrogen atmosphere that was lost to space.
- Sean N. Raymond
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News |
Jupiter mission will be first to orbit moon of another planet
Europe’s JUICE spacecraft will study three of Jupiter’s four Galilean moons: Ganymede, Callisto and Europa.
- Davide Castelvecchi
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News |
Mars rocks await a ride to Earth — can NASA deliver?
The stakes are high as the agency contemplates the technological and financial hurdles ahead for its sample-return mission.
- Alexandra Witze
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Nature Podcast |
Audio long read: What Turkey’s earthquake tells us about the science of seismic forecasting
Despite decades of research, predicting exactly where an earthquake will strike remains practically impossible.
- Shannon Hall
- & Benjamin Thompson
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Research Highlight |
A sandstorm swirls through the skies of a distant gas giant
Dust rich in silicon and oxygen churns through the atmosphere of a young giant planet.
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News |
JWST gets best view yet of planet in hotly pursued star system
Telescope didn’t spot an atmosphere on TRAPPIST-1b, but has kicked off a new era in understanding planetary evolution.
- Alexandra Witze
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Article |
High atmospheric metal enrichment for a Saturn-mass planet
Saturn-mass exoplanet HD 149026b has an atmospheric metallicity 59–276 times solar, which is greater than Saturn’s atmospheric metallicity of roughly 7.5 times solar and more correlated with bulk metallicity than planet mass.
- Jacob L. Bean
- , Qiao Xue
- & Megan Mansfield
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Article |
Thermal emission from the Earth-sized exoplanet TRAPPIST-1 b using JWST
Observations from the James Webb Space Telescope suggest that the exoplanet TRAPPIST-1 b has little or no planetary atmosphere and no detectable atmospheric absorption of carbon dioxide.
- Thomas P. Greene
- , Taylor J. Bell
- & Jonathan J. Fortney
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Comment |
As the UN meets, make water central to climate action
Managing water and climate in tandem would protect water resources, reduce disaster risks, lower greenhouse-gas emissions and assure equitable access.
- M. Feisal Rahman
- , Aditi Mukherji
- & Emmanuel Olet
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News & Views |
A compelling explanation for the enigmatic small object ‘Oumuamua
Seemingly contradictory observations of the first known interstellar object are reconciled in a model that presents a simple and physically realistic framework for understanding the object’s many peculiarities.
- Marco Micheli
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Article |
Acceleration of 1I/‘Oumuamua from radiolytically produced H2 in H2O ice
Acceleration of ‘Oumuamua is due to the release of entrapped molecular hydrogen formed through energetic processing of an H2O-rich icy body, supporting the idea that it originated as a planetesimal relic similar to Solar System comets.
- Jennifer B. Bergner
- & Darryl Z. Seligman
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Article |
Degassing of early-formed planetesimals restricted water delivery to Earth
The very low water contents of minerals in achondrite meteorites from the early Solar System show that substantial amounts of water could only have been delivered to Earth by means of unmelted material.
- M. E. Newcombe
- , S. G. Nielsen
- & A. J. Irving
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Article |
Deep, ultra-hot-melting residues as cradles of mantle diamond
New thermodynamic and geochemical modelling of melting shows that the observed composition of the cratonic mantle can be reproduced by deep and very hot melting, obviating the need for shallow melting and lithospheric stacking.
- Carl Walsh
- , Balz S. Kamber
- & Emma L. Tomlinson
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