The impact of impacts

Space Snapshot

Here’s a brand new view of the seventh planet. JWST captured this image of the vertical structure of Uranus’s ionosphere, the region where the ice giant’s upper atmosphere interacts strongly with its magnetic field. The data captured in this image will help scientists study where Uranus’ auroras form, how the magnetic field influences them, and why the planet’s atmosphere has continued to cool since the 1990s. Image credit: ESA/Webb et al.

Fact Worth Sharing

Uranus’ magnetosphere is tilted and offset from the planet’s rotation axis. That axis is, itself, tilted sideways compared to all other planets. One possible explanation for Uranus’ sideways rotation is a significant collision with a large object early in the planet’s formation.

Mission Briefings

Titan could have formed through a dramatic collision. New analysis of Cassini data suggests that Saturn's largest moon could have formed when two moons collided — an event that may also have resulted in the formation of Saturn’s rings. Pictured: A view of Titan and Saturn showing its thin rings edge-on, captured by NASA’s Cassini spacecraft. Image credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/SSI/Val Klavans.

The Artemis II launch won’t take place in March. The mission to send a crew of four astronauts around the Moon and back is facing a delay because of an issue with the flow of helium to the Space Launch System rocket’s upper stage. The rocket was rolled back from the launch pad this week to begin diagnosis and repair of the helium issue.

ESA’s Ramses Apophis mission is moving forward. The European Space Agency has officially approved the Rapid Apophis Mission for Space Safety (RAMSES). The mission will launch in 2028 from the Tanegashima Space Center in Japan to rendezvous with and explore asteroid Apophis just before its close encounter with Earth in April 2029. Japan is also contributing a thermal imaging instrument and solar arrays to the mission.

From The Planetary Society

An ancient impact may have briefly made Umbriel cryovolcanic. Uranus’ dark, heavily cratered moon Umbriel has long been considered geologically inactive. But a new study suggests it may have experienced a period of cryovolcanic activity — perhaps the result of a massive impact. Adeene Denton, lead author on the study, joins this week’s Planetary Radio to discuss the findings and what it means for the Uranus system. Pictured: A mosaic of images of Uranus and several of its moons. Image credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech.

Catch up on The Planetary Society Book Club. On Thursday, March 5, book club members will be joined by Sir Peter Beck, founder and CEO of Rocket Lab, for a live virtual discussion of his book “The Launch of Rocket Lab.” And last week, the Book Club Edition of Planetary Radio featured a conversation with Planetary Society Chief Scientist Bruce Betts about his latest batch of kids’ books about space.

What is a planetary alignment? This month, stargazers have enjoyed a parade of planets in the night sky. Our guide to planetary alignments explains why these line-ups happen, the different kinds you might hear about, and how to enjoy them.

What's Up

The parade of planets continues this week, with several visible planets in the early evening sky: Jupiter shining very bright in the east with Uranus nearby (visible through binoculars or a telescope); Mercury and Venus very low to the western horizon; and Saturn shining bright higher up with Neptune nearby (requires a telescope). On March 2-3, a total lunar eclipse will be visible in North America, South America, and portions of Europe, Asia, and Australia.

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Wow of the Week

Impacts are what made the Solar System — and Earth — what it is today. This image is a still from a simulation of the massive collision between early Earth and a Mars-size world, which scientists believe occurred about 4.5 billion years ago. The immediate aftermath of that impact appears chaotic here, but the end result was the formation of the Moon. Image credit: NASA's Ames Research Center.

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