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Planetary science articles from across Nature Portfolio
Planetary science is the study of the celestial bodies that orbit stars, with a particular focus on our own solar system. This includes studying the formation and evolution of planets, the moons and rings that orbit them, and other smaller bodies such as asteroids and comets.
Could the perfect stellar fly-by have shaped our Solar System?
A model for the formation of our Solar System proposes that its population of small bodies could have been formed after a stellar encounter between our Sun and another star early on in its history.
- Pedro Bernardinelli
Mineral and chemical detail of rocky exoplanet surfaces could be detectable
Many rocky exoplanets are likely to be basaltic. Now, models of laboratory emission spectra of basaltic rocks suggest that JWST and future observatories could detect specific mineral and chemical signatures on these exoplanets. When present at high abundances, minerals indicative of rock–water interactions are particularly visible in modelled planetary flux spectra.
Voyager 2 observed Uranus’s magnetosphere in a rare, compressed state
Discoveries made by Voyager 2 in 1986 led to the conclusion that Uranus possesses the most extreme magnetosphere within the Solar System. Reanalysis of this dataset suggests that the extreme observations made by Voyager 2 could have been caused by anomalously intense upstream solar wind conditions.
Related Subjects
- Asteroids, comets and Kuiper belt
- Astrobiology
- Atmospheric chemistry
- Atmospheric dynamics
- Core processes
- Cryospheric science
- Early solar system
- Geochemistry
- Geodynamics
- Geomorphology
- Giant planets
- Inner planets
- Meteoritics
- Rings and moons
- Structural geology
- Volcanology
Latest Research and Reviews
Sodium carbonates on Ryugu as evidence of highly saline water in the outer Solar System
Sodium carbonates, chloride and sulfate have been found in samples from asteroid Ryugu. The formation of these compounds from alkaline brines through freezing or evaporation accounts for the loss of liquid water from the parent carbonaceous body.
- Toru Matsumoto
- Takaaki Noguchi
- Tohru Araki
The relationship between crustal deformation characteristics and strong earthquakes in western China revealed by GNSS
- Meng Guojie
Atmospheric new particle formation identifier using longitudinal global particle number size distribution data
- Simonas Kecorius
- Leizel Madueño
- Steigvilė Byčenkienė
Lunar farside volcanism 2.8 billion years ago from Chang’e-6 basalts
- Qian W. L. Zhang
- Mu-Han Yang
- Xian-Hua Li
Seismic resurfacing of 433 Eros indicative of a highly dissipative interior for large near-Earth asteroids
An analysis of crater morphologies on 433 Eros reveals that the 16 km near-Earth asteroid has a highly dissipative interior. These results show that, contrary to the established view, even the largest near-Earth asteroids may be rubble piles.
- R.-L Ballouz
- C. M. Ernst
- A. C. Martin
Multi-step thermal design of microwave vacuum heating to basaltic regolith simulant towards lunar base construction
- Kunihiko Kato
- Takashi Shirai
News and Comment
Complementary missions for solar system exploration.
In October 2024, two spacecrafts were successfully launched towards different bodies: Europa, a prime astrobiological target, and Dimorphos, the first test of planetary defence. Joined in their exploration by other missions, they are perfect examples of intra-agency synergy to enhance our knowledge of the Solar System.
Devastating Spanish floods expose an urgent need for more flood-risk professionals
- Sebastiano Piccolroaz
Ice-giant planet was having a bad day when Voyager came calling
A chance disruption means that Voyager gave astronomers a distorted view of the planet’s magnetosphere.
No naked cores
- Luca Maltagliati
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