Last year, astronomers detected the Near-Earth Asteroid (NEA) 2024 YR4 that orbits the Sun every four years and periodically crosses Earth’s orbit. The nature of its orbit makes it a Potentially Hazardous Object (PHO), meaning it could pose a collision risk with Earth someday. Recently, refined estimates of its orbit have ruled out the possibility … Read more
Time to breathe a sigh of relief. The asteroid that once posed the greatest impact risk to Earth in recorded history now has an effective 0% chance of striking our planet. The probability of asteroid 2024 YR4 hitting Earth was reduced to zero thanks to new data collected on Sunday, Feb. 23. Discovered in Dec. … Read more
EarthSky’s Kelly Kizer Whitt said, “In January 2025, I was hiking in Haleakala National Park in Hawaii when I saw my 1st and 2nd-ever fogbows.” A fogbow is also a white rainbow or ghost rainbow. Watch Kelly’s video here or on YouTube. A fogbow, or white rainbow Have you ever seen a white rainbow? These … Read more
Image via James Lee/ Pexels. The secretary bird is a fascinating mix of elegance and executioner. This bird, sporting a delicate crown of feathers, has long slender legs that it uses as weapons to stomp snakes to death. Secretary birds can deliver blows to snakes faster than the blink of an eye, quite literally! The … Read more
The movement of massive glaciers during global ice ages contributed to the rise of complex life, new research reveals. By analysing zircon crystals in ancient rocks, geologists found that as glaciers flowed across the Earth’s surface, they carved deep into the crust and released key minerals from below. These minerals were later flushed out to … Read more
Meet the wooly devil. Staff members recently discovered this new plant species inside Big Bend National Park in Texas. Image via NPS/ D. Manley. New plant species: Wooly devil Big Bend National Park in southwest Texas is home to more than 1,200 species of plants. And now you can add one more to that list. … Read more
The concept of the “great filter” to explain why so far we seem to be alone in the universe is based on erroneous assumptions, according to a new model that describes how life on Earth evolved in step with changing geobiological conditions rather than through a series of improbable events. “We’re arguing that intelligent life … Read more
View larger. | A new theory proposes that humanity – and other analogous forms of intelligent life in the universe – might not be as extraordinary or improbable as previously thought. Instead, we might represent the probable outcome of biological and planetary evolution. The new theory challenges the decades-old hard steps” theory of human evolution. … Read more
The asteroid 2024 YR4 (like the one shown in this artist’s concept) are dim in visible light, but the infrared light it gives off means the James Webb Space Telescope will be a powerful tool to study it. NASA/JPL-Caltech In December, the Asteroid Terrestrial-impact Last Alert System (ATLAS), located in Chile, identified an asteroid they … Read more
View larger. | Here’s a view of Earth on September 21, 2005, showing the entire region of Antarctica with land ice and its seasonal sea ice. A new study shows that Earth’s ice caps are a rare event in the planet’s history. Image via Andrzej 22/ Wikimedia Commons/ NASA (Public domain). Earth has two ice … Read more