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Mars-like exoplanets orbiting M-dwarfs could lose their atmospheres in just millions of years.
Top 15 Space & Astronomy Stories
- Mars-like Worlds Near M-Dwarfs May Lose Air • 28 March 2026 • Universe Today
- Artemis 2 Astronauts Arrive at KSC • 28 March 2026 • SpaceNews
- NASA Selects Intuitive Machines for Artemis CLPS Delivery • 28 March 2026 • NASA
- Erik Richards: I Am Artemis • 28 March 2026 • NASA
- ESA to Decide by June on Gateway Contributions • 28 March 2026 • SpaceNews
- NASA Tech and Science Headed to Low Earth Orbit • 28 March 2026 • NASA
- NASA Names Lunar South Pole Science Team • 28 March 2026 • NASA
- NISAR Captures Mount Rainier from Orbit • 28 March 2026 • NASA
- Hunting Moon Water With Neutrons • 28 March 2026 • Universe Today
- Saturn's Rings May Come from a Shattered Moon • 28 March 2026 • Space.com
- Signal from Before the Stars Detected by LIGO • 28 March 2026 • Universe Today
- Fireball Sightings Surge Across the US • 28 March 2026 • Space.com
- Commercial Space Federation Welcomes Two New Members • 28 March 2026 • SpaceNews
New modelling shows how a Mars-like exoplanet orbiting Barnard's star would lose its atmosphere through atmospheric escape processes.
The work highlights why atmospheric retention must be considered alongside liquid water and the habitable zone when assessing Earth-like worlds.
Source: universetoday.com
The four Artemis 2 crew members reached Kennedy Space Center on 27 March for final preparations ahead of a possible 1 April launch.
Their arrival marks the final stretch before NASA's first crewed flight around the Moon in the Orion spacecraft.
Source: spacenews.com
Intuitive Machines of Houston received a $180.4 million contract to deliver seven payloads, five of them NASA-funded, to the lunar surface.
The mission will improve understanding of the Moon's chemical composition as part of the Commercial Lunar Payload Services initiative.
Source: nasa.gov
Near Space Network Mission Manager Erik Richards supports Artemis 2 communications, drawing on experience from Antarctica to space missions.
His story shows how decades of spacecraft communication expertise enable the upcoming crewed lunar flyby.
Source: nasa.gov
Following NASA's decision to halt work on the lunar-orbiting Gateway station, ESA must redefine its contributions by June.
The outcome will shape Europe's role in future Artemis lunar ambitions.
Source: spacenews.com
Multiple technology and science demonstrations will fly aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 on the Transporter-16 rideshare mission.
The payloads will test thermal protection systems, improve in-space communications, and study Earth's atmosphere.
Source: nasa.gov
Ten participating scientists were selected to help shape the Artemis lunar surface science plan at the south pole.
Their work will guide instrument deployment, site observations, and Moon rock collection by future astronauts.
Source: science.nasa.gov
The U.S.-Indian NISAR satellite imaged Washington's Mount Rainier on 10 November 2025 using its L-band SAR instrument.
The radar can see through clouds, demonstrating its value for monitoring surface changes in the Pacific Northwest.
Source: science.nasa.gov
NASA is preparing a neutron-based instrument that can detect ice deposits up to three feet underground without digging.
Finding accessible water near the lunar south pole is essential for turning temporary visits into a sustained human presence.
Source: universetoday.com
New simulations strengthen the case that Saturn's rings formed from debris of a lost moon named Chrysalis.
The model also offers explanations for the planet's current tilt and the surprisingly young age of its rings.
Source: space.com
LIGO recorded a gravitational wave on 12 November 2025 from an object smaller than the Sun, possibly a primordial black hole.
Two astrophysicists now propose an explanation that could help solve deep questions about the early universe.
Source: universetoday.com
Bright meteors have been reported over Ohio, Texas, and parts of Europe in recent weeks.
The increase appears driven more by greater public reporting than by any actual rise in meteor activity.
Source: space.com
The Commercial Space Federation added Astrolab and Zeno Power as associate members on 27 March.
The companies are advancing planetary mobility and reliable power systems for extreme environments.
Source: spacenews.com
Cosmic Spotlight
Mars-like worlds near M-dwarfs may lose their atmospheres in just millions of years. The modelling focused on a planet similar in colour and size to Mars orbiting Barnard's star, the closest single star to the Sun. Researchers simulated how stellar wind and radiation from the cool red dwarf would strip away the atmosphere over time. This process, well studied on our own Mars, becomes even more aggressive around smaller, active M-dwarfs. The findings remind us that simply being in the habitable zone is not enough if the air cannot stick around long enough for life to take hold. It adds an important new filter when we evaluate promising exoplanets discovered by current and future telescopes.
What atmospheric escape process surprises you most?
Cosmic Deep Dive: Atmospheric Escape on Exoplanets
If you scaled our Sun to the size of a grapefruit, an M-dwarf like Barnard's star would be a cherry tomato — yet it can strip atmospheres far more effectively than our larger, calmer star.
Here's what actually happens: high-energy ultraviolet and X-ray photons from the red dwarf slam into the upper atmosphere of a Mars-sized world, heating the gas until individual molecules reach escape velocity and leak away into space. Stellar wind particles then act like a cosmic sandblaster, physically knocking atoms off the planet.
On Earth we lose only a few kilograms of hydrogen per second, but around an active M-dwarf that rate can jump dramatically because the star's magnetic activity stays high for billions of years.
A teaspoon of the dense plasma in these stellar winds moves at hundreds of kilometres per second, carrying enough momentum to erode thick atmospheres in geological eyeblinks — sometimes just tens of millions of years.
We can watch this process today on hot Jupiters and a few rocky worlds using telescopes that measure escaping hydrogen and heavier elements during transits.
Yet one mystery remains: why do some small planets around M-dwarfs seem to keep thin atmospheres while others go completely bare, even though they orbit at similar distances?
Today's stories show how quickly the lunar return is accelerating while we keep learning what makes a planet truly habitable. Clear skies and good seeing.