A new study indicates that a fog that enveloped the Earth for several billion years was similar to that now exists on Saturn’s largest moon, Titan, and could be protected from harmful ultraviolet radiation in early life of planet.

The authors of the study, University of Colorado at Boulder, consider that the cloud was composed mainly of chemical derivatives of methane and nitrogen created by reactions with light. The fog would not only protected from the ultraviolet to the early Earth, but also would have allowed to accumulate as ammonia gas, creating a greenhouse warming that perhaps helped stop the planet from freezing. (more…)

In many respects, the Lake Don Juan, in the Dry Valleys of Antarctica, is one of the most alien of the Earth. The lake is no less than 18 times saltier than the oceans of our world and almost never freezes, even at temperatures of around 40 degrees Celsius below zero.

A team of researchers led by biogeochemical University of Georgia has found a place in the chemical mechanism for production of nitrous oxide, an important greenhouse gas. This mechanism was unknown until now. The most important thing is possibly the discovery could help scholars from Mars to recognize similar salt ponds on the red planet and understand what it implies the presence of such gaps in certain places. (more…)