Titan's Methane Lakes Could Form Bubble-Like Structures Essential to Life, Scientists Say
In a recently published paper in the International Journal of Astrobiology, a team of NASA researchers illustrates how vesicles, small, membrane-bound bubble-like compartments or sacs, could form naturally in the lakes of Titan. Vesicles are thought to play a vital role in the formation of life, an important step in making the precursors of living cells. The paper examines how the conditions for life could evolve in a vastly different environment than Earth, shedding light on our search for extraterrestrial life in the universe.
Titan is the only other world, apart from Earth, that's known to have liquid on its surface. But unlike Earth's bodies of water, Titan's lakes and seas are not recommended for swimming, as they contain liquid hydrocarbons like ethane and methane. Water is crucial to life as we know it—but what if Titan's lakes have what it takes to harbor molecules required for life to evolve?
The paper outlines a process by which stable vesicles might form on Titan based on the data that's been gathered so far about the moon's atmosphere and chemistry. On Earth, molecules known as amphiphiles have a split personality, with a hydrophobic (water-fearing) end and a hydrophilic (water-loving) end. When in water, the molecules naturally organize into ball-like spheres, resembling soap bubbles, whereby the hydrophilic part faces outward to interact with the water while its hydrophobic counterpart shies away on the inside of the sphere. This allows the molecules to form complex structures and may have led to primitive cell membranes in early Earth.
On Titan, these vesicles could form thanks to the moon's complex meteorological cycle, according to the paper. The methane in Titan's atmosphere forms clouds, which rain on the surface to create river channels that fill up the moon's lakes and seas. The liquid on the surface then evaporates to form clouds once again. The researchers behind the new study suggest that spray droplets from the rain and the surface of the sea could be coated in layers of amphiphiles. When the droplets land on the surface of a pond, the two layers of amphiphiles meet to form a double-layered vesicle. Over time, the vesicles would be dispersed throughout the pond and would compete in an evolutionary process that could lead to the formation of primitive protocells.
'The existence of any vesicles on Titan would demonstrate an increase in order and complexity, which are conditions necessary for the origin of life,' Conor Nixon, a researcher at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center and co-author of the new study, said in a statement. 'We're excited about these new ideas because they can open up new directions in Titan research and may change how we search for life on Titan in the future.'
NASA is preparing to launch Dragonfly, the agency's first Titan mission, in July 2028. The rotorcraft lander will explore the surface of Saturn's moon and gather data about its atmosphere and geology. Dragonfly will help scientists better understand the bizarre world where life could form under vastly different conditions.
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8 hours ago
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The asteroid that will spare Earth might hit the moon instead. What happens if it does?
The asteroid known as 2024 YR4 is out of sight yet still very much on scientists' minds. The building-sized object, which initially appeared to be on a potential collision course with Earth, is currently zooming beyond the reach of telescopes on its orbit around the sun. But as scientists wait for it to reappear, its revised trajectory is now drawing attention to another possible target: the moon. Discovered at the end of 2024, the space rock looked at first as if it might hit our planet by December 22, 2032. The chance of that impact changed with every new observation, peaking at 3.1% in February — odds that made it the riskiest asteroid ever observed. Ground- and space-based telescope observations were crucial in helping astronomers narrow in on 2024 YR4's size and orbit. With more precise measurements, researchers were ultimately able to rule out an Earth impact. The latest observations of the asteroid in early June, before YR4 disappeared from view, have improved astronomers' knowledge of where it will be in seven years by almost 20%, according to NASA. That data shows that even with Earth avoiding direct impact, YR4 could still pose a threat in late 2032 by slamming into the moon. The impact would be a once-in-a-lifetime event for humanity to witness — but it could also send fine-grained lunar material hurtling toward our planet. While Earth wouldn't face any significant physical danger should the asteroid strike the moon, there is a chance that any astronauts or infrastructure on the lunar surface at that time could be at risk — as could satellites orbiting our planet that we depend on to keep vital aspects of life, including navigation and communications, running smoothly. Any missions in low-Earth orbit could also be in the pathway of the debris, though the International Space Station is scheduled to be deorbited before any potential impact. Initially, YR4 was seen as a case study in why scientists do the crucial work of planetary defense, discovering and tracking asteroids to determine which ones have a chance of colliding with Earth. Now, astronomers say this one asteroid could redefine the range of risks the field addresses, expanding the purview of the work to include monitoring asteroids that might be headed for the moon as well. 'We're starting to realize that maybe we need to extend that shield a little bit further,' said Dr. Paul Wiegert, a professor of astronomy and physics at the Western University in London, Ontario. 'We now have things worth protecting that are a bit further away from Earth, so our vision is hopefully expanding a little bit to encompass that.' In the meantime, researchers are assessing just how much chaos a potential YR4 lunar impact could create — and whether anything can be done to mitigate it. 'City killer' on the moon The threatening hunk of rock appears as just a speck of light through even the strongest astronomical tools. In reality, YR4 is likely about 60 meters (about 200 feet) in diameter, according to observations in March by the James Webb Space Telescope, the most powerful space-based observatory in operation. 'Size equals energy,' said Julien de Wit, associate professor of planetary sciences at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, who observed YR4 with Webb. 'Knowing YR4's size helped us understand how big of an explosion it could be.' Astronomers believe they have found most of the near-Earth asteroids the field would classify as 'planet killers' — space rocks that are 1 kilometer (0.6 mile) across or larger and could be civilization-ending, said Dr. Andy Rivkin, planetary astronomer from the Johns Hopkins University's Applied Physics Laboratory in Maryland. The planet killer that slammed into Earth 66 million years ago and led to the extinction of dinosaurs was estimated to be roughly 6 miles (about 10 kilometers) in diameter. Smaller asteroids such as YR4, which was colloquially dubbed a 'city killer' after its discovery, could cause regional devastation if they collide with our planet. About 40% of near-Earth space rocks larger than 140 meters (460 feet) but smaller than a kilometer — capable of more widespread destruction — have been identified, according to NASA. But astronomers have never really had a chance to watch a collision of that size occur on the moon in real time, Wiegert said. The latest glimpses of YR4 on June 3 before it passed out of view revealed a 4.3% chance of a YR4 lunar impact — small but decent enough odds for scientists to consider how such a scenario might play out. A striking meteor shower — and a risk Initial calculations suggest the impact has the largest chance of occurring on the near side of the moon — the side we can see from Earth. 'YR4 is so faint and small we were able to measure its position with JWST longer than we were able to do it from the ground,' said Rivkin, who has been leading the Webb study of YR4. 'And that lets us calculate a much more precise orbit for it, so we now have a much better idea of where it will be and won't be.' The collision could create a bright flash that would be visible with the naked eye for several seconds, according to Wiegert, lead author of a recent paper submitted to the American Astronomical Society journals analyzing the potential lunar impact. The collision could create an impact crater on the moon estimated at 1 kilometer wide (0.6 miles wide), Wiegert said — about the size of Meteor Crater in Arizona, Rivkin added. It would be the largest impact on the moon in 5,000 years and could release up to 100 million kilograms (220 million pounds) of lunar rocks and dust, according to the modeling in Wiegert's study. Even pieces of debris that are just tens of centimeters in size could present a hazard for any astronauts who may be present on the moon, or any structures they have built for research and habitation, Wiegert said. The moon has no atmosphere, so the debris from the event could be widespread on the lunar surface, he added. On average, the moon is 238,855 miles (384,400 kilometers) away from Earth, according to NASA. Particles the size of large sand grains, ranging from 0.1 to 10 millimeters in size, of lunar material could reach Earth between a few days and a few months after the asteroid strike because they'll be traveling incredibly fast, creating an intense, eye-catching meteor shower, Wiegert said. 'There's absolutely no danger to anyone on the surface,' Wiegert said. 'We're not expecting large boulders or anything larger than maybe a sugar cube, and our atmosphere will protect us very nicely from that. But they're traveling faster than a speeding bullet, so if they were to hit a satellite, that could cause some damage.' Not all lunar debris that reaches the Earth is so small, and it depends on the angle and type of impact to the moon, according to Washington University in St. Louis. Space rocks slamming into the lunar surface over millions of years have resulted in various sizes of lunar meteorites found on Earth. Preparing for impact Hundreds to thousands of impacts from millimeter-size debris could affect Earth's satellite fleet, meaning satellites could experience up to 10 years' equivalent of meteor debris exposure in a few days, Wiegert said. Humankind depends on vital space infrastructure, said Dan Oltrogge, chief scientist at COMSPOC, a space situational awareness software company that develops solutions for handling hazards such as space debris. 'Space touches almost every aspect of our lives today, ranging from commerce, communications, travel, industry, education, and social media, so a loss of access to and effective use of space presents a serious risk to humanity,' Oltrogge said. The event is unlikely to trigger a Kessler Syndrome scenario in which debris from broken satellites would collide with others to create a domino effect or fall to Earth. Instead, it might be more akin to when a piece of gravel strikes a car windshield at high speed, meaning solar panels or other delicate satellite parts might be damaged, but the satellite will remain in one piece, Wiegert said. While a temporary loss of communication and navigation from satellites would create widespread difficulties on Earth, Wiegert said he believes the potential impact is something for satellite operators, rather than the public, to worry about. Protecting Earth and the moon Scientists and astronomers around the world are thinking about the possible scenarios since they could not rule out a lunar impact before YR4 disappeared from view, Wiegert said. 'We realize that an impact to the moon could be consequential, so what would we do?' de Wit said. A potential planetary defense plan might be clearer if the asteroid were headed straight for Earth. Rivkin helped test one approach in September 2022 as the principal investigator of NASA's Double Asteroid Redirection Test, or DART, which intentionally slammed a spacecraft into the asteroid Dimorphos in September 2022. Dimorphos is a moonlet asteroid that orbits a larger parent asteroid known as Didymos. Neither poses a threat to Earth, but the double-asteroid system was a perfect target to test deflection technology because Dimorphos' size is comparable to asteroids that could harm our planet in the event of an impact. The DART mission crashed a spacecraft into the asteroid at 13,645 miles per hour (6 kilometers per second) to find out whether such a kinetic impact would be enough to change the motion of a celestial object in space. It worked. Since the day of the collision, data from ground-based telescopes has revealed that the DART spacecraft did alter Dimorphos' orbital period — or how long it takes to make a single revolution around Didymos — by about 32 or 33 minutes. And scientists have continued to observe additional changes to the pair, including how the direct hit likely deformed Dimorphos due to the asteroid's composition. Similarly, if YR4 strikes the moon and doesn't result in damaging effects for satellites, it could create a tremendous opportunity for researchers to learn how the lunar surface responds to impacts, Wiegert said. But whether it would make sense to send a DART-like mission to knock YR4 off a collision course with the moon remains to be seen. It will depend on future risk assessments by planetary defense groups when the asteroid comes back into view around 2028, de Wit said. Though defense plans for a potential moon impact still aren't clear, YR4's journey underscores the importance — and the challenges — of tracking objects that are often impossible to see. Hidden threats YR4 was detected by the Asteroid Terrestrial-impact Last Alert System, or ATLAS telescope, in Río Hurtado, Chile, two days after the asteroid had already made its closest pass by Earth, hidden by the bright glare of the sun as it approached our planet. The same thing occurred when an asteroid measuring roughly 20 meters (about 65 feet) across hit the atmosphere and exploded above Chelyabinsk, Russia, on February 15, 2013, damaging thousands of buildings, according to the European Space Agency. While no one died, about 1,500 people were injured when the windows in homes and businesses blew out due to the shock wave. Trying to observe asteroids is challenging for many reasons, Rivkin said. Asteroids are incredibly faint and hard to see because rather than emitting their own light, they only reflect sunlight. And because of their relatively tiny size, interpreting observations is not a clear-cut process like looking through a telescope at a planet such as Mars or Jupiter. 'For asteroids, we only see them as a point of light, and so by measuring how bright they are and measuring their temperature, basically we can get a size based on how big do they have to be in order to be this bright,' Rivkin said. For decades, astronomers have had to search for faint asteroids by night, which means missing any that may be on a path coming from the direction of the sun — creating the world's biggest blind spot for ground-based telescopes that can't block out our star's luminosity. But upcoming telescopes — including NASA's NEO Surveyor expected to launch by the end of 2027 and the European Space Agency's Near-Earth Object Mission in the InfraRed, or NEOMIR satellite, set for liftoff in the early 2030s — could shrink that blind spot, helping researchers detect asteroids much closer to the sun. 'NEOMIR would have detected asteroid 2024 YR4 about a month earlier than ground-based telescopes did,' said Richard Moissl, head of ESA's Planetary Defence Office, in a statement. 'This would have given astronomers more time to study the asteroid's trajectory and allowed them to much sooner rule out any chance of Earth impact in 2032.' NASA and other space agencies are constantly on the lookout for potentially hazardous asteroids, defined as such based on their distance from Earth and ability to cause significant damage should an impact occur. Asteroids that can't get any closer to our planet than one-twentieth of Earth's distance from the sun are not considered to be potentially hazardous asteroids, according to NASA. When the new Vera C. Rubin Observatory, located in the Andes in Chile, released its first stunning images of the cosmos in June, researchers revealed the discovery of more than 2,100 previously unknown asteroids after seven nights of those newly detected space rocks, seven were near-Earth objects. A near-Earth object is an asteroid or comet on an orbit that brings it within 120 million miles (about 190 million kilometers) of the sun, which means it has the potential to pass near Earth, according to NASA. None of the new ones detected by Rubin were determined to pose a threat to our planet. Rubin will act as a great asteroid hunter, de Wit said, while telescopes such as Webb could be a tracker that follow up on Rubin's discoveries. A proposal by Rivkin and de Wit to use Webb to observe YR4 in the spring of 2026 has just been approved. Webb is the only telescope with a chance of glimpsing the asteroid before 2028. 'This newly approved program will buy decision makers two extra years to prepare — though most likely to relax, as there is an 80% chance of ruling out impact — while providing key experience-based lessons for handling future potential impactors to be discovered by Vera Rubin,' de Wit said. And because of the twists and turns of YR4's tale thus far, asteroids that have potential to affect the moon could become objects of even more intense study in the future. 'If this really is a thing that we only have to worry about every 5,000 years or something, then maybe that's less pressing,' Rivkin said. 'But even just asking what would we do if we did see something that was going to hit the moon is at least something that we can now start thinking about.' Sign up for CNN's Wonder Theory science newsletter. Explore the universe with news on fascinating discoveries, scientific advancements and more.
CNN
13 hours ago
- CNN
Start your week smart: NASA's future, Starvation in Gaza, Stabbing incident, Extreme heat risk, Swimming showdown
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President Donald Trump appointed US Secretary of Transportation Sean Duffy as interim NASA administrator to replace Janet Petro, a longtime agency employee. That came after the nomination of tech billionaire Jared Isaacman to lead NASA was rescinded. Some scientists are criticizing the agency as the Trump administration tries to dismantle the NASA Goddard Institute for Space Studies, one of the country's top climate labs. Employees are working remotely after their New York City office was shut down. Back in March, NASA astronauts Suni Williams and Butch Wilmore returned to Earth after gaining international attention as their short trip to space stretched into a saga lasting more than nine months. It's an example of how quickly things can go sideways. Meanwhile, leaks have plagued the International Space Station. 📸 In photos: Astronaut Don Pettit captures unique views of the cosmos. Take a look. 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In an update in April, the IMF said forecasts for global growth had been revised markedly down compared with its January update, reflecting effective tariff rates at levels not seen in a century. The Federal Reserve is set to conclude its fifth interest rate meeting since President Donald Trump returned to office in January, with policymakers expected to hold rates steady once again. The decision is likely to draw sharp criticism from Trump, who has repeatedly clashed with Fed Chair Jerome Powell over the bank's refusal to cut rates. Tension between the two was evident last week during a tour of the Fed's $2.5 billion headquarters renovation, a project the Trump administration has used to intensify pressure on Powell. 📹 Watch this awkward exchange between Powell and the president. The National Transportation Safety Board will begin a three-day public hearing to investigate the January 29 mid-air collision between a regional jet and an Army helicopter over the Potomac River near Washington, DC, that killed 67 people. President Trump's so-called reciprocal tariffs are set to go into effect on August 1 after a 90-day delay, impacting multiple countries, including Mexico, Canada and the European Union. If Trump's proposed duties of 30% do kick in, Americans could wind up paying more for everything from produce to medical equipment, electronics and alcohol. It's also the day we get the monthly jobs report for July. In this episode of the 'One Thing' podcast, CNN's David Rind speaks to science journalist Jane C. Hu about why Republicans are increasingly open to the purported healing properties of psychedelics. Listen here. Prev Next 📸 Check out more images curated by the CNN Photo team. The Tour de France, which began on July 5, wraps up today in Paris. After more than 2,000 miles of racing, riders will make their way down the Champs-Élysées to the finish line. (TK look for a London write) The World Aquatics Championships kick off today in Singapore, and all eyes will be on the high-stakes showdown between swimming legend Katie Ledecky and Canadian phenom Summer McIntosh. Ledecky, 28, boasts nine Olympic golds and 21 world titles, while 18-year-old McIntosh arrives with four Olympic medals and three world records set just last month. 📹 Hear how Ledecky is preparing to face her fiercest challenger yet. And the World Dog Surfing Championships are Saturday at Linda Mar Beach in Pacifica, California. What began as the short-lived TV comedy series 'Police Squad!' in the early 1980s got a second life as 'The Naked Gun' series of movies starring Leslie Nielsen and George Kennedy. Now, more than 30 years after 1994's 'The Naked Gun 33 1/3: The Final Insult,' a reboot starring Liam Neeson and Pamela Anderson arrives on the big screen this Friday. Will it be riddled with moronic jokes, toilet humor and sight gags, just like its predecessors? Let's hope so! 🧠 Take CNN's weekly news quiz to see how much you remember from the week that was! So far, 5.4% of fellow quiz fans have gotten eight or more questions right. How will you fare? Heavy metal icon and reality TV star Ozzy Osbourne passed away last week at the age of 76. Rest in peace, Prince of Darkness. (Click here to view) Today's edition of 5 Things Sunday was edited and produced by CNN's Tricia Escobedo.
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14 hours ago
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Scientists may have solved a chemistry mystery about Jupiter's ocean moon Europa
When you buy through links on our articles, Future and its syndication partners may earn a commission. A long-standing mystery about the presence of hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) on Jupiter's icy ocean moon Europa may be closer to being solved. Hydrogen peroxide forms as a byproduct when energetic particles break apart water molecules, leading to the recombination of OH radicals — highly reactive molecules with unpaired electrons. H2O2 was first observed on Europa by the Galileo Near Infrared Mapping Spectrometer, a scientific instrument aboard NASA's Galileo Jupiter orbiter that was designed to study the composition and surface features of the gas giant's moons and atmosphere using infrared light. Later, the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) noticed elevated levels of hydrogen peroxide in unexpected areas on the Jovian satellite. Lab studies predicted that higher concentrations of hydrogen peroxide would be found in Europa's colder polar regions — but JWST observations showed the opposite, detecting higher levels in the moon's warmer equatorial regions. These areas, known as chaos terrains, are marked by broken blocks of surface ice that appear to have shifted, drifted and refrozen. "Europa's peroxide distribution does not follow the temperature dependence predicted for pure water ice," wrote the team in their paper. Lab studies consistently show that colder ice has more H2O2, while warmer ice has less. In a new study, scientists report that they have noticed higher levels of carbon dioxide (CO2) in the chaos terrains alongside elevated levels of H2O2. This is probably the result of CO2 escaping Europa's subsurface ocean through cracks in the ice, the researchers say. The team therefore wondered if the presence of CO2 might be changing the ice's chemistry. "Could the presence of CO2 drive the enhanced peroxide production in Europa's chaos regions, signaling a surface composition more conducive to the formation of this radiolytic oxidant?" they wrote in their paper. "Supporting this hypothesis are preliminary experiments on irradiated H2O-CO2 ice mixtures that show increased H2O2 yields compared to pure water ice." To find a definitive answer, they "simulated the surface environment of Europa inside a vacuum chamber by depositing water ice mixed with CO2," Bereket Mamo, a graduate student at The University of Texas at San Antonio and a contractor with the Southwest Research Institute, said in a statement. "We then irradiated this ice mixture with energetic electrons to see how the peroxide production changed." The experiment confirmed what the team had suspected: Even small amounts of CO2 in water ice can greatly boost hydrogen peroxide production at temperatures similar to those on Europa's surface, helping to explain the unexpected JWST observations. This occurs because CO2 molecules behave as "molecular scavengers," grabbing hold of any stray electrons produced when radiation hits the water ice. By capturing these electrons, the CO2 helps protect hydrogen peroxide from being broken apart by further impacts or reactions. Related Stories: — Europa: A guide to Jupiter's icy ocean moon — 'Chaos' reigns beneath the ice of Jupiter moon Europa, James Webb Space Telescope reveals — Europa Clipper: A complete guide to NASA's astrobiology mission "Synthesis of oxidants like hydrogen peroxide on Europa's surface is important from an astrobiological point of view," said study co-author Richard Cartwright, from the Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory. "In fact, an entire NASA mission, the Europa Clipper, is en route to the Jovian system right now to explore the icy moon and help us understand Europa's habitability. "Our experiments provide clues to better understand JWST Europa observations and serve as a prelude to upcoming close-range investigations by Europa Clipper and ESA's [the European Space Agency] JUICE spacecraft," Cartwright added. The new study was published in the Planetary Science Journal on Monday (July 21). Solve the daily Crossword
