The number and diversity of tectonic landforms in our solar system “is truly remarkable,” Watters and Schultz write. Photographs of these structures have stimulated a range of scholarly investigations.

The post Book Review: Planetary Tectonics examines otherworldly landforms appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

Could the universe’s earliest stars have formed planets, and if so, what might they have looked like? That was the question Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics […]

The post Diamonds are a planet’s best friend? In the early universe, perhaps appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

Images obtained by NASA’s MErcury Surface, Space ENvironment, GEochemistry and Ranging (MESSENGER) spacecraft during the low-altitude orbital phase of the mission have revealed previously undetected […]

The post Mercury Joins Earth As Tectonically Active Planet appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

Jim Zimbelman, planetary geologist in the Center for Earth and Planetary Studies at the Smithsonian’s National Air and Space Museum, shares his three favorite images from the exhibition "Beyond: Visions of Our Solar System.” On view at the Air and Space Museum through May 2, 2011, the exhibition by artist Michael Benson combines art, science, photography and exploration to unveil the diverse landscapes found on the planets in our Solar System.

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The post Kepler 11: A Six-Planet Sonata by Alex Parker, postdoctoral researcher at the Harvard–Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

The Smithsonian is joining with local communities and the Nigerian Montane Forest Project to better understand and conserve montane forests in Nigeria.

The post Taking the Pulse of Our Planet’s Forests: appeared first on Smithsonian Insider.

There is sufficient evidence from tree rings, boreholes, retreating glaciers, and other proxies of past surface temperatures to say with a high level of confidence that the last few decades of the 20th century were warmer than any comparable period in the last 400 years, according to a new report from the National Research Council.

The current process for planetary protection policy development is inadequate to respond to increasingly complex solar system exploration missions, says a new report from the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine.

Despite significant cuts to NASAs Planetary Science Division budget early in this decade, the space agency has made impressive progress in meeting goals outlined in the 2013-2022 planetary decadal survey by the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, says a new midterm assessment from the National Academies.

To answer significant questions about planetary systems, such as whether our solar system is a rare phenomenon or if life exists on planets other than Earth, NASA should lead a large direct imaging mission – an advanced space telescope – capable of studying Earth-like exoplanets orbiting stars similar to the sun, says a new congressionally mandated report by the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine.

Voyage of a plastic bag in the ocean

Microplastics that are manufactured for us

Developing biofriendly polymers

Astronomers using ESO telescopes and other facilities have found clear evidence of a planet orbiting the closest star to Earth, Proxima Centauri. The long-sought world, designated Proxima b, orbits its cool red parent star every 11 days and has a temperature suitable for liquid water to exist on its surface. This rocky world is a little more massive than the Earth and is the closest exoplanet to us -- and it may also be the closest possible abode for life outside the Solar System. A paper describing this milestone finding will be published in the journal Nature on 25 August 2016.

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The solar system could be thrown into disaster when the sun dies if the mysterious 'Planet Nine' exists, according to research from the University of Warwick.

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A team of Carnegie scientists has discovered three giant planets in a binary star system composed of stellar ''twins'' that are also effectively siblings of our Sun. One star hosts two planets and the other hosts the third. The system represents the smallest-separation binary in which both stars host planets that has ever been observed. The findings, which may help explain the influence that giant planets like Jupiter have over a solar system's architecture, have been accepted for publication in The Astronomical Journal.

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Trefil, James, 1938- author

Wenz, John, author

Civilisation has crossed four of nine ‘planetary boundaries’, increasing the risk of irreversibly driving the Earth in to a less hospitable state, concludes new research. These are: extinction rate, deforestation, atmospheric CO2 and the flow of nitrogen and phosphorus.

A methodology for assessing ‘chemical footprints’ has been developed by researchers to evaluate human pressures and the impact of chemicals released by the production and consumption of goods. The study integrates a life-cycle approach with different methodologies, such as those developed in the context of environmental risk assessment and sustainability science, with the aim of assessing the extent to which chemicals impact on ecosystems beyond their ability to recover (i.e. surpass planetary boundaries).

In order to manage its environmental footprint, Switzerland should act on a number of key issues identified by the ‘planetary boundaries’ framework, says a Swiss study, with priority given to the areas of climate change, ocean acidification, biodiversity loss and nitrogen loss. This quantitative framework identifies nine bio-physical limits of the Earth system that, if exceeded, may lead to societal and ecological changes unfavourable to human development and stability. These are upper thresholds rather than targets. The researchers suggest that the concept and their methodology could be used together to think differently about environmental issues, and change the way related assessments and policies are implemented at both global and national levels.

Suggested names for the new TRAPPIST-1 system planets range from Planet McPlanetface to the series 'Friends.'

Venus is quite easy to see in a clear blue daylight sky, if you know exactly where to look, and if you can focus your eyes on it. What makes today's Venus appea

Observations of next month's historic Venus transit may eventually help astronomers spot and study alien planets circling faraway stars, one prominent researche

A rare opportunity to see the planet Venus cross in front of the face of the sun is coming up next week. On June 5 to 6, Venus will "transit" the sun for the l

Consider this an Earth-bound travel guide to the solar system, places on Earth that closely resemble landscapes of other planets.

BP’s oil spill could hamper the domestic oil industry -- but that doesn’t mean we’ll use less oil.

But like those civilizations that have disappeared mysteriously, ours seems headed in the same direction —disaster.

How healthy are America's plants, animals and environment?

Wind energy may be clean energy, but could it end up destroying everything we know? The Onion investigates.

As commerce becomes increasingly global, American corporations are taking steps to develop sustainable supply chains that span the country and the planet.

Though the dwarf planet Eris on the edge of the solar system is much denser than Pluto, the two frigid worlds are nearly exactly the same size, a new study find

Scientists are searching for possible sources for life on Earth on the edge of our Solar System.

Kids around the world can say hello to Pluto ahead of the first-ever flyby of the dwarf planet this summer.

New Horizons is the subject of "Mission Pluto," a special that will premiere July 15 on National Geographic Channel.

NASA scientists hatch proposal to redefine what it means to be a planet in our solar system.

Researchers say the collision of a planetary body with Earth, some 4.4 billion years ago, seeded the elements of life and also led to the creation of our moon.

Four years in the making, the Discovery Channel/BBC co-production is a groundbreaking look at the Earth's polar regions.

Here are 7 before-and-after images of cities, as seen from space, showing the impact humans have had on the surrounding environment.

Laamu Atoll in the Maldives has a surprising starring role in the events of 'Rogue One: A Star Wars Story.'

A crowd of farmers, environmentalists and community members gather at a May Day rally in Sydney to call for tougher mining restrictions to protect sensitive lan

The massive, potentially rocky planets orbit in the "habitable zone" of a star 22 light-years away.

Five rousing books that sound a rallying cry to think about and work toward environmental solutions in fresh, new ways.

Beautiful solar system map by Eleanor Lutz shows the orbits of more than 18,000 celestial objects.

In hopes of inspiring others to appreciate Earth, Nickolay Lamm transplanted the Big Apple to all of the planets in our solar system.

The surface of Mercury is shrinking faster than previously thought, photos from a NASA spacecraft orbiting the tiny planet reveal.