Planetary Science
Ancient asteroid impact reshaped moon's south pole
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A new study reveals that a massive asteroid struck the moon from the north about 4.3 billion years ago, forming the vast South Pole-Aitken basin and exposing deep interior materials. This glancing blow explains the basin's uneven terrain and the concentration of key elements on the moon's near side. The findings could aid NASA's Artemis missions in uncovering lunar history.
NASA's DART mission reveals unexpected asteroid tumbling
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NASA's Double Asteroid Redirection Test (DART) successfully altered the orbit of the asteroid Dimorphos more than expected, but scientists were puzzled by the discovery that the impact caused the moonlet to start tumbling. The mission, which involved crashing a spacecraft into Dimorphos in September 2022, aimed to test planetary defense techniques. Observations from ground-based telescopes confirmed the surprising rotational change.
Nearest alien civilization may be 33,000 light years away
New research suggests the closest technological civilization in the Milky Way could be about 33,000 light years from Earth. For such a society to coexist with humanity, it would need to have endured for at least 280,000 years. The findings, presented at a joint meeting in Helsinki, underscore the rarity of extraterrestrial intelligence.