The Open University

International scientists discover a pair of dancing planets

2 July 2020

An international team of scientists, including Professor Carole Haswell and Dr Ulrich Kolb of The Open University (OU), have discovered two, giant planets interacting near each other, in a gravitational dance. The planets, detected by the Wide Area Search for Planets (WASP) project, feel each other’s gravity and, as a result, speed up and slow […]

Super-Earth planets detected orbiting nearby star

26 June 2020

A system of super-Earth planets – possibly rocky worlds, but larger than Earth – has been detected orbiting the nearby star Gliese 887. An international team of astronomers, including Professor Carole Haswell and Dr John Barnes of The Open University, made the discovery as part of Red Dots, a project to detect terrestrial planets close […]

Life inside Pluto? Hot birth may have created internal ocean on dwarf planet

23 June 2020

David Rothery, Professor of Planetary Geosciences at The Open University, discusses what it means to discover internal oceans on Pluto and other planets in the solar system. Pluto, along with many other dwarf planets in the outer solar system, is often thought of as dark, icy and barren – with a surface temperature of just […]

A new journey for disabled veterans like Daniel

21 June 2020

After joining the Army at just 16 years old, OU student Daniel Bingley was flying high in a military career when a terrible injury turned his world upside down. “In 2012, I was injured in Iraq following an explosion,” Daniel tells us. “It seriously damaged my ears and I still really struggle with my hearing.” […]

OU researchers develop free software set to revolutionise physiotherapy

18 June 2020

Researchers from The Open University (OU), in collaboration with Cardiff University, have developed free software to monitor movement in people recovering from lower limb injury or surgery. OU PhD student Riasat Islam in collaboration with Dr Mohammad Al-Amri, Dr Mohamed Bennasar and Professor Blaine Price created a custom prototype, known as MoJoXlab. The movement analysis […]

Newly detected green light similar to the Aurora Borealis observed around Mars

15 June 2020

Open University (OU) scientists, as part of an international team, have identified a never-before-seen, green glow surrounding Mars with the same characteristics as the Aurora Borealis, also known as the Northern Lights. Using the NOMAD-UVIS instrument onboard the ExoMars Trace Gas Orbiter (TGO), a joint space mission between the European Space Agency (ESA) and Roscosmos, […]

New study reveals mud volcanoes on Mars may flow like lava

18 May 2020

European researchers, including Dr Manish Patel, Dr Matt Balme and Dr Matthew Sylvest from The Open University(OU), have found that mud volcanoes on Mars may look similar to lava flows found on Earth. According to a study, published in Nature Geoscience, mud flows exposed to the low atmospheric pressures found on Mars will behave similar […]

Apollo 17 sample leads to new discovery of the Moon’s evolution

11 May 2020

An international team of scientists, including Mahesh Anand, Professor of Planetary Science and Exploration at The Open University, have discovered new evidence that massive impact events formed large portions of the Moon’s crust. According to research, published today in Nature Astronomy, the formation of ancient rocks on the Moon may be directly linked to large-scale […]

Ancient rivers on Mars more than 3.7 billion years old

5 May 2020

Scientists from around the globe have discovered evidence of ancient rivers on Mars more than 3.7 billion years old, using high-resolution 3D imaging data. Sedimentary rocks, found in a 200-metre high Martian rocky cliff, formed by the ancient rivers proves that water was not only present on Mars, but the rivers were probably active for […]

The Sun: study shows it’s less active than sibling stars – here’s what that could mean

1 May 2020

Andrew Norton, Professor of Astrophysics Education at The Open University, writes about the magnetic activity on the Sun and what this could mean. All stars emit varying amounts of light over time – and the Sun is no exception. Such changes in starlight can help us understand how habitable any planets around other stars are […]

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Category: Science, maths, computing and technology