Posts by

Paul Scott Anderson

The strange case of 2 missing giant exomoons (and maybe others)

Astronomers in Germany say that 2 possible giant exomoons probably don't actually exist. That's disappointing, but there are still some other candidates.

Paul Scott Anderson

December 18, 2023

Watery plumes on Enceladus could hold signs of life

Do the plumes on Enceladus contain evidence of life from the moon's ocean? A new study shows that amino acids could survive and be detectable by spacecraft.

Paul Scott Anderson

December 15, 2023

Does Chiron have rings? Or ring mimics?

A new study suggests that the possible rings around the centaur Chiron in the outer solar system are instead "evolving material" that mimics rings.

Paul Scott Anderson

December 14, 2023

Can haze on water worlds aid in the search for life?

Researchers at Johns Hopkins are simulating haze on water worlds. The haze muddles observations but can also help determine if an exoplanet is habitable.

Paul Scott Anderson

December 11, 2023

Rocky exoplanets can form in the most extreme environments

NASA's James Webb Space Telescope has found molecular building blocks of rocky exoplanets in a region previously thought to be too extreme and hostile.

Paul Scott Anderson

December 7, 2023

1st planet-forming disk found in another galaxy

For the first time, astronomers have discovered a planet-forming disk around a young star in another galaxy outside our own Milky Way galaxy.

Paul Scott Anderson

December 5, 2023

What the Chinese Zhurong rover found beneath Mars’ surface

China's Zhurong rover has found polygonal wedges below the surface in Utopia Planitia on Mars. Freeze-thaw cycles of water and ice likely created the polygons.

Paul Scott Anderson

December 3, 2023

Space Force to track ‘abnormal objects of unknown origin’

The U.S. Space Force wants to track objects near Earth that exhibit 'abnormal observables' and are of 'unknown origin.' Could there be a connection to UAP?

Paul Scott Anderson

November 30, 2023

Nearby exoplanet is Earth twin, but hot as a pizza oven

Astronomers using the Hubble Space Telescope measured the exact diameter of a nearby Earth-sized exoplanet. The sizzling world is too hot for life, however.

Paul Scott Anderson

November 29, 2023

Shrinking exoplanets? Here’s how it happens

Scientists say they may have solved the mystery of shrinking exoplanets. Radiation from the cores of less massive sub-Neptunes pushes away their atmospheres.

Paul Scott Anderson

November 26, 2023

1 / 67

Paul Scott Anderson

Paul Scott Anderson has had a passion for space exploration that began when he was a child when he watched Carl Sagan’s Cosmos. While in school he was known for his passion for space exploration and astronomy. He started his blog The Meridiani Journal in 2005, which was a chronicle of planetary exploration. In 2015, the blog was renamed as Planetaria. While interested in all aspects of space exploration, his primary passion is planetary science. In 2011, he started writing about space on a freelance basis, and now currently writes for AmericaSpace and Futurism (part of Vocal). He has also written for Universe Today and SpaceFlight Insider, and has also been published in The Mars Quarterly and has done supplementary writing for the well-known iOS app Exoplanet for iPhone and iPad.