Frank Herbert’s Dune is an epic science fiction story with an ecological message at its core. The novels and films are set on the desert planet Arrakis, which several characters dream of transforming into a greener world – just as some imagine Mars today. We examined Arrakis using a climate model, a computer program similar … Read more
Astronomers have discovered that a small moon of Saturn, called Mimas, may harbor a hidden liquid ocean beneath its thick icy shell and thus have the conditions for habitability. This shocking finding radically changes the definition of what an ocean moon can be, and could ultimately redefine our search for extraterrestrial life on moons in … Read more
When it comes to detecting the presence of liquid water on planets outside the solar system, and thus the conditions necessary for life, the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) may want to look for what’s missing rather than what is is. This is what that means. A team of researchers, including scientists from the Massachusetts … Read more