Deep Interior Of Neptune, Uranus And Earth May Contain Some Solid Ice

(Sep. 24, 2008) — The deep interior of Neptune, Uranus and Earth may contain some solid ice. Through first-principle molecular dynamics simulations, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory scientists, together with University of California, Davis collaborators, used a two-phase approach to determine the melting temperature of ice VII (a high-pressure phase of ice) in pressures ranging from 100,000 to 500,000 atmospheres. For pressures between 100,000 and 400,000 atmospheres, the team, led by Eric Schwegler, found that ice melts as a molecular solid (similar to how ice melts in a cold drink). But in pressures above 450,000 atmospheres, there is a sharp increase in ... Read More

Voyager Squashes View Of Solar System

(July 3, 2008) — Scientists using data from NASA's Voyager 2 spacecraft have observed the bubble of solar wind surrounding the solar system is not round, but has a squashed shape, according to recent data published as part of a series of papers in Nature the week of July 3. The beginning of the transition zone between the heliosphere (the solar wind bubble) and the rest of interstellar space is known as the 'termination shock'. Scientists report that Voyager 2 crossed this boundary closer to the sun than expected, suggesting that the heliosphere in this region is pushed inward, closer ... Read More

Solving Solar System Quandaries Is Simple: Just Flip-flop The Position Of Uranus And Neptune

(Dec. 13, 2007) — Quick: What's the order of the planets in the solar system? Need a little help? Maybe the following mnemonic rings a bell: "My Very Educated Mother Just Served Up Nine Pizzas." It's useful for remembering the order of the planets today, but it wouldn't have been as useful in the past, and not just because the International Astronomical Union demoted Pluto to "dwarf planet" last year. The reason this mnemonic wouldn't have worked is because the planets weren't always in the order they are today. Four billion years ago, early in the solar system's evolution, ... Read More

Astronomers Get First Look At Uranus’s Rings As They Swing Edge-on To Earth

(Aug. 24, 2007) — As the rings of Uranus swing edge-on to Earth - a short-lived view we get only once every 42 years - astronomers observing the event are getting an unprecedented, glare-free view of the rings and the fine dust that permeates them. The rings were discovered in 1977, so this is the first opportunity astronomers have had to observe a Uranus ring crossing and perhaps to discover a new moon or two. While the Keck II telescope and the Hubble Space Telescope have been looking at the planet for years in anticipation of this event, ground-based telescopes in ... Read More

In a Rare View, Rings on Uranus Show Their Changes

It’s that time of year on the distant planet when its ring system appears edge-on to observers on Earth.By By HENRY FOUNTAIN

Prospecting for Diamonds on the Outer Planets

Researchers conduct experiments simulating heat and pressures within gaseous outer planets, and say results suggest that planets may be diamond factories; say that hot, crushing atmospheres of Neptune and Uranus may be transforming chemical methane into flecks of diamond that fall toward cores of planets; suggest that these crystals could coalesce, much like ice in Earth's atmosphere, to produce diamond sleet or hail that rains down through atmosphere of their planetsBy By WARREN E. LEARY

Measuring for Liftoff (That First Flight Is Crucial)

Young swifts learning to fly, ringed planets, printable silicon and new information about when ants arose.By By HENRY FOUNTAIN

Global Warming on the Forest Floor

Subtle effects of global warming, silk stockings for spiders, springtime on Uranus and more.By By HENRY FOUNTAIN