Exoplanet Atmosphere Changes

The first changes ever detected in an exoplanet's atmosphere have been observed with the Hubble Space Telescope, detecting significant variations in the atmosphere of the gas giant HD 189733b in response to a large solar flare erupting from its host star.

Giant Saturn Storm Revealed

From infrared observations of the NASA's Cassini probe and the Very Large Telescope array in Chile, a massive subsurface storm has been discovered raging across the entire width of Saturn, reaching some 370 miles into the planet's stratosphere.

Spring Rains on Titan

Images from the Cassini space probe show seasonal showers of liquid methane in the atmosphere of Saturn's largest moon Titan, further evidence the moon has a "methane cycle" similar to Earth's environmental water cycle.

Superstorm Seen on Exoplanet

By studying the spectral signatures of carbon monoxide between the day and night side of the gas giant exoplanet HD209458b, astronomers have for the first time detected a global superstorm on the planet with winds of up to 10,000 kph.

Jupiter Loses Cloud Stripe

A striped cloud formation in Jupiter's atmosphere known as the Southern Equitorial Belt (SEB) has disappeared as part of a dynamic cycle on the planet lasting anywhere from three to fifteen years.

Fog Discovered on Titan

The discovery of fog (mostly methane and ethane) on Saturn's largest moon, Titan, reveals that moon may be the only other body in our solar system to have significant quantities of liquid on its surface, thus the only known active hydrological cycle outside of Earth.

Mystery Spot on Venus

An amateur astronomer has discovered a new and mysterious spot appearing in Venus' atmosphere, most likely the result of a major volcanic eruption.

Great Red Spot Shrinking

A storm raging in Jupiter's atmosphere for at least 300 years, the Great Red Spot is slowly shrinking in response to two other nearby storm systems that have recently emerged.

First Astronomical Observation of Exoplanet Weather

Researchers at the University of California, Santa Cruz have observed changing weather patterns for the first time on a planet outside our own solar system.

Using NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope, the scientists observed an extrasolar planet known as HD80606b, a giant planet four times as large as Jupiter that orbits a star some 200 light years distant. As the planet orbits close to its sun, the normal 980°F surface temperature quickly heats up to around 2240°F.

Temperatures were determined from infrared measurements of the planet, and the data was used to simulate realistic weather patterns using a computer model. The massive dose of radiation received from such a close encounter with its sun creates global storms and shockwaves throughout the atmosphere, including winds estimated at speeds of up to 5 km/sec.

Discovered in 2001, HD80606b has the most eccentric orbit of any planet yet identified, completing an elliptical comet-like orbit in only 111 days. It approaches more than ten times closer to its star than does the planet Mercury, and completes this close transit in less than 24 hours.

These results were published in the January 29th issue of Nature.

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Methane Belch on Mars Hints at Possible Life

Using Earth-based telescopes, researchers at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center have confirmed that in the late summer of 2003, almost 21,000 tons of methane gas was released from localized areas on the western hemisphere of Mars.

A finding of extraterrestrial methane is significant because the gas is associated with life here on Earth, either as byproducts of digestion or decaying biomatter. As a waste product of life processes, it may also serve as a food source for other forms of life. With past studies finding no regular methane content in the Martian atmosphere, the sudden presence and quick dispersion of the gas could indicate an organic origin.

Similar methane appearances are found in some parts of Earth's oceans as decaying life on the sea floor releases a "belch" of gas. Other sources of methane are the presence of microbial life, possibly living in or beneath the Martian soil. Methane-producing microbes have been found in extreme Earth environments such as Arctic soil and volcanic vents.

Nonorganic sources of methane are also possible, involving volcanic processes or the mixture of water, carbon dioxide and other chemicals. Trapped underground, these gasses could be released through surface fissures as the pressure increases.

These results were published online in the January 15th edition of Science.

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