People frequently ask, “Which planet is closest to Earth in size?” Unfortunately, the answer lies within how distance is measured. Kepler-452b, located 1,194 light years from Earth, is approximately 60% larger than Earth and orbits within its host star’s habitable zone, giving researchers reason to believe there’s an excellent chance it could support life. Venus…
Saturn’s rings are one of the most mesmerizing sights in our solar system, yet they won’t last forever. Scientists have long known that its icy rings are slowly sinking into its upper atmosphere – this process is known as “ring rain”, and every second enough water evaporates from these particles to fill an Olympic-sized swimming…
Many people inquire, “Which planet is closest to earth?” Unfortunately, the answer can never be simple as planets always move in their elliptical orbits and may come closer at different times than expected – generally Venus or Mars come closest at any given time. But Mercury, with the smallest orbit among all planets, never drifts…
Mars, located four planets from the Sun and second in size behind Mercury in our solar system, is an icy desert planet approximately half as big as Earth. Mars has less mass, leading to less gravity pull; therefore, you would weigh approximately 38 percent as much on Mars than you would on Earth. Mass Mars,…
People generally know the sky is blue, yet few understand its fascinating science behind this optical effect. Color results from waves passing through an object being reflected, refracted or scattered back onto itself with some frequencies being absorbed while others pass right through. Lord Rayleigh first noted that atmospheric particles scatter blue light more strongly…
Cheetahs, like other African big cats, are carnivorous predators that prey upon smaller- to medium-size mammals such as gazelles, impalas, hares and wildebeest calves. These hunters rely solely on sight and are diurnal hunters who tend to prefer early morning or evening hunting sessions. They frequently scan termite mounds and kopjes (small rocky hills) in…
Mercury and Venus are the innermost planets and often appear before or after the Sun in the sky, shining brightly due to their thick atmospheres. Venus suffers because its solar energy is quickly converted to heat that radiates back out as light, making escape difficult. Furthermore, there are few old craters and no evidence of…
Starfish don’t possess brains or blood; rather, they rely on an advanced water vascular system which uses filtered seawater to transport nutrients to their nervous systems and supply nourishment to them. These predators feed on creatures such as injured fish, oysters, clams and sand dollars – though it has also been noted they eat each…
Mars, known by many to be red planet, contains two potato-shaped moons known as Phobos and Deimos that may have been captured from an asteroid belt by Mars’ gravity. Furthermore, this world features thin atmosphere that may not support life forms. Urdu poetry boasts some beautiful names for our planets in our solar system. Here…
