Tag

Isotopes

All articles tagged with #isotopes

astronomy4 days ago•8 min saved

Isotopes Trace Interstellar Visitor 3I/ATLAS to Ancient, Metal-Poor Disk

Astronomers using ESO's Very Large Telescope measured carbon and nitrogen isotope ratios in the interstellar comet 3I/ATLAS, finding carbon-12/carbon-13 ~151 and nitrogen-14/nitrogen-15 ~363. These values are higher than typical solar-system comets, suggesting formation in the cold outer disk around an older, metal-poor star, consistent with isotope-selective chemistry in such environments. The results, published online July 6, 2026 in Nature Astronomy, provide a rare glimpse into material from another planetary system and the efficiency of planetesimal formation around ancient stars.

via Sci.News|

#3iatlas #astronomy #interstellar-object

science4 days ago•4 min saved

Ancient interstellar traveler: 3I/ATLAS likely formed around an ancient star

Scientists using the VLT measured carbon and nitrogen isotopic ratios in cyanide around interstellar comet 3I/ATLAS and conclude it formed in the outer regions of an old, low-metallicity star system—likely much older than the Sun—making it one of the Galaxy’s oldest known objects; future observations with the ELT will study more interstellar visitors.

via BBC Sky at Night Magazine|

#3iatlas #comet #interstellar

space4 days ago•104 min saved

Interstellar Comet 3I/ATLAS Carries Fossil Clues From a Distant Disk

New isotope measurements from JWST and the VLT corroborate that interstellar comet 3I/ATLAS formed billions of years ago far from its parent star, likely in the outer regions of a protoplanetary disk (akin to a Kuiper belt) and was later ejected into interstellar space. Its carbon-12 to carbon-13 and nitrogen-14 to nitrogen-15 ratios differ markedly from solar-system comets, suggesting a birth environment and chemistry unlike our own. The findings were published in Nature Astronomy.

via Space|

#3iatlas #interstellar #isotopes

science-and-tech17 days ago•23 min saved

Interstellar Comet 3I/ATLAS Points to a Cosmos Older Than the Solar System

New observations of interstellar comet 3I/ATLAS from JWST and other telescopes confirm its interstellar origin and reveal chemical fingerprints—a red, cosmic-ray–processed surface; unusually high deuterium abundance and a carbon-12 to carbon-13 ratio far lower than Solar System values—that point to formation in a cold, primitive environment long before our Solar System, making 3I/ATLAS billions of years older than the Sun; its orbit alone cannot determine its age.

via Big Think|

#astronomy #comets #deuterium

science18 days ago•46 min saved

Ancient Interstellar Comet 3I/ATLAS Traces a 12-Billion-Year-Old Planetary System

Isotopic analysis of the interstellar comet 3I/ATLAS suggests it formed in a cold environment about 12 billion years ago, making it older than our Solar System and a preserved fragment of an ancient planetary system; unusual isotope ratios (including deuterium) point to a distant, metal-poor birth environment, and SETI scans found no signs of alien technology.

via Yahoo|

#3iatlas #deuterium #interstellar-object

space19 days ago•3 min saved

Ancient Interstellar Visitor 3I/Atlas May Be the Solar System’s Oldest Object

Astronomers say the interstellar comet 3I/Atlas could be as old as 12 billion years, potentially the oldest object observed in our solar system. Isotopic data from the JWST and ALMA show an unusually high deuterium content and formation in an extremely cold environment, suggesting an origin outside the solar system; NASA says there’s no evidence of extraterrestrial technology. Future observations with the Rubin Observatory are expected to reveal more interstellar visitors.

via The Guardian|

#astronomy #comets #interstellar-objects

science-space22 days ago•4 min saved

Mars meteorite reveals rare garnet, a mineral clue to ancient Martian geology

Scientists analyzing the Martian meteorite NWA 8171 identified a new garnet-bearing rock type, a mineral not previously detected on Mars; the rock could reflect metamorphic processes from impacts or magmatic activity, offering a window into Mars's ancient geology. Isotopic analyses are planned to confirm whether the garnet formed on Mars or was delivered by an exotic meteorite.

via BBC Sky at Night Magazine|

#garnet #geology #isotopes

science1 month ago•6 min saved

Alaska Fossil Mix-Up: Whale Bones Misidentified as Mammoths for 70 Years

Fossils housed for decades at the University of Alaska Museum of the North were long labeled as woolly mammoths, but new radiocarbon dating and isotope analyses show they are two whales (likely a Northern Pacific right whale and a common minke whale) dating to about 2,000–3,000 years ago, far younger than mammoths. Mitochondrial DNA confirmed whale identity. How they ended up inland remains unclear, with hypotheses including inland whale incursions, transport by ancient humans, or a museum mix-up; the study concludes the specimens are not mammoths.

via ScienceAlert|

#isotopes #mammoth #paleontology

science2 months ago•37 min saved

Earth's Inner-Solar-System Roots: New Study Maps Our Planet's Origins

New isotopic analyses of meteorites and early Earth rocks indicate Earth formed predominantly from material from the inner Solar System, with Jupiter’s gravity acting as a barrier that limited outer-Solar-System material; the planet’s overall isotopic composition is homogeneous, while water (and some carbon) likely arrived later from outer-body sources.

via Yahoo|

#earth-origin #inner-solar-system #isotopes

space3 months ago•77 min saved

Ancient interstellar visitor 3I/ATLAS could be a 10–12 billion-year relic from the Milky Way

New JWST/NIRSpec analysis of interstellar comet 3I/ATLAS finds an unusually low carbon-13 to carbon-12 ratio and significant deuterium enrichment, implying it formed very early in the Milky Way’s history. Modeling suggests 3I/ATLAS may be 10–12 billion years old, potentially originating from a thick-disk star system, making it one of the oldest interstellar visitors and perhaps a relic from a vanished stellar neighborhood. The age estimate is not yet peer‑reviewed and is available via a preprint, with researchers noting ongoing uncertainty but tantalizing clues about ancient planet formation beyond our galaxy.

via Space|

#3iatlas #carbon-12-to-carbon-13 #deuterium

science3 months ago•7 min saved

Ancient Horsetail Water Reveals Meteorite-Like Isotope Signature

Scientists studying water moving through the 400-million-year-old Equisetum horsetail found an extreme oxygen-isotope signature never observed in terrestrial samples, suggesting evaporation-driven isotope enrichment and prompting a rethink of how fossil phytoliths are used to reconstruct ancient climates.

via Indian Defence Review|

#climate-history #horsetail #isotopes

science3 months ago•25 min saved

Desert Horsetail's Water Distillation Mimics Meteorite Signatures, Revealing Ancient Climate Records

A study led by Zachary Sharp shows the prehistoric smooth horsetail (Equisetum laevigatum) distills water so aggressively that its top-water oxygen-isotope signature resembles a meteorite, helping explain puzzling desert data. The researchers also show fossil phytoliths trap these integrated isotopic records, providing a sensitive palaeo-hygrometer to reconstruct Earth’s past humidity and climate millions of years ago, aided by a refined evaporation–isotope model; findings published in PNAS (2025).

via ZME Science|

#horsetail #isotopes #meteorite

space4 months ago•69 min saved

JWST Finds Interstellar Comet 3I/ATLAS May Be Among the Galaxy’s Oldest Objects

James Webb Space Telescope analysis of interstellar comet 3I/ATLAS suggests it formed in a cold region of the Milky Way about 10–12 billion years ago, potentially making it older than Earth and possibly as old as the galaxy or even the universe. Its isotopic composition differs from solar-system comets, implying formation in a different stellar environment. The comet is now exiting the solar system after a close approach to Earth, with further travels past the outer planets as researchers continue to refine its origins.

via Live Science|

#3iatlas #interstellar-comet #isotopes

science4 months ago•4 min saved

Bennu’s Amino Acids Point to Ice-Driven Origins of Life’s Building Blocks

NASA’s OSIRIS-REx samples from the 4.6-billion-year-old asteroid Bennu reveal amino acids, including glycine, can form in space and may arise in icy, radiation-exposed conditions in the early Solar System rather than only in liquid water; this suggests multiple pathways for the building blocks of life and shows Bennu’s isotopic signatures differ from the Murchison meteorite, indicating diverse origins for prebiotic molecules.

via Universe Today|

#amino-acids #bennu #glycine

science5 months ago•6 min saved

Two-Tier Rituals Mark Europe’s Earliest Wars, Neolithic Study Finds

A multi-isotope analysis of Neolithic mass graves in Alsace, France, suggests Europe’s earliest violent encounters were deliberate rituals: local enemies were dismembered as trophies, while captives from farther regions were executed in public displays, indicating violence served political theater to assert dominance and shape group identity.

via ScienceDaily|

#archaeology #europe #isotopes