When tiny particles enter Earth’s atmosphere, a newly described series of chemical reactions may lead to production of phosphorus-containing molecules that are essential for biological processes.
cosmic dust
Posted inResearch Spotlights
形成黄道光的太空尘埃可能来自火星
朱诺号探测器飞往木星途中的偶然发现表明，形成黄道光的太空尘埃可能来自火星，但这些尘埃是如何从火星或其卫星逃逸出来的仍不得而知。
Posted inResearch Spotlights
The Space Dust That Causes Zodiacal Light Might Come from Mars
Serendipitous observations by the Juno spacecraft while it was en route to Jupiter suggest a Martian source for the dust, but how the dust escapes Mars or its moons remains unknown.
Posted inNews
Dust from Colliding Asteroids Masqueraded as a Planet
New analysis of Hubble Space Telescope images suggests that Fomalhaut b, once believed to be an extrasolar planet, is, in fact, a cloud of dust that likely formed from the collision of enormous asteroids.
Posted inNews
Dust Older Than the Sun Sheds Light on Galactic History
A small pile of dust grains older than the Sun brings new evidence about the rate at which stars are born in the Milky Way.
Posted inNews
Nearby Asteroid Is Mysteriously Devoid of Dust, Lander Reveals
Close-up images of Ryugu, a near-Earth asteroid and the target of the Hayabusa2 sample return mission, reveal a rocky, dustless world that may have formed from a giant collision.
Posted inScience Updates
The Swarm Satellite Trio Studies Earth and Its Environment
8th Swarm Data Quality Workshop; Frascati, Italy, 8–12 October 2018
Posted inResearch Spotlights
Where Are the Electrical Currents in the Enceladus Plume?
A plume of water ice that escapes Saturn’s moon Enceladus should be coursing with electrical currents, but data are mixed. Now simulations suggest that a sticky dust cloud may shield signals.
Posted inResearch Spotlights
Shooting Stars and Cosmic Dust Help Form Clouds, Fertilize Plankton
Tons of cosmic dust enter Earth’s atmosphere each day, triggering a range of phenomena that scientists are only just beginning to understand.