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The size distribution of solid grains in dense clouds is a key parameter to constrain in order to understand grain growth, which influences the nature and timescale of the formation of protoplanets. A JWST study has quantified the grain size distribution by modelling the spectral absorptions arising from ice components of grains before protostellar collapse.
Fe/Ni and Fe/Co ratios in iron meteorites indicate that the earliest inner Solar System planetesimals were oxidized and water-bearing, having formed beyond the point at which water condensed in the solar protoplanetary disk.
High-energy radiation originating in the wind termination shock of young star clusters has been observed, without contamination from other sources such as supernovae. This adds the winds of star clusters to the list of cosmic-ray accelerators within the Galaxy.
Cold ice-covered dust grains grow during their journey from the interstellar medium to protoplanetary disks. JWST observations show that this growth begins before the protostellar phase and provide quantitative insights into the grain growth process.
Experiments using high-intensity X-ray pulses incident on high-pressure hydrocarbons suggest that diamond formation can occur at shallower depths in icy planets and may play a role in the internal convection that generates their magnetic fields.
Chemical abundances derived from infrared nebular lines reveal strongly depressed metallicities in interacting galaxies, suggesting that in luminous infrared galaxies chemical enrichment and stellar-mass growth take place through mergers, which drive these galaxies out of equilibrium.
Nuclear experiments become the latest ‘messenger’ to help with unravelling the mysteries of neutron stars. Combining information from astronomical observations and laboratory experiments reveals how nucleons interact in both nuclei and stars.
Researchers have detected the elusive dark matter component of cosmic filaments near the Coma galaxy cluster using gravitational lensing. This supports the idea that galaxy clusters grow at the intersection of cosmic filaments, shedding light on the structure of our universe.
A hyperactive fast radio burst source has been observed for thousands of hours using relatively small telescopes. The energy distribution of the brightest bursts detected suggests a possible link between repeating and apparently non-repeating burst sources.
The dark surface of Mercury can be explained by <1 wt% of microcrystalline graphite and similar amounts of Fe0. Low-reflectance materials may be secondary crust and carbon was not completely drained from the mantle during early differentiation.
When stars like our Sun die, they expel their outer layers in a dramatic stellar wind. This study of an unusual chemical signature in one particular stellar wind reveals that the signature is due to the presence of a binary system whose components had a close approach around 200 years ago.
Is the scientific status of astrobiology undermined by the lack of evidence for alien life, the problematic influence of science fiction, or the use of ‘astrobiology’ as a buzzword for attracting funding? Here we defend the emerging discipline.
The search for life elsewhere involves variables across multiple scales in time and space, often nested hierarchically. We suggest that the emergence of artificial intelligence learning systems offers critically important ways to make progress.
If advanced technological extraterrestrial lifeforms are out there, where are they? Thus goes the Fermi paradox. This Perspective reviews various solutions and proposes that they are either not there or are deliberately hiding from us.
The testing of a direct-ascent anti-satellite weapon on 15 November 2021 has prompted renewed efforts in space arms control. A multilateral treaty banning all destructive anti-satellite weapon tests is urgently needed.
On Earth, technological advances required open-air combustion, which needs an oxygen partial pressure of about 18%. This threshold can help guide searches for detectable technospheres on other planets.
The habitability of a planet is defined at a fixed time. A bigger challenge is to understand how that habitability is sustained over geological timescales, and how the underlying processes compare across different planetary bodies.
A low atmospheric carbon abundance can be a ‘habiosignature’ and indicate the presence of substantial surficial liquid water, tectonic activity and/or a biomass in temperate rocky exoplanets. It can potentially be detected by JWST at 4.3 μm in a few tens of transits.