Latest Atmospheric escape Stories

Space physicists from the University of Leicester are part of an international team that has identified the impact of the Sun on Mars' atmosphere.Writing in the AGU journal Geophysics Research Letters, the scientists report that Mars is constantly losing part of its atmosphere to space.The new study shows that pressure from solar wind pulses is a significant contributor to Mars's atmospheric escape.The researchers analyzed solar wind data and satellite observations that track the flux of...

Using two ESA spacecraft, planetary scientists are watching the atmospheres of Mars and Venus being stripped away into space. The simultaneous observations by Mars Express and Venus Express give scientists the data they need to investigate the evolution of the two planets' atmospheres.Scientists call this work comparative planetology. Mars Express and Venus Express are so good at it because they carry very similar science instruments. In the case of the Analyser of Space Plasmas and Energetic...

On April 20, 2006, after its first 9-day, elongated orbit around Venus, ESA's Venus Express started to get closer to the planet, until it reached its final 24-hour long orbit on May 7th. During this time, and up to today, the spacecraft has been working relentlessly: the new data coming in are already providing first glimpses on planetary features never seen before.If taking the first ever clear images of the double-eye vortex at Venus' south pole - imaged by Venus Express during its very...