Mexican president photographed a Maya elf in a tree, releasing it on Twitter, UFO Sighting News.

The president of Mexico has posted a photo on Twitter of a strange tree climbing, hiding creature that resembles a human with a hoodie. The photo resembles some ancient mayan gods carved in stone, but he said it reusables a woodland elf. Maybe, maybe not, but its odd, and he  himself recored this strange alien creature. Yes I said alien. I believe it to be an alien species watching the president, recording him, because he will do something very important, very soon. Similar sightings occurred to US president Ronald Reagan, who saw twice a UFO while flying his private plane as Governor of California. Also US president Jimmy Carter said he came out of the building and saw from a distance a glowing light in the sky, watching him. It was such a profound experience that President Carter went home and wrote it all down in a diary. So yeah, presidents are on the top of the list for aliens to observer, record, and even visit. In 1957 US president Eisenhower met with an alien from Venus Captain Val Valient Thor, so says the US delegated priest in charge of meeting all foreign VIPs at the US presidents side. 

Scott C. Waring - Taiwan 

Negative focused view above. 

{ https://www.ufosightingsdaily.com/ }

27-02-2023 om 20:27 geschreven door peter  

The remote village of Hessdalen, Norway may well be the scene of the longest continuously recorded UFO activity in the world. For more than forty years, people have observed -- and scientists have recorded -- highly unusual and so far inexplicable phenomena there. 

Especially high activity of Hessdalen lights took place from December 1981 until the summer of 1984 when lights were observed 15–20 times per week. Since then, the activity has decreased and now the lights are observed some 10–20 times per year. 

Some researchers believe that that bubbles of ionized gas are created when sulphurous fumes from the River Hesja react with the humid air of the valley. The geology also forms electromagnetic field lines in the valley, which could explain why for example orbs of light move around, but that has not been proven and it doesn't explain all the other unknown objects appearing over Hessdalen from which some of these objects appear to have involved craft under intelligent control, others have not. 

Now, Dr. Erling Strand has studied the Hessdalen mystery since the beginning and speaks with Richard Dolan about what he knows.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PmdBWCB1n8s

{ http://ufosightingshotspot.blogspot.com/ }

27-02-2023 om 18:25 geschreven door peter  

Unexplained UFO Sighting in Glendale, Arizona – Witness Reports Mysterious Appearance and Disappearance of Lights on February 1, 2023

On February 1, 2023, a mysterious sighting of unidentified flying objects occurred in Glendale, Arizona. According to a witness report, the sighting started with three lights that slowly faded into view. Then, five additional lights appeared and also slowly faded out of sight, leaving observers puzzled and intrigued.

The witness report describes the UFO sighting as a slow and deliberate appearance and disappearance of the lights. This raises questions about what type of technology was used to create such an effect. Were the lights under the control of a human operator, or was this something beyond our current understanding of technology?

Glendale, Arizona is not a stranger to UFO sightings, as there have been numerous reports of similar events in the past. In fact, Arizona is considered to be one of the top places in the United States for UFO sightings, with some of the most famous sightings taking place in Phoenix in 1997.

• Two round bright UFO that didn’t move - San Diego, CA

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BWD_4T8C42Q

{https://www.latest-ufo-sightings.net/ }

27-02-2023 om 17:10 geschreven door peter  

27-02-2023 om 01:58 geschreven door peter  

Wat waren de twee heldere lichtpuntjes aan de hemel afgelopen nacht?

Gisterenavond en afgelopen nacht kon je naast de maan nog twee andere, heldere puntjes opmerken aan de hemel. Op Twitter zijn er verschillende foto’s terug te vinden van dit fenomeen. Wetenschapsjournalist Martijn Peters bracht al snel helderheid. “De planeten Venus en Jupiter zijn nu prachtig zichtbaar boven de westelijke horizon”, klonk het op Twitter en Facebook.

 Bron: Twitter

KIJK.

• Twee heldere lichtpuntjes waren zichtbaar aan de hemel. Dat waren de planeten Venus en Jupiter

De planeten Venus en Jupiter zijn naast de zon en de maan de twee helderste objecten aan de hemel. Op dit moment zijn de twee planeten op weg naar een conjunctie of dichte samenstand, die vindt plaats op 1 en 2 maart. “Venus is de helderste van de twee. De volgende dagen zullen de planeten mekaar verder naderen”, aldus Martijn op Facebook.

Bij een conjunctie of dichte samenstand lijkt het, vanaf de Aarde bekeken, alsof de twee planeten met elkaar zullen botsen, maar niet is minder waar. In werkelijkheid staan de planeten zo’n 700 miljoen kilometer uit elkaar.

Een conjunctie of dichte samenstand komt wel vaker voor, telkens zijn de planeten dan ‘s avonds en ‘s nachts te zien boven onze westelijke horizon. En dat was gisterenavond en vorige nacht dus het geval. Dat blijkt uit verschillende foto’s die Twitter-gebruikers de wereld in stuurden.

LEES OOK:

• Kijk vannacht even omhoog: zie Mars van zijn beste kant én verduisterd door de maan

• James Webb-telescoop werd een jaar geleden gelanceerd: een overzicht van de waanzinnige beelden

{ https://www.hln.be/ }

27-02-2023 om 00:56 geschreven door peter  

The Planet That Shouldn’t Exist

“The host star, TOI-5205, is just about four times the size of Jupiter, yet it has somehow managed to form a Jupiter-sized planet, which is quite surprising!” exclaimed Dr. Shubham Kanodia, who is a postdoctoral fellow in the Carnegie Earth & Planets Lab and an expert in red dwarf stars, and lead author of the study. Dr. Shubham recently discussed the discovery in an in-depth blog post, as well. Using food as an analogy, Jupiter orbiting our Sun is equivalent to a pea orbiting a grapefruit, whereas TOI-5205b orbiting its parent star would be equivalent to a pea orbiting a lemon.

The general theory of planetary formation begins with a massive, rotating disk of gas and dust encircling young stars, with gas planets initially being formed from rocky material comprising approximately 10 Earth masses. Over time, this material forms the core of the giant planet which then accumulates large amounts of gas from the disk to produce the massive gas giants we observe today. As it turns out, the confirmation of TOI-5205b could throw this theory into disarray.

“TOI-5205b’s existence stretches what we know about the disks in which these planets are born,” explained Dr. Kanodia. “In the beginning, if there isn’t enough rocky material in the disk to form the initial core, then one cannot form a gas giant planet.  And at the end, if the disk evaporates away before the massive core is formed, then one cannot form a gas giant planet.  And yet TOI-5205b formed despite these guardrails. Based on our nominal current understanding of planet formation, TOI-5205b should not exist; it is a ‘forbidden’ planet.”

The discovery was initially made using data from NASA’s Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS), which uses the transit detection method for locating exoplanets, and the data indicated that TOI-5205b blocks approximately 7% of its parent star’s light, making TOI-5205b one of the largest transits ever recorded for a confirmed exoplanet in orbit around a main-sequence star.

To confirm the TESS data, follow-up observations were made from an international collaboration of instruments and observatories. These include the Habitable-zone Planet Finder, the ARCTIC camera on the 3.5-m Apache Point Observatory, the NN-Explore Exoplanet Stellar Speckle Imager, the 0.6-m Red Buttes Observatory, and the Three-hundred MilliMeter Telescope.

Given the very large transit that TOI-5205b produced, the researchers demonstrated that this could make this exoplanet an ideal candidate for future atmospheric observations using NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope (JWST), which could help scientists better understand the secrets behind its formation and evolution, as well. This is because JWST has already been successful in observing exoplanet atmospheres in incredible detail, as it recently demonstrated with exoplanet, WASP-39b.

What fascinating new discoveries will scientists make about exoplanets in the coming years and decades, and how much will these discoveries continue to push our knowledge of planetary formation and evolution? Only time will tell, and this is why we science!

As always, keep doing science & keep looking up!

{ https://www.universetoday.com/ }

27-02-2023 om 00:32 geschreven door peter  

UFO Caught On NASA Sun Image Recored Turning, 100% Intelligently Controlled UFO Sighting News.

{ https://www.ufosightingsdaily.com/ }

27-02-2023 om 00:14 geschreven door peter  

Pulsating Orb Over El Paso, Texas Feb 25, 2023, UFO Sighting News. Video.

Date of sighting: Feb 25, 2023

Location of sighting: El Paso, Texas, USA

 

Wow, this one was recorded over Texas a few days ago. The eyewitness saw it coming from over the mountains and then all about for 15+ minutes. From the colors, I would say this one has a real friendly and happy glow about it. The orb knew it was being watched and didn't want to cause any fear. Oh, and yes, orbs can change colors, saw a softball size UFO up close 2 meters from me here in Taiwan and it was like cloudy liquid silver, colors moving slowly within it, but 50 meters away it was white as a star. Orbs change colors at will, they can also read your mind, your thoughts and if you call them to you with a kind and open heart, I promise, you will see one. But they are sneaky, the one I saw so close, it came behind my camera. As I said, it could read my thoughts and knew where to come safely. 

Scott C. Waring - Taiwan 

Eyewitness states: 

{ https://www.ufosightingsdaily.com/ }

27-02-2023 om 00:07 geschreven door peter  

LATEST UFO SIGHTINGS AND VIDEOS - 26-02-2023

Ancient Aliens: Great Flood DESTROYS Lost Iraqi Civilization (Season 19)

Did civilization exist 12,000 years ago? See more in this scene from Season 19, Episode 3, "Mystery of the Lost Civilization."

RELATED VIDEOS

A 10 Million Year Old Find Rewrite Human History!

I often talk about the fact that archeological finds can rewrite our history, and this time the find was not long in coming. In Germany, archaeologists discovered a unique object that was checked in a variety of ways in order to 100% clarify its age. And they were amazed that it was about 10 million years old! It has the power to completely rewrite our history! I will talk about this find and others in this video.

00:00 ► Intro

00:23 ► Silver Scrolls of Ketef Hinnom

00:59 ► Acambaro figurines

01:41 ► The oldest buildings in the UAE found

03:28 ► Mangazeya

04:34 ► Madaba map

05:27 ► An unusual dinosaurs feature

06:53 ► 10 million year old tooth

07:25 ► One of the oldest Buddhist temples in the world

09:02 ► Peruvian "sea monster"

10:45 ► Humanity nearly died out 70,000 years ago

12:36 ► The oldest family tree in the world7

14:24 ► Ancient tombs and sarcophagus found under Notre Dame

A unique find of archaeologists that amazed the whole world. It has the power to rewrite the history of mankind. To learn more about it and see the most ancient buildings of the United Arab Emirates, the oldest Buddhist temple, the Peruvian "sea monster" and the world's oldest family tree, then you should watch this video to the end! Hi Friend. You are on the KirTop channel.

The UnXplained: "Unearthly Image" Hidden in Utah Desert (Season 4)

Over 200 monoliths have mysteriously appeared around the world. See more in this scene from Season 4, Episode 22, "Mysterious Monoliths."

Have Aliens Found Us? More Oumuamua Like Technology Interstellar Spacecrafts Now in Our Solar System

Have Aliens Found Us? More Oumuamua Like Technology Interstellar Spacecrafts Now in Our Solar System. A strange Cosmic object was flying past our planet and no one had the slightest clue 5 days later the interstellar object was on its way out of the solar system when Robert Warwick an astronomer at the University of Hawaii at Manoa spotted it. It was from the moment of its discovery a weird object, weird orbit, weird speed, and weird properties, the strange object was called Oumuamua, the first known Interstellar object to visit the solar system but here is the thing astronomers had only 11 days to observe the odd visitor.

China’s New H-20 Stealth Bomber is Worse Than You Think

This new aircraft could change the balance of power in the world. Currently the United States is the only nation to operate a strategic stealth bomber fleet like the B-2. This new Chinese stealth bomber is the type of aircraft that is sent to destroy an entire enemy airfield or soften up defenses for an invasion. The H-20 would have major ramifications for a possible invasion of Taiwan if it is able to evade their air defense systems.

19 Events That Will Happen Before 2050 Compilation

19) Colonization of Mars No, we’re not talking about an upcoming sci-fi blockbuster – the colonization of Mars is a real possibility in the foreseeable future.

18) Technological singularity The technological singularity is the hypothesis that the invention of artificial super-intelligence will trigger rampant technological growth, resulting in unimaginable changes to human civilization.

17) Nuclear fusion In nuclear physics, nuclear fusion is a reaction in which two or more atomic nuclei are combined to form one or more different atomic nuclei and subatomic particles - neutrons or protons. Fusion was accomplished in 1951 with the Greenhouse Item nuclear test, while nuclear fusion on a large scale in an explosion was first carried out on November 1, 1952, in the Ivy Mike hydrogen bomb test.

16) Interstellar exploration Until recently, interstellar travel was nothing more than a theoretical possibility. However, the exploration of other star systems may become reality sooner than you think

15) Ice-free Arctic The loss of Arctic sea ice is one of the clearest signs of human-caused climate change and so far the Arctic Ocean has melted to its lowest extent ever recorded since satellites began measuring it in 1979

14) 99942 Apophis asteroid threat Before global warming brings humanity on the verge of extinction, a giant rock from outer space might wipe us all out

13) Chocolate extinction Bad news for all of you chocolate lovers out there: your favorite food may actually become extinct in a few decades

12) Antibiotics stop working According to a major 2016 UK study, urgent action is needed to control the use of antibiotics before they stop working and leave a number of major conditions untreatable

11) Technological singularity The technological singularity is the hypothesis that the invention of artificial super-intelligence will trigger rampant technological growth, resulting in unimaginable changes to human civilization

10) New countries Situations and circumstances keep changing, but conflicts rarely end. Unfortunately, in most cases, it is war that ultimately leads to the division of borders and fights for independence have been ongoing for a long time in many parts of the world. Countries and Land Masses At first, this one may sound a bit...abstract. After all, don't we already have a LOT of countries on this Earth of ours?

9) A New Pandemic? We're sure that this one terrifies you to a certain level, but if 2020 proved anything to us, it's that you don't know what to expect until it happens

8) Brand New Medicines If you were to look at medicine as it was in the 1920s and see where they are in the year 2020, you'll see such a rapid scale improvement it would see ludicrous that people survived during the times without this medicine.

7) Sci-Fi Tech Don't go overboard on this one, we're not saying that hovercars and jetpacks are going to be commonplace in our world in the year 2050, however, certain pieces of sci-fi tech are likely to come around by 2050.

6) Green Planet? This one is honestly a bit more wishful thinking than anything else but it could happen should the right forces come into play.

5) Y2K Part 2? If you recall the year 1999, you might remember a gigantic fear that was going on called the Y2K Bug.

4) True Virtual Reality Heading back to sci-fi tech, let's single out another desired object that might just happen by 2050: true virtual reality.

3) A.I. Everywhere Judgment Day is inevitable, and yes, we're quoting Terminator.

2) Super-Automation Here's a darker element of growing technology that we're already facing right now. The more that technology grows, the more that humans can be replaced by automated machines.

1) The Unthinkable When it comes to predicting the future...there's always a risk. Because in truth, you have NO idea what's going to happen in the next however many days or months or years or decades

{ https://www.youtube.com/ }

26-02-2023 om 22:38 geschreven door peter  

On January 24, 2023 what seems to be a metallic UFO has been spotted while hovering above the Arizona desert. the UFO is accompanied by another object visible in the distance. 

Isn't it strange that these kinds of unknown objects can fly through US airspace at low altitudes seemingly undisturbed and are not intercepted and brought down like the Chinese hot air balloon and the other three unknown objects? 

Wouldn't it make sense that these types of objects would also be intercepted and shot down by the US Airforce as happened with the Chinese balloon and the other three unknown objects? 

Since the many UFOs and UAPs are left alone, not only does it say a lot about the knowledge the Pentagon and the US government have about these UFOs and UAPs to make the decision not to shoot down these objects, but it also says a lot about the shooting down of the other objects, likely indicating that these actions were carried out as part of a secret agenda behind the scenes, that may not be known to the US government, to archive a particular target in the near future.

  

{ http://ufosightingshotspot.blogspot.com/ }

26-02-2023 om 18:43 geschreven door peter  

Where Are The Aliens? The Search For Extraterrestrial Life

For more than four decades, scientists have been on a mission to find techno-signatures – signals coming from distant alien civilizations. Despite the search, no convincing evidence has been found for biology beyond Earth. But, considering the vastness of the universe, it is estimated that our galaxy, the Milky Way, which contains about 400 billion stars, is likely to have life beyond our planet.

The Fermi paradox remains unresolved, which states that if intelligent extraterrestrial life exists, then why haven’t we seen any evidence of it? Some scientists have attempted to estimate the number of technologically advanced species in the universe through the Drake Equation, which has seven terms that need to be answered to get an estimate. While this equation has been useful, a slightly different approach has been suggested by Adam Frank from the University of Rochester. Rather than estimating how many civilizations are out there to communicate with today, they estimate how many civilizations have been out there since the beginning of the universe.

The first term of the Drake Equation is the rate of star formation, which we now know is about one star forming per year. The next two terms we’ve recently nailed down are the fraction of stars that have planets and the number of habitable zone planets – planets in the right place for life to form. For every five stars, one of them has a planet in the right place for life to form.

• Bodies Of Alien Creatures Were Found In The Basement Of Old House

While we have made a lot of progress in the last 20 years, the question remains, where are the aliens? The answer to this question could lie in the search for technological signatures of other civilizations. Several international scientific projects are devoted to searching for evidence of life beyond Earth, from biomolecular detection to exoplanet atmospheres and biomarker detection.

In 2017, an object hurtled through the solar system. Although most astronomers believe it was a natural phenomenon, some believe it was the result of advanced technology developed by an alien civilization. NASA has funded a mission concept known as the Extrasolar object Interceptor.

The search for alien life has progressed a long way. According to a study published in the planetary science journal Planetary Science Journal earlier this month, NASA’s James Webb telescope can detect consistent passive technosigns. One of the most common characteristics of industry on Earth is atmospheric pollution. If this type of pollution is found in an exoplanet’s atmosphere, it could provide evidence of alien technology.

Watch 

• Where Are The Aliens? The Search For Extraterrestrial Life from Science Time

Civilizations need only be older than ours to have technology that we are incapable of understanding. If we were to meet life from a planet that had no contact with Earth, it would likely be shocking to us. Other planets have different histories of cooking their soup of chemicals and making life out of it. Most stars are different than the sun, which may explain why interstellar tourist agencies never advertise Earth as a desired tourist destination, as all we can offer them is green grass vacation sites illuminated by visible light.

In conclusion, the search for aliens has been ongoing for several decades, and we have made significant progress in our understanding of the universe. The quest to find intelligent extraterrestrial life may still be ongoing, but we continue to make discoveries that bring us closer to the answer.

RELATED VIDEOS, selected and posted by peter2011

{ https://www.latest-ufo-sightings.net/ }

26-02-2023 om 18:15 geschreven door peter  

Ancient Aliens: Origins of Humanity

Over the past couple of years, the number of reports of extraterrestrial beings being spotted in different parts of the world has increased. These sightings put a question mark over the possibility of alien life. While some believe that the notion of alien life is just science fiction, other believers think that there’s more to it.

One of the most interesting aspects about the UFO phenomenon is the idea that extraterrestrial beings may have been visiting Earth for thousands of years. In ancient cultures, there have been numerous stories about encounters with beings in the sky. These stories provide a glimpse into the beliefs of our ancestors.

In ancient Egyptian literature, the gods were referred to as individuals who came from the sky and taught people how to build structures such as pyramids. In the Bible, there are also references to extraterrestrial beings and chariots of fire. The Mahabharata, which is a part of the Hindu epicurean literature, talks about the gods’ use of flying machines known as “Vimas,” which were capable of moving across different dimensions.

• Pictures Mainstream Archaeology Does Not Want You To See

The increasing number of reports about extraterrestrial beings has raised various questions about the nature of our existence. Some believe that these beings could have helped us develop our ancestors by providing us with the necessary tools and knowledge to build advanced civilizations. Others think that they might have left us with advanced technology that governments around the world have been keeping secret.

Although the idea of ancient aliens has been around for a long time, the mainstream scientific community has started to take it seriously in the last couple of years. In 2017, the U.S. Defense Department released footage of an alleged alien encounter, which caught the public’s attention.

Despite the lack of evidence supporting the existence of alien life, the discovery of new planets outside our solar system has raised the possibility that other civilizations could also exist. Some believe that the conditions in the universe are so similar that intelligent life could easily evolve.

Despite the various cover-ups and mysterious nature of alien life, the evidence supporting the notion of alien existence continues to grow. As we continue to search for new planets outside of Earth, it’s possible that we will find more proof of alien life. However, it’s not yet clear if we will ever encounter these beings.

Although it may seem extraterrestrial life is already a distant idea for some people, the evidence suggests there could be more to it than we currently know. We must not lose sight of the fact that these beings have been a part of our culture and history. As the universe continues to expand, we can only look for answers to the many alien-related questions.

Watch FULL documentary movie about Origins of Humanity

RELATED VIDEOS, selected and posted by peter2011

{ https://www.latest-ufo-sightings.net/ }

26-02-2023 om 17:56 geschreven door peter  

{ https://scientias.nl/ }

26-02-2023 om 01:41 geschreven door peter  

'Mars' interior is not behaving,' active mantle plume reveals

26-02-2023 om 01:01 geschreven door peter  

26-02-2023 om 00:47 geschreven door peter  

Op een koude februaridag in 2021 lichtte een ruimtesteen de nachtelijke hemel op in Alberta, Canada. De vuurbal liet de wetenschap schudden op zijn grondvesten.

De ruimtesteen kwam namelijk vanuit de Oortwolk aansuizen en was opgebouwd uit rotsachtig materiaal. Tot op heden werd verondersteld dat objecten uit deze immense wolk aan de rand van ons zonnestelsel alleen uit verschillende soorten ijs, zoals waterijs, methaan, ethaan, koolstofmonoxide of waterstofcyanide konden bestaan.

On Feb. 22, YouTuber Mieszko Paradis caught a glimpse of a meteor as it flew through the sky over Edmonton.

(Video credit: Mieszko Paradis/YouTube)

De Oortwolk bestaat uit vele miljarden komeetachtige objecten rondom ons zonnestelsel. De Nederlandse astronoom Jan Hendrik Oort bedacht deze hypothese in 1950. Volgens Oort is er een stabiele wolk waar zo nu en dan een komeet vandaan komt die richting de aarde gaat, met een omlooptijd van duizenden jaren, zoals de bekende komeet Hale-Bopp. Dichterbij de aarde zijn er de Kuipergordel en de scattered disk, twee schijven vol puin buiten de baan van Neptunus. Hier komen periodieke kometen met een omlooptijd van minder dan tweehonderd jaar vandaan, zoals de komeet Halley. Materiaal uit deze meer dichtbijgelegen verzameling ruimtepuin bestaat vaker uit gesteente.

Mysterieuze Oortwolk
Passerende sterren, die mogelijk ook een eigen Oortwolk in hun buitenste schil hebben, duwen de ijzige reizigers uit ‘onze’ Oortwolk soms richting de zon, is de veronderstelling. We kunnen deze kometen dan waarnemen als lange lichtgevende slierten, omdat het ijzige materiaal verdampt en kleur afgeeft. Wetenschappers hebben nog geen objecten in de Oortwolk direct waargenomen, maar alles wat tot nu toe onze kant op is geslingerd, leek gemaakt van ijs. Tot de ontdekking van vorig jaar dus. En dat zet ons begrip van het ontstaan van ons zonnestelsel op z’n kop. Er zouden alleen ijzige objecten moeten bestaan in deze buitenste regionen, in de theorieën is geen plaats voor rotsachtig materiaal.

De astronomie kan echter niet om de rotsachtige meteoroïde heen, die als een oogverblindende vuurbal door de lucht boven centraal Alberta vloog. Vele professionele en amateurastronomen legden de immense vuurbal vast op de gevoelige plaat en analyseerden de data en het beeldmateriaal. Een team van de University of Western Ontario concludeerde dat alle tekenen erop wijzen dat de oorsprong van de ruimtesteen recht in het midden van de Oortwolk ligt.

Bom onder ontstaanstheorieën
“Deze ontdekking dwingt ons na te denken over een geheel ander model van de vorming van het zonnestelsel, een model dat het idee ondersteunt dat aanzienlijke hoeveelheden rotsachtig materiaal samen met ijzige objecten rondvliegen in de Oortwolk”, zegt expert in de meteoorfysica Denis Vida. “De conclusies uit ons onderzoek stroken niet met de meest gangbare modellen waarin de vorming van het zonnestelsel wordt beschreven. Dit is een complete gamechanger.”

De superscherpe Global Fireball Observatory (GFO)-camera’s van de University of Alberta kregen de rotsachtige meteoroïde van ongeveer 2 kilo, ter grootte van een grapefruit, in het vizier en hebben het laatste stukje van zijn reis door het zonnestelsel en door de aardse dampkring vastgelegd. Het team kon zo berekenen dat de ruimterots zich in een baan bewoog die normaal gesproken alleen wordt afgelegd door ijsklompen uit de Oortwolk.

“In zeventig jaar van regelmatige vuurbalwaarnemingen is dit een van de meest bijzondere ooit geregistreerd. Het is geweldig hoe de GFO, die vijf jaar geleden is opgestart en zo het bereik enorm vergrootte, het voor elkaar heeft gekregen om wetenschappelijke experts van over de hele wereld bij elkaar te brengen”, zegt hoofdonderzoeker van de GFO Hadrien Devillepoix. “We kunnen hierdoor meer kostbare meteorieten vinden en bestuderen, maar misschien nog wel belangrijker: het lukt ons nu om deze zeldzame gebeurtenissen rechtstreeks te volgen en de gegevens op te slaan die zo essentieel zijn voor het begrijpen van ons zonnestelsel.”

Rotsvast bewijs
Waarom denkt men nu dat de vuurbal van Alberta van steen was gemaakt en niet van ijs? De ruimteklomp drong veel dieper de atmosfeer binnen dan ijzige objecten die in het verleden in vergelijkbare banen richting het aardoppervlak vlogen. Hij brak op exact dezelfde manier in stukken als een vuurbal, die in rotsachtige delen uit elkaar valt. Dit bewijst dat dit stuk ruimtepuin van steen is gemaakt en niet van ijs.

“We willen erachter komen hoe deze rotsachtige meteoroïde daar aan de rand van ons zonnestelsel is terechtgekomen, omdat we onze eigen oorsprong willen begrijpen. Hoe beter we de omstandigheden begrijpen waarin het zonnestelsel werd gevormd, hoe beter we snappen wat nodig was voor het ontstaan van leven op aarde”, legt Vida uit. “We willen een zo nauwkeurig mogelijk beeld schetsen van deze vroege momenten van het zonnestelsel, die zo cruciaal waren voor alles wat er daarna gebeurde.”

{ https://scientias.nl/ }

26-02-2023 om 00:31 geschreven door peter  

Where could aliens exist in our solar system? Mars, Jupiter's moon Europa and Saturn's satellites Enceladus and Titan are among the worlds most likely to host extraterrestrial life, experts say - PART I

• MailOnline looks at the worlds in our solar system most likely to harbour alien life
• They include Jupiter's moons, a dwarf planet, Mars, Venus and Saturn's satellites 

By SAM TONKIN FOR MAILONLINE

For thousands of years, humanity has wrestled with the idea we may not be alone in our solar system.

Speculation that aliens might exist dates back to philosophers in ancient Greece, but it was the middle of the 20th century when people's imaginations really began to run riot — suddenly 'little green men' were everywhere in popular culture.

Although the use of the phrase is believed to have originated in 1908, it was between the 1920s and 50s that green Martian characters were plastered all over the covers of science fiction

The reality is that if extraterrestrial life does exist in our solar system it will be of a more simpler variety, perhaps hidden in Venus' clouds, beneath Mars' surface or in the vast underground oceans of one of Saturn's icy moons. 

But where else is the best bet of finding it? MailOnline speaks to a number of experts to find out.

Are we alone? For thousands of years, humanity has wrestled with the idea that aliens might exist in our solar system. But despite mid-20th century's excitement about 'little green men', if there is extraterrestrial life it will be of a more simpler variety, perhaps hidden in Venus' clouds, beneath Mars' surface or in the vast underground oceans of one of Saturn's icy moons

Mars

The most obvious candidate for extra-terrestrial life either past or present.

Scientists know the Red Planet was once habitable because billions of years ago it had lakes and rivers of liquid water on its surface, as well as a much thicker atmosphere than the thin one it has now.

But although the conditions were right for life to emerge, is that actually what happened?

Scientists have been trying to find out since the 19th century, although the answer has so far eluded them. Telescopes and probes have offered clues, while NASA has also deployed rovers to hunt for evidence over the past two decades.

Near neighbour: Mars is the most obvious candidate for another world in our solar system to harbour alien life either past or present. NASA's Perseverance rover is currently collecting samples in its search for evidence of ancient life, which will be analysed on Earth in the 2030s

Opportunity and Curiosity began the work, but today that baton has very much been handed over to Perseverance and its accompanying Ingenuity helicopter, which touched down on the Red Planet in February 2021.

Car-size robot Perseverance, nicknamed Percy, has so far collected 18 samples of rock and regolith (broken rock and soil) from the Jezero Crater where a river flowed billions of years ago.

Busy: Car-size robot Perseverance (pictured) has so far collected 18 samples of rock and regolith (broken rock and soil) from the Jezero Crater where a river flowed billions of years ago

When these sample tubes are eventually collected and returned to Earth by a European spacecraft some time in the 2030s, it could help scientists determine whether microbial left ever existed in the region.

If there are signs of ancient life, it is also possible that there are still alien microbes on Mars today, although these would more likely be underground rather than on the surface.

Several studies have previously used radar observations to show that reservoirs of liquid water probably exist just over a mile below the surface, but it would take future exploration – and likely a tricky mission – to try and establish once and for all if life exists there.  

Professor Andrew Coates, from the Department of Space & Climate Physics at University College, said the UK-built Rosalind Franklin rover could help with this.

'We're searching for evidence of biomarkers with the Rosalind Franklin rover (launch 2028), which will drill 2m under the surface, below where UV and oxidants are, and below where energetic solar and galactic radiation can penetrate,' he told MailOnline.

Professor Coates said Mars would be in his top three most likely worlds to host life in our solar system.

'Mars had the right conditions 3.8 to 4 billion years ago – with evidence for water on the surface, CHNOPS [the six elements of carbon, hydrogen, nitrogen, oxygen, phosphorus and sulfur make up 98 per cent of living matter on Earth] and energy – at about the same time life was starting on Earth,' he added.

'It is the nearest possibility for life beyond Earth. Even the cold night side on the Mars surface (about 150K) is warmer than the surfaces on Europa (140K), Enceladus (70K) and Titan (90K).

Professor Michael Garrett, of the University of Manchester, said: 'There is probably no life above ground (Mars' atmosphere is thin to absorb sterilizing UV radiation from the sun) but underground looks a better bet.

'There is likely to be significant quantities of water underground and the temperature is also higher, so it's possible some sort of basic life might be hiding there, like microbial life.'

How are we going to confirm either way?

In all likelihood, Perseverance. There are high hopes for the Mars rover, but it won't be for another decade until we potentially get an answer. 

Venus

Earth's closest neighbour and the second planet from the sun, Venus is a hellish world where surface temperatures are hot enough to melt lead and its atmosphere is thick with carbon dioxide.

But despite such inhospitable conditions, there has been a lot of excitement recently that it might in fact host a type of life in an unusual place.

Just over a year ago, a new study suggested that alien lifeforms 'unlike anything we've ever seen' may be living in the clouds of Earth's 'evil twin'.

Scientists claimed that the planet could be becoming 'more habitable' after identifying a chemical pathway by which life could neutralise Venus' acidic environment, creating a self-sustaining, habitable pocket in the clouds.

For nearly 50 years experts have been baffled by the presence of ammonia, a colourless gas made of nitrogen and hydrogen, which was tentatively detected in Venus' atmosphere in the 1970s. 

Hellish world: Venus has been in the news a lot recently amid excitement that the planet might host life. Just over a year ago, a new study suggested that alien lifeforms 'unlike anything we've ever seen' may be living in the clouds of Earth's 'evil twin' 

At the heart of the confusion is that it should not be produced through any chemical process known on the hellish planet.

In the study by Cardiff University, MIT and Cambridge University, researchers modelled a set of chemical processes to show that if ammonia is present, the gas would create a cascade of reactions that would neutralise surrounding droplets of sulphuric acid. 

If that were the case, this would then result in the acidity of the clouds dropping from -11 to zero, which although still very acidic on the pH scale, is a level that life could potentially survive at. 

As for the source of ammonia itself, the authors believe the most plausible explanation is of biological origin, rather lightning or volcanic eruptions.

This chemistry suggests that life could be making its own environment on Venus.

'No life that we know of could survive in the Venus droplets,' said study co-author Sara Seager, from MIT. 

'But the point is, maybe some life is there, and is modifying its environment so that it is liveable.'

If the researchers are correct, the lifeforms are likely to be microbes similar to bacteria found on Earth.

However, a separate study by Cambridge University scientists – published in the summer of last year – claimed to have found no evidence of life in the planet's clouds.

Any life form in sufficient abundance is expected to leave chemical fingerprints on a planet's atmosphere as it consumes food and expels waste. 

But the Cambridge experts found no sign of this in the atmospheric and biochemical models they used.

'We wanted life to be a potential explanation [for the strange behaviour going on in Venus' clouds], but when we ran the models, it isn't a viable solution,' said lead author Sean Jordan from Cambridge's Institute of Astronomy. 

The debate rages on and will likely not end until the various hypotheses can be tested with proposed Venus-bound missions set to launch later this decade.

The belief that life may exist in Venus's clouds has been disputed. Some studies say it could but others have ruled it out. Pictured is an artist's impression of what microbial life could look like

How are we going to confirm either way? 

Two new NASA probes, coming in at a total cost of $500million (£352m), are set to blast-off later this decade and head for Venus. They have cool acronyms – DAVINCI+ and VERITAS – but they won't actually be able to confirm the existence of life.

Despite this, scientists hope the information and findings they can gather will at least get us closer to answering that question more concretely. 

VERITAS (Venus Emissivity, Radio Science, InSAR, Topography, and Spectroscopy), will orbit Venus and peer through its thick clouds to map the surface.

Its aim is to understand the planet's geological history and investigate why it developed so differently to Earth. The probe could also discover whether volcanoes and earthquakes are still happening on Venus.

WHAT ARE NASA'S TWO NEW MISSIONS TO VENUS?

In June NASA announced that it is sending two new missions to Venus to examine the planet's atmosphere and geological features. They will be the first US probes sent to explore the hellish world in 30 years. 

The missions, which have each been awarded $500million (£352m) in funding, are:

DAVINCI+

Pictured: The Deep Atmosphere Venus Investigation of Noble gases, Chemistry, and Imaging probe (DAVINCI+) that will carry out flybys of Venus and land on its surface

What does it stand for?

Deep Atmosphere Venus Investigation of Noble gases, Chemistry, and Imaging

What will it do?

As it drops to the surface the high-tech probe will measure Venus' acrid atmosphere to understand how it formed and evolved.

It will also aim to determine whether Venus — which is the hottest planet in the solar system with a surface temperature of 500C — ever had an ocean.

As it heads toward the surface, DAVINCI+ is expected to return the first high resolution images of the planet's 'tesserae' geological features in Alpha Regio.

Scientists believe these features could be comparable to continents on Earth and may possibly suggest that Venus has plate tectonics.

When will it launch?

2029

When will its scientific experiments begin?

The spacecraft will carry out two flybys of the planet in 2030 to study its atmosphere and the nightside surface. 

Seven months after the two flybys, the craft will make a one-hour descent through the clouds, beaming back data all the way down to its landing site Alpha Regio.

What could its big discovery be?

Whether Venus ever had an ocean.

VERITAS

Pictured: The Venus Emissivity, Radio Science, InSAR, Topography, and Spectroscopy (VERITAS) probe that will orbit Venus and peer through its clouds to map the surface

What does it stand for?

Venus Emissivity, Radio Science, InSAR, Topography, and Spectroscopy

What will it do?

VERITAS will orbit Venus and peer through its thick clouds to map the surface.

The aim is to understand the planet's geological history and investigate why it developed so much differently than Earth.

When will it launch?

2028

What could its big discovery be?

Whether volcanoes and earthquakes are still happening on Venus.

DAVINCI+ (Deep Atmosphere Venus Investigation of Noble gases, Chemistry, and Imaging), meanwhile, will go one step further by actually landing on the hothouse world.

As it drops to the surface the high-tech probe will measure the planet's acrid atmosphere to understand how it formed and evolved.

It will also aim to determine whether Venus — which is the hottest planet in the solar system with a surface temperature of 900°F (500°C) — ever had an ocean.

US company Rocket Lab is also developing the first privately-funded science mission to Venus called Venus Life Finder (VLF).

It will see a probe inserted into the planet's hot, thick cloud layers to spend just five minutes searching for signs of habitable conditions. 

The plan is for VLF to be launched in May this year and arrive at Venus in October, but if it misses this target lift-off date it will have to wait until the next launch window in January 2025.

Enceladus

You wouldn't think that an object completely covered in ice would offer even the remotest chance of hosting life.

But although the surface of Enceladus is freezing cold, there is a lot of activity going on beneath it.

Scientists know this because Saturn's sixth largest moon ejects liquid water, ice and organic material from its core out into space.

The organic molecules have been identified as nitrogen and oxygen-bearing compounds, similar to those involved in chemical reactions on Earth that produce the amino acids that are the building blocks of life.  

Saturn's moon Enceladus is thought to have a vast salty, liquid water ocean hidden below its frozen crust, while NASA has also found evidence of hydrothermal activity deep underground. This, scientists believe, could provide the source of heat needed to give life a chance to thrive

The world is thought to have a vast salty, liquid water ocean hidden below its frozen crust, while NASA has also found evidence of hydrothermal activity deep underground.

This, scientists believe, could provide the source of heat needed to give life a chance to thrive.

'If the conditions are right, these molecules coming from the deep ocean of Enceladus could be on the same reaction pathway as we see here on Earth,' Nozair Khawaja, of the Free University of Berlin, has previously said.

He carried out research on data from NASA's Cassini mission, which discovered the organic compounds during a 13-year mission that ended in 2017.

'We don't yet know if amino acids are needed for life beyond Earth, but finding the molecules that form amino acids is an important piece of the puzzle,' Khawaja added.

Professor David Rothery, of the Open University, said he believed Enceladus was one of two worlds in our solar system most likely to harbour extraterrestrial lifeforms.

'The big unknown is how likely it is for life to get started, if conditions are suitable for life,' he told MailOnline.

'However, Enceladus and Europa both have internal (below an ice shell) oceans sitting on top of tidally-heated (so warm) rock. 

'Chemical reactions between water and hot rock probably result in "hydrothermal vents" (hot springs) on the ocean floor, where microbes can feed off the chemical energy. 

'It doesn't matter that sunlight can't penetrate to those depths — we have similar "chemosynthetic life" clustered around hydrothermal vents on Earth's sunless ocean floors too.

'If there are microbes, maybe some more complex forms of life have evolved that eat the microbes.'

Active: Saturn's sixth largest moon ejects liquid water, ice and organic material from its core out into space. It is thought to have a salty, liquid water ocean hidden below its frozen crust, while NASA has also found evidence of hydrothermal activity deep underground (pictured)

Professor Andrew Coates, of UCL, also said Enceladus was one of the leading contenders to host alien life.

'The plumes discovered by Cassini-Huygens come from a subsurface salty ocean under the ice, and the mission also discovered evidence for silicates in the plumes, which likely come from vents on the ocean floor, perhaps a bit like black smokers on Earth,' he told MailOnline.

'Also hydrogen was directly found, completing CHNOPS at Enceladus. [The six elements of carbon, hydrogen, nitrogen, oxygen, phosphorus and sulfur make up 98 per cent of living matter on Earth.]'

How are we going to confirm either way?

Unfortunately there aren't currently any missions scheduled to study Enceladus. A number of proposals have been put forward, including several to NASA, but nothing has been picked to actually go to Saturn's moon.

This is a shame, given that many scientists believe Enceladus to be one of the most likely candidates to host extra-terrestrial life.

If and when we ever do go there, digging into the ocean would be the best way to see if any lifeforms exist on the moon, although it might also be possible to detect biosignatures in cryovolcanoes.

These are volcanos that erupt vaporised materials such as water or ammonia rather than molten rock.

Europa

Another popular candidate to host alien life — and this time there might soon be an answer from missions scheduled to fly to it.

Europa is the smallest of Jupiter's four Galilean moons but it is seen by most experts as the most likely to have the right ingredients for life.

Part of the reason is its massive subsurface, and potentially salty, ocean which is heated up by tidal forces.

This is believed to create an internal circulation system which keeps waters moving and replenishes the icy surface on a regular basis.

Such a theory is significant because it means scientists would not necessarily have to delve deep into the underground ocean to find evidence of life, as the fact that the ocean floor interacts with the surface means it could throw up clues there. 

A big contender: Europa is the smallest of Jupiter's four Galilean moons but it is seen by most experts as the most likely to have the right ingredients for life

'Of the Galilean satellites, Europa is the most likely [to have alien life] as the ocean is likely in contact with sand/rock according to models,' Professor Coates told MailOnline, 'whereas at Ganymede and Callisto the ocean floor would be ice due to lower temperature'.

He added that because Europa is bathed by Jupiter's energetic radiation belts this too could be useful for emerging life, as it could result in oxygen potentially finding its way into the subsurface oceans.

Professor Garrett, of the University of Manchester, added: 'The giant planets like Saturn and Jupiter tend to churn up the interiors of their icy moons, so there is a lot of mixing of water with carbon rich chemistry — but it would probably be microbial life, if there is any life at all.

'If we do find life in the solar system, I wouldn't be shocked if we discover it somewhere we think is least likely — new science is always full of surprises.'

How are we going to confirm either way?

NASA's Europa Clipper will provide the best chance of confirming the existence of extraterrestrial life on Europa.

The spacecraft is due to launch in 2024 and reach the Jovian moon in 2030, at which point it will carry out a series of low-altitude flights to study the surface.

Clipper will also investigate the subsurface environment where possible, in an attempt to find signs of alien activity.

More data will also be provided by the European Space Agency's Jupiter Icy Moons Explorer (JUICE) spacecraft, which is due to launch in April.  

It will make two flybys of Europa during its time in the Jovian system and is set to explore three of Jupiter's moons during its mission.

The Europa Clipper (pictured) will provide the best opportunity of confirming the existence of extraterrestrial life on Jupiter's moon. It is due to launch in 2024 and reach Europa in 2030

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25-02-2023 om 23:48 geschreven door peter  

Where could aliens exist in our solar system? Mars, Jupiter's moon Europa and Saturn's satellites Enceladus and Titan are among the worlds most likely to host extraterrestrial life, experts say - PART II

• MailOnline looks at the worlds in our solar system most likely to harbour alien life
• They include Jupiter's moons, a dwarf planet, Mars, Venus and Saturn's satellites 

By SAM TONKIN FOR MAILONLINE

For thousands of years, humanity has wrestled with the idea we may not be alone in our solar system.

Speculation that aliens might exist dates back to philosophers in ancient Greece, but it was the middle of the 20th century when people's imaginations really began to run riot — suddenly 'little green men' were everywhere in popular culture.

Triton

Now we're going a bit further afield.

Triton is Neptune's largest moon and one of just five natural satellites in our solar system confirmed to be geologically active.

Scientists know this because it has active geysers that spew out sublimated nitrogen gas. 

Much like Enceladus, it is a freezing cold world. But that's in part because it is so far from the sun, circling the most distant planet in our solar system.

Its surface is mostly frozen nitrogen, while it has water ice in its crust and an icy mantle.

Freezing: Triton is Neptune's largest moon and one of just five natural satellites in our solar system confirmed to be geologically active. However, despite there being a possibility of alien microbes, the fact that the moon is so cold makes it unlikely anything could stay unfrozen for long enough to exist

However, because of a gravitational phenomenon known as tidal heating, it is thought to receive some heat from Neptune that could help warm its waters and create conditions possible for life.

An example of how this works elsewhere in the solar system is the gravitational tug-of-war between Jupiter's moons and the planet itself, causing the natural satellites to stretch and squish enough to warm them.

It that some of the icy moons contain interiors warm enough to host oceans of liquid water, and in the case of the rocky moon Io, tidal heating melts rock into magma.

However, despite there being a possibility of alien microbes on Triton, the fact that the moon is so cold makes it unlikely anything could stay unfrozen for long enough to exist.

Most scientists agree that the world is pretty low down on the list of potential sources of extraterrestrial life. 

How are we going to confirm either way?

Finding life on Triton seems highly unlikely, in part because the only mission to ever visit the world was Voyager 2 in 1989, and there is nothing else scheduled in the near future.

One of the main stumbling blocks for this is that the window for such a mission to Triton only opens every 13 years.

A concept to explore Triton, along with flybys of Jupiter and Neptune, was proposed to NASA in 2019.

However, the so-called Trident mission seems unlikely because it was beaten out by other concepts chosen by the US space agency, including the two probes to Venus.

Finding life on Triton seems like a very distant possibility, as the only mission to ever visit the world was Voyager 2 in 1989. The spacecraft (pictured) is now 12 billion miles and 18 hours' light distance from us

Ganymede

Not only is Ganymede Jupiter's largest moon, it is also the biggest natural satellite in our entire solar system.

Like some of the other moons mentioned, Ganymede has an icy shell with secrets hidden beneath its surface.

Once again, it has a saltwater ocean so vast that it is believed to contain more water than all of Earth's oceans combined, a potential breeding ground for life.

The moon also has two more things going for it which would be beneficial for any extraterrestrial lifeforms.

The first is an extremely thin oxygen atmosphere and the second is a magnetic field, something that is vital in protecting worlds from the sun's radiation and an attribute that no other moon in the solar system has.

All very positive you may think.

The problem is that Ganymede is much colder than Earth, with daytime surface temperature ranging from 90 to 160 Kelvin (or -297 to -171 degrees Fahrenheit).

Not only that, but Jupiter and its moons receive less than 1/30th the amount of sunlight that the Earth does, and Ganymede has essentially no atmosphere to trap heat.

Biggest moon in the solar system: Ganymede has a saltwater ocean so vast that it is believed to contain more water than all of Earth's oceans combined, a potential breeding ground for life

How are we going to confirm either way?

Sadly, there are no dedicated missions due to study Ganymede.

However, the JUICE mission mentioned above will take a close look at the moon when it enters its orbit in 2032. 

The European spacecraft may have an opportunity to peer down at the surface and study Ganymede's interior with radar, perhaps providing an insight into whether it is in any way habitable.

Titan

Saturn's largest moon Titan is so huge it is actually bigger than the planet Mercury.

Interesting though that may be, what really makes the world exciting is that it is extremely rich in organic materials and possesses the sort of simple chemistry that is believed to have been vital in the creation of life on Earth. 

Thanks to flybys from the Cassini spacecraft, experts have also found evidence of great lakes and signs of rain near the moon's north pole, while it has one of the thickest atmospheres for a rocky world outside of Earth and Venus.

The methane in this atmosphere is what makes Titan's chemistry possible, but where this gas comes from is a mystery. 

Like other moons mentioned above, Titan is also thought to have a subsurface ocean that is around 35 to 50 miles (55 to 80 kilometres) below its icy ground.

On the surface, the world is teeming with lakes, rivers, and seas, but rather than being made of water these are actually liquid methane and ethane, providing a potentially habitable environment for life.

The only problem, once again, is that Titan is very cold. It is nine times further from the sun than Earth, so only receives about 1 per cent the amount of solar warming.

Massive: What really makes Saturn's largest moon Titan so exciting is that it is extremely rich in organic materials and possesses the sort of simple chemistry that is believed to have been vital in the creation of life on Earth

It all adds up to the theory that if there is extraterrestrial life on this world it will be very alien indeed, and certainly different to us.

That's because anything on the surface would have to be ethane-based rather than water-based, and molecules such as DNA would not work. 

Nevertheless, Titan still sits at the number 4 spot on Professor Coates' list of worlds most likely to harbour extraterrestrial life, in part because of its thick atmosphere and prebiotic chemistry he told MailOnline.

Dr Joanna Barstow, of the Open University, also had Titan in her top three.

She told MailOnline: 'I would consider Titan to be a contender because it is the only other body in the solar system to have surface lakes [besides Earth].

'In the case of Titan, these are made of liquid hydrocarbons (methane and ethane) not water — but it isn't impossible that life elsewhere could have evolved to make use of these liquids instead. 

'If there is anything there, we would expect it to be microorganisms.'

How are we going to confirm either way?

NASA's mission to Titan, known as Dragonfly, will fly more than 100 miles around the celestial satellite. It was originally set to launch in 2026, but the Covid pandemic pushed back the launch date to 2027. 

The mission will see the US space agency send a drone helicopter to explore Titan's atmosphere from 2034 in an attempt to shed further light on the moon's prebiotic chemistry.

The craft will explore diverse environments from organic dunes to the floor of an impact crater where liquid water and complex organic materials key to life once existed together for possibly tens of thousands of years.

It will also investigate the moon's atmospheric and surface properties and its subsurface ocean and liquid reservoirs, while trying to search for chemical evidence of past or current life.

NASA's Dragonfly mission will see the US space agency send a drone helicopter (depicted) to explore Titan's atmosphere

Callisto

The most fascinating fact about Jupiter's moon Callisto is that it has the oldest surface of any world in our solar system, at about 4 billion years old.

That doesn't have any real bearing on its potential for life, but it is another world thought to have a large ocean deep underground and an interesting atmosphere.

It is thin, but Callisto's atmosphere is more Earth-like than most other moons in the solar system as it contains oxygen, hydrogen and carbon dioxide.

The drawback to there actually being life is again how cold the moon is. 

In the past, scientists always thought Callisto was a boring 'ugly duckling moon' and a 'hunk of rock and ice' because it was a crater-covered world which didn't seem to have much going on geologically.

The chance of it actually having life is less likely than some of the other planets and moons listed here, but it is certainly not seen as being as boring as it once was.

The most fascinating fact about Jupiter's moon Callisto (shown bottom) is that it has the oldest surface of any world in our solar system, at about 4 billion years old

How are we going to confirm either way?

Once again, JUICE will offer the most insight. The spacecraft will make several close flybys of Callisto during its mission to carry out detailed observations of Jupiter and its three large ocean-bearing moons.

After a seven or eight-year cruise to Jupiter, utilising Earth and Venus gravity assists to get there, JUICE will go into orbit around the gas giant in 2031.

So we'll have to wait another decade before we have any more clues as to whether they could be life on Callisto or Jupiter's other moons. 

The European Space Agency's JUICE spacecraft will make several close flybys of Callisto during its mission to carry out detailed observations of Jupiter and its three large ocean-bearing moons

Ceres

We've looked at the planets and moons that could host alien life in our solar system, but what if the most likely candidate is actually a dwarf planet?

It's an interesting thought, but seems unlikely.

Scientists think Ceres – which sits between Mars and Jupiter – could be home to liquid water deep underground, perhaps around 25 miles below the surface.

If this is the case, it would almost certainly be extremely salty and therefore would stop the water from freezing.

Not only that, but NASA's Dawn probe found evidence of organic compounds on Ceres while orbiting the world between 2015 and 2018.

As mentioned in relation to some of the other leading candidates for life above, this could provide the raw materials needed for life, but the world would need some heat source to actually create it.

Also working against Ceres is its size. The tiny dwarf planet is 13 times smaller than Earth, making it a complete mystery as to how the fraction of gravity on the world could affect any potential life.

Tiny dwarf planet: Scientists think Ceres (pictured) – which sits between Mars and Jupiter – could be home to liquid water deep underground, perhaps around 25 miles below the surface

How are we going to confirm either way?

As some of the interesting features about Ceres have only been discovered in the past decade, there is no mission currently scheduled to visit the dwarf planet.

So it will be a while before we get any concrete answers.

That being said, there has still been a series of proposals for how Ceres could be better studied by future missions.

KEY DISCOVERIES IN HUMANITY'S SEARCH FOR ALIEN LIFE

Discovery of pulsars

British astronomer Dame Jocelyn Bell Burnell was the first person to discover a pulsar in 1967 when she spotted a radio pulsar.

Since then other types of pulsars that emit X-rays and gamma rays have also been spotted.

Pulsars are essentially rotating, highly magnetised neutron stars but when they were first discovered it was believed they could have come from aliens.

'Wow!' radio signal

In 1977, an astronomer looking for alien life in the night sky above Ohio spotted a radio signal so powerful that he excitedly wrote 'Wow!' next to his data.

In 1977, an astronomer looking for alien life in the night sky above Ohio spotted a radio signal so powerful that he excitedly wrote 'Wow!' next to his data

The 72-second blast, spotted by Dr Jerry Ehman through a radio telescope, came from Sagittarius but matched no known celestial object.

Conspiracy theorists have since claimed that the 'Wow! signal', which was 30 times stronger than background radiation, was a message from intelligent extraterrestrials.

Fossilised Martian microbes

In 1996 Nasa and the White House made the explosive announcement that the rock contained traces of Martian bugs.

The meteorite, catalogued as Allen Hills (ALH) 84001, crashed onto the frozen wastes of Antarctica 13,000 years ago and was recovered in 1984. 

Photographs were released showing elongated segmented objects that appeared strikingly lifelike.

Photographs were released showing elongated segmented objects that appeared strikingly lifelike (pictured)

However, the excitement did not last long. Other scientists questioned whether the meteorite samples were contaminated. 

They also argued that heat generated when the rock was blasted into space may have created mineral structures that could be mistaken for microfossils. 

Behaviour of Tabby's Star in 2005 

The star, otherwise known as KIC 8462852, is located 1,400 light years away and has baffled astronomers since being discovered in 2015.

It dims at a much faster rate than other stars, which some experts have suggested is a sign of aliens harnessing the energy of a star.

The star, otherwise known as KIC 8462852, is located 1,400 light years away and has baffled astonomers since being discovered in 2015 (artist's impression)

Recent studies have 'eliminated the possibility of an alien megastructure', and instead, suggests that a ring of dust could be causing the strange signals.

Exoplanets in the Goldilocks zone in 2017 

In February 2017 astronomers announced they had spotted a star system with planets that could support life just 39 light years away.

Seven Earth-like planets were discovered orbiting nearby dwarf star 'Trappist-1', and all of them could have water at their surface, one of the key components of life.

Three of the planets have such good conditions, that scientists say life may have already evolved on them. 

Researchers claim that they will know whether or not there is life on any of the planets within a decade, and said: 'This is just the beginning.' 

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25-02-2023 om 21:39 geschreven door peter  

What COULD aliens look like? Forget little green men - life on distant exoplanets may resemble HUMANS, experts say

• A number of experts and previous studies believe aliens would look a lot like us
• But others say they could be more 'jellyfish-like', or even akin to shrimp on Earth
• If extraterrestrial life exists on our solar system, these worlds are likely to host it 

By SAM TONKIN FOR MAILONLINE

They are often depicted as either little green men, bug-eyed creatures or terrifying monsters intent on wiping out all life on Earth.

But if aliens do exist, what might they actually look like? 

MailOnline asked a number of experts what they think — both for potential extraterrestrial life within our own solar system, as well as on distant exoplanets in faraway galaxies.

Among the wide-ranging answers were features such as big brains, enormous wings and gravity-induced spindly frames, while 'crab or squid-like beasties', jellyfish-esque creatures and aliens that look almost human-like are also a possibility.

The latter might seem surprising given how aliens are often portrayed in popular culture, but some experts think if another intelligent civilisation exists, life could have evolved in a similar way to us.

Mystery: If aliens do exist, what might they actually look like? MailOnline asked a number of experts and these were some of their answers

Mystery: They are often depicted as either little green men, bug-eyed creatures or terrifying monsters intent on wiping out all life on Earth (stock image), but this is unlikely to be the case

As one scientist put it, the reason is 'simple physics, plus competition for food and the need to escape predation will favour organisms with similar body plans to those that are successful on Earth'. 

Closer to home, if alien life does exist on Mars, Jupiter's moon Europa or Saturn's satellites Enceladus or Titan, it is likely to be somewhat anti-climactic because it would probably just be 'scum-like' microbes.

Professor David Rothery, of the Open University, said it would probably be 'invisible to the unaided eye if you are trying to see an individual'.

He told MailOnline that it could well be 'like a scum or a stain on the rocks of an ocean floor or a discolouration in the surface ice if there is a colony'.

That may sound a little boring, but Professor Rothery does have hope that something slightly more interesting could exist in our solar system. 

'There may be larger organisms that have evolved to browse on the microbes,' he said, 'but crab-like, shrimp-like and squid-like beasties in Europa's ocean are probably too much to hope for.' 

NASA also believes that on Jupiter's icy moon, 'the best chance for life would be microbial'.

US space agency scientists have previously studied an 'extreme shrimp' ecosystem in the Caribbean to find clues about what life could be like on other planetary bodies such as Europa, which has a subsurface ocean and may have similar creatures.

Professor Andrew Coates, of University College London, thinks any life forms in our solar system would be 'simple, single cell'.

'But we won't know until we find it,' he added, 'and the hunt is on with missions like Rosalind Franklin [the UK-built Mars rover due to launch in 2028].' 

That's near Earth though. Surely there are more mind-bending and endless possibilities in distant galaxies?

Astronomer Michael Garrett, a professor at Manchester University, thinks 'we might be in for a shock'.

He told MailOnline: 'I think the way complex life might appear will depend a lot on the environment within which it evolves.

'For example, a more massive planet where the force of gravity is strong might favour life forms that are quite squat and muscular, while a less massive planet (where the force of gravity is weaker) might suit the evolution of complexities that are more delicate and potentially quite spindly and tall.'

Professor Garrett also said that if the world had a low density atmosphere, it may have 'life forms with wings of enormous scale'.

'Or if your star is a red giant, you might find life with eyes that are much more sensitive and larger than ours,' he added.

'Anyway, I'd be prepared for something very different that might be quite shocking at first but we'd hopefully soon get over that and begin to also see some similarities.'

NASA scientists have previously studied an 'extreme shrimp' ecosystem in the Caribbean (pictured) to find clues about what life could be like on other planetary bodies such as Europa, which has a subsurface ocean

Astronomer Michael Garrett, a professor at Manchester University, said the appearance of aliens would depend on their environment. For example, a less massive planet (where the force of gravity is weaker) might suit creatures 'quite spindly and tall', he added (stock image)

Professor Garrett is one of a number of scientists who think human-like aliens are also a possibility.

'Intelligent life like humans would presumably have relatively big brains, and have limbs and flexible digits that can record history and advances in knowledge that can then be passed on from one generation to the next, always building on what has gone before,' he said.  

Both Professor Rothery and Professor Simon Conway Morris, a palaeontologist at the University of Cambridge, agree that extraterrestrial life, if out there, would resemble the creatures we see around us on Earth, with limbs, heads, and bodies. 

'There is a school of thought that says that simple physics plus competition for food and the need to escape predation will favour organisms with similar body plans to those that are successful on Earth,' Professor Rothery told MailOnline.

'It is clearly effective to have your sense organs at the front (or top).'

He added: 'On other Earth-like planets some have surely developed complex life forms, but its anybody's guess what they look like.'

Professor Morris also said that any Earth-like exoplanet should evolve predators like sharks, pitcher plants, mangroves, and mushrooms, among many other things. 

Another previous study suggests that in reality, aliens could be more similar to us than some would think.  

The University of Oxford research indicates that life would potentially be shaped by the same processes that created humans, such as natural selection, and that these extraterrestrials may even 'look like us'.

Lead author Sam Levin said: 'We still can't say whether aliens will walk on two legs or have big green eyes.

'But we believe evolutionary theory offers a unique additional tool for trying to understand what aliens will be like, and we have shown some examples of the kinds of strong predictions we can make with it.

'By predicting that aliens have undergone major transitions — which is how complexity has arisen in species on Earth, we can say that there is a level of predictability to evolution that would cause them to look like us.'

He added: 'We can't say whether or not we're alone on Earth, but we have taken a small step forward in answering, if we're not alone, what our neighbours are like.'

Arik Kershenbaum, author of The Zoologist's Guide to the Galaxy, also agrees that Darwinian natural selection would apply throughout the universe.

Welcoming our new jellyfish overlords: This is what evolution might have come up with on a world such as Saturn's moon Titan, Dr Maggie Aderin-Pocock believes

The University of Cambridge astrobiologist said this would result in alien creatures that have symmetrical bodies with wings, legs or fins. 

They would also be intelligent, have a developed language and possibly technology, he believes, and even added that humans might be able to 'have tea with an alien' if we came into contact with them.

Others don't think extraterrestrial life would look like us.

One leading space scientist previously claimed that aliens could look like giant jellyfish.

Dr Maggie Aderin-Pocock, a satellite expert and former government adviser, said extraterrestrial life was likely — but just more alien-like than some might imagine.

She believes Saturn's moon Titan could have aliens that look like football field-sized jellyfish, complete with onion-shaped appendages and an orange underbelly or bottom.

Generated from silicon, rather than the carbon that is the basis of life as we know it, the creatures she envisions would be able to live off light absorbed through their 'skin' and chemicals sucked in through their giant mouths.

KEY DISCOVERIES IN HUMANITY'S SEARCH FOR ALIEN LIFE

Discovery of pulsars

British astronomer Dame Jocelyn Bell Burnell was the first person to discover a pulsar in 1967 when she spotted a radio pulsar.

Since then other types of pulsars that emit X-rays and gamma rays have also been spotted.

Pulsars are essentially rotating, highly magnetised neutron stars but when they were first discovered it was believed they could have come from aliens.

'Wow!' radio signal

In 1977, an astronomer looking for alien life in the night sky above Ohio spotted a radio signal so powerful that he excitedly wrote 'Wow!' next to his data.

In 1977, an astronomer looking for alien life in the night sky above Ohio spotted a radio signal so powerful that he excitedly wrote 'Wow!' next to his data

The 72-second blast, spotted by Dr Jerry Ehman through a radio telescope, came from Sagittarius but matched no known celestial object.

Conspiracy theorists have since claimed that the 'Wow! signal', which was 30 times stronger than background radiation, was a message from intelligent extraterrestrials.

Fossilised Martian microbes

In 1996 Nasa and the White House made the explosive announcement that the rock contained traces of Martian bugs.

The meteorite, catalogued as Allen Hills (ALH) 84001, crashed onto the frozen wastes of Antarctica 13,000 years ago and was recovered in 1984. 

Photographs were released showing elongated segmented objects that appeared strikingly lifelike.

Photographs were released showing elongated segmented objects that appeared strikingly lifelike (pictured)

However, the excitement did not last long. Other scientists questioned whether the meteorite samples were contaminated. 

They also argued that heat generated when the rock was blasted into space may have created mineral structures that could be mistaken for microfossils. 

Behaviour of Tabby's Star in 2005 

The star, otherwise known as KIC 8462852, is located 1,400 light years away and has baffled astronomers since being discovered in 2015.

It dims at a much faster rate than other stars, which some experts have suggested is a sign of aliens harnessing the energy of a star.

The star, otherwise known as KIC 8462852, is located 1,400 light years away and has baffled astonomers since being discovered in 2015 (artist's impression)

Recent studies have 'eliminated the possibility of an alien megastructure', and instead, suggests that a ring of dust could be causing the strange signals.

Exoplanets in the Goldilocks zone in 2017 

In February 2017 astronomers announced they had spotted a star system with planets that could support life just 39 light years away.

Seven Earth-like planets were discovered orbiting nearby dwarf star 'Trappist-1', and all of them could have water at their surface, one of the key components of life.

Three of the planets have such good conditions, that scientists say life may have already evolved on them. 

Researchers claim that they will know whether or not there is life on any of the planets within a decade, and said: 'This is just the beginning.' 

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25-02-2023 om 18:48 geschreven door peter  

“It’s rare nowadays to have fundamental discoveries in science,” said Dr. Baptiste Journaux, who is an acting assistant professor in UW’s Department of Earth and Space Sciences, and lead author of the study. “Salt and water are very well known at Earth conditions. But beyond that, we’re totally in the dark. And now we have these planetary objects that probably have compounds that are very familiar to us, but at very exotic conditions. We have to redo all the fundamental mineralogical science that people did in the 1800s, but at high pressure and low temperature. It is an exciting time.”

For the study, the researchers investigated what is known as a hydrate, which is an icy lattice formed in cold water temperatures from the combination of salts and water. Until now, only one sodium chloride hydrate was known to exist, known as hydrohalite, which consists of one salt molecule for every two water molecules.

Using transparent diamonds and cold temperatures, the team compressed a miniscule amount of salty water near 25,000 times Earth’s atmospheric pressure, where they observed two new sodium chloride hydrate crystal structures. The first structure contains two sodium chloride molecules for every 17 water molecules, and the other contains one sodium chloride molecule for every 13 water molecules. It was also discovered that the structure containing 17 water molecules remained stable even near vacuum pressure, which is equivalent to the Moon’s surface, while the structure containing 13 water molecules only maintained its stability at high pressure. It is hypothesized that these unique crystal structures could help explain the “watery” signatures from Jupiter’s moons.

“We were trying to measure how adding salt would change the amount of ice we could get, since salt acts as an antifreeze,” said Dr. Journaux. “Surprisingly, when we put the pressure on, what we saw is that these crystals that we were not expecting started growing. It was a very serendipitous discovery.”

These same cold, high-pressure environments likely exist on Europa, as scientists postulate its interior ocean could be hundreds of kilometers deep underneath approximately 5 to 10 kilometers of ice, with denser ice structures possibly existing at the bottom of the ocean where the temperatures and pressures would be even colder and more extreme.

For next steps, the researchers wish to create or collect a bigger sample to conduct a more in-depth investigation regarding whether icy moons signatures such as the red streaks found on Europa complement the two recently discovered hydrates.

Both NASA and the European Space Agency (ESA) currently have a few planetary missions scheduled to visit Europa and Titan to explore their potential habitability. These include the ESA’s Jupiter Icy Moons Explorer, also known as JUICE, which is slated to launch in April of this year and arrive at the Jupiter system in July 2031; NASA’s Europa Clipper mission, which is slated to launch in October 2024 and arrive at the Jupiter system in 2030; and NASA’s Dragonfly mission to Titan, which is slated to launch in 2027 and arrive at Titan in 2034. All these missions will attempt to learn more about the chemical compositions of these mysterious and intriguing worlds, which will help scientists determine the best ways to search for life.

“These are the only planetary bodies, other than Earth, where liquid water is stable at geological timescales, which is crucial for the emergence and development of life,” said Dr. Journaux. “They are, in my opinion, the best place in our solar system to discover extraterrestrial life, so we need to study their exotic oceans and interiors to better understand how they formed, evolved and can retain liquid water in cold regions of the solar system, so far away from the sun.”

What new discoveries will scientists make about Europa, its chemical signatures, and potential for life in the coming years and decades? Only time will tell, and this is why we science!

As always, keep doing science & keep looking up!

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25-02-2023 om 18:23 geschreven door peter