//www.koonmotors.com/news/space_time/kuiper_belt/ Read science articles on the Kuiper Belt, including the latest news on Pluto, Eris, Sedna, Quaoar and other Kuiper Belt objects. en-us Sun, 10 Sep 2023 22:49:54 EDT Sun, 10 Sep 2023 22:49:54 EDT 60 //www.koonmotors.com/images/scidaily-logo-rss.png//www.koonmotors.com/news/space_time/kuiper_belt/ For more science news, visit ScienceDaily. //www.koonmotors.com/releases/2023/02/230208125042.htm Scientists have discovered a new ring system around a dwarf planet on the edge of the Solar System. The ring system orbits much further out than is typical for other ring systems, calling into question current theories of how ring systems are formed. Wed, 08 Feb 2023 12:50:42 EST //www.koonmotors.com/releases/2023/02/230208125042.htm //www.koonmotors.com/releases/2023/02/230207144210.htm 2015年,美国宇航局的“新视野”号飞船encountered the Pluto-Charon system, scientists discovered interesting, geologically active objects instead of the inert icy orbs previously envisioned. Scientists have revisited the data to explore the source of cryovolcanic flows and an obvious belt of fractures on Pluto's large moon Charon. These new models suggest that when the moon's internal ocean froze, it may have formed the deep, elongated depressions along its girth but was less likely to lead to cryovolcanoes erupting with ice, water and other materials in its northern hemisphere. Tue, 07 Feb 2023 14:42:10 EST //www.koonmotors.com/releases/2023/02/230207144210.htm //www.koonmotors.com/releases/2022/06/220621105647.htm Scientists combined data from NASA's New Horizons mission with novel laboratory experiments and exospheric modeling to reveal the likely composition of the red cap on Pluto's moon Charon and how it may have formed. This first-ever description of Charon's dynamic methane atmosphere using new experimental data provides a fascinating glimpse into the origins of this moon's red spot as described in two recent articles. Tue, 21 Jun 2022 10:56:47 EDT //www.koonmotors.com/releases/2022/06/220621105647.htm //www.koonmotors.com/releases/2021/12/211215132646.htm Scientists have unraveled a fascinating new insight into how the landscape of the dwarf-planet Pluto has formed. Wed, 15 Dec 2021 13:26:46 EST //www.koonmotors.com/releases/2021/12/211215132646.htm //www.koonmotors.com/releases/2020/10/201029115802.htm New work reveals the likely original locations of Saturn and Jupiter. These findings refine our understanding of the forces that determined our Solar System's unusual architecture, including the ejection of an additional planet between Saturn and Uranus, ensuring that only small, rocky planets, like Earth, formed inward of Jupiter. Thu, 29 Oct 2020 11:58:02 EDT //www.koonmotors.com/releases/2020/10/201029115802.htm //www.koonmotors.com/releases/2020/10/201013134310.htm In 2015, the New Horizons space probe discovered spectacular snowcapped mountains on Pluto, which are strikingly similar to mountains on Earth. Such a landscape had never before been observed elsewhere in the Solar System. Scientists determined that the methane snow could only appear at the peaks of Pluto's mountains high enough to reach this enriched zone that the air contains enough methane for it to condense. Tue, 13 Oct 2020 13:43:10 EDT //www.koonmotors.com/releases/2020/10/201013134310.htm //www.koonmotors.com/releases/2020/06/200622132959.htm A new study suggests that Pluto and other large Kuiper belt objects started out with liquid oceans which have been slowly freezing over time. Mon, 22 Jun 2020 13:29:59 EDT //www.koonmotors.com/releases/2020/06/200622132959.htm //www.koonmotors.com/releases/2020/02/200204112548.htm A 'beating heart' of frozen nitrogen controls Pluto's winds and may give rise to features on its surface, according to a new study. Tue, 04 Feb 2020 11:25:48 EST //www.koonmotors.com/releases/2020/02/200204112548.htm //www.koonmotors.com/releases/2019/10/191028164353.htm Astronomers using ESO's SPHERE instrument at the Very Large Telescope (VLT) have revealed that the asteroid Hygiea could be classified as a dwarf planet. The object is the fourth largest in the asteroid belt after Ceres, Vesta and Pallas. For the first time, astronomers have observed Hygiea in sufficiently high resolution to study its surface and determine its shape and size. They found that Hygiea is spherical, potentially taking the crown from Ceres as the smallest dwarf planet in the solar system. Mon, 28 Oct 2019 16:43:53 EDT //www.koonmotors.com/releases/2019/10/191028164353.htm //www.koonmotors.com/releases/2019/06/190625133507.htm A team studied the orientation of distant solar system bodies to bolster the 'streaming instability' theory of planet formation. Tue, 25 Jun 2019 13:35:07 EDT //www.koonmotors.com/releases/2019/06/190625133507.htm //www.koonmotors.com/releases/2019/06/190625093312.htm Beyond the orbit of the planet Neptune, there are a multitude of icy and rocky small bodies, smaller than planets but larger than comets. These likely formed at the same time as the Solar System, and understanding their origin could provide important clues as to how the entire Solar System originated. Using sophisticated computer simulations and observations of TNOs, astronomers have shown how these so-called trans-Neptunian Objects (or TNOs) may have formed. Tue, 25 Jun 2019 09:33:12 EDT //www.koonmotors.com/releases/2019/06/190625093312.htm //www.koonmotors.com/releases/2019/05/190520115657.htm Computer simulations provide compelling evidence that an insulating layer of gas hydrates could keep a subsurface ocean from freezing beneath Pluto's icy exterior. Mon, 20 May 2019 11:56:57 EDT //www.koonmotors.com/releases/2019/05/190520115657.htm //www.koonmotors.com/releases/2019/02/190228141252.htm Using New Horizons data from the Pluto-Charon flyby in 2015, scientists have indirectly discovered a distinct and surprising lack of very small objects in the Kuiper Belt. The evidence for the paucity of small Kuiper Belt objects (KBOs) comes from New Horizons imaging that revealed a dearth of small craters on Pluto's largest satellite, Charon, indicating that impactors from 300 feet to 1 mile (91 meters to 1.6 km) in diameter must also be rare. Thu, 28 Feb 2019 14:12:52 EST //www.koonmotors.com/releases/2019/02/190228141252.htm //www.koonmotors.com/releases/2019/01/190128111721.htm For the first time ever, astronomers have detected a 1.3 km radius body at the edge of the Solar System. Kilometer sized bodies like the one discovered have been predicted to exist for more than 70 years. These objects acted as an important step in the planet formation process between small initial amalgamations of dust and ice and the planets we see today. Mon, 28 Jan 2019 11:17:21 EST //www.koonmotors.com/releases/2019/01/190128111721.htm //www.koonmotors.com/releases/2019/01/190121103346.htm The strange orbits of some objects in the farthest reaches of our solar system, hypothesized by some astronomers to be shaped by an unknown ninth planet, can instead be explained by the combined gravitational force of small objects orbiting the sun beyond Neptune, say researchers. Mon, 21 Jan 2019 10:33:46 EST //www.koonmotors.com/releases/2019/01/190121103346.htm //www.koonmotors.com/releases/2019/01/190103111111.htm Data from NASA's New Horizons spacecraft, which explored Kuiper Belt object Ultima Thule earlier this week, is yielding scientific discoveries daily. Thu, 03 Jan 2019 11:11:11 EST //www.koonmotors.com/releases/2019/01/190103111111.htm //www.koonmotors.com/releases/2019/01/190101130547.htm NASA's New Horizons spacecraft flew past Ultima Thule in the early hours of New Year's Day, ushering in the era of exploration from the enigmatic Kuiper Belt, a region of primordial objects that holds keys to understanding the origins of the solar system. Tue, 01 Jan 2019 13:05:47 EST //www.koonmotors.com/releases/2019/01/190101130547.htm //www.koonmotors.com/releases/2018/12/181231111111.htm Only hours from completing a historic flyby of Kuiper Belt object 2014 MU69, nicknamed Ultima Thule, NASA's New Horizons spacecraft is on course and ready to gather scientific data on the small object's geology, composition, atmosphere and more. Closest approach takes place in the early morning hours of New Year's Day -- 12:33 a.m. EST -- marking the event as the most distant exploration of worlds ever completed by humankind. Mon, 31 Dec 2018 11:11:11 EST //www.koonmotors.com/releases/2018/12/181231111111.htm //www.koonmotors.com/releases/2018/12/181227152745.htm NASA's New Horizons spacecraft is set to fly by a target nicknamed 'Ultima Thule,' 4 billion miles from the Sun, on New Year's Day 2019. No spacecraft has ever explored such a distant world. Thu, 27 Dec 2018 15:27:45 EST //www.koonmotors.com/releases/2018/12/181227152745.htm //www.koonmotors.com/releases/2018/10/181024163636.htm Astronomers have made several discoveries that expand the range and value of a future Pluto orbiter mission. The breakthroughs define a fuel-saving orbital tour and demonstrate that an orbiter can continue exploration in the Kuiper Belt after surveying Pluto. Wed, 24 Oct 2018 16:36:36 EDT //www.koonmotors.com/releases/2018/10/181024163636.htm //www.koonmotors.com/releases/2018/10/181003142931.htm On the hunt for distant worlds, researchers have identified an exomoon candidate around the transiting exoplanet Kepler-1625b that indicates the presence of a previously unknown gas-giant moon. Wed, 03 Oct 2018 14:29:31 EDT //www.koonmotors.com/releases/2018/10/181003142931.htm //www.koonmotors.com/releases/2018/10/181002102908.htm Astronomers have discovered a new extremely distant object far beyond Pluto with an orbit that supports the presence of an even-farther-out, Super-Earth or larger Planet X. Tue, 02 Oct 2018 10:29:08 EDT //www.koonmotors.com/releases/2018/10/181002102908.htm //www.koonmotors.com/releases/2018/09/180907110422.htm The reason Pluto lost its planet status is not valid, according to new research. Fri, 07 Sep 2018 11:04:22 EDT //www.koonmotors.com/releases/2018/09/180907110422.htm //www.koonmotors.com/releases/2018/07/180731104211.htm Earthbound detectives rely on fingerprints to solve their cases; now astronomers can do the same, using 'light-fingerprints' instead of skin grooves to uncover the mysteries of exoplanets. Tue, 31 Jul 2018 10:42:11 EDT //www.koonmotors.com/releases/2018/07/180731104211.htm //www.koonmotors.com/releases/2018/05/180531142726.htm Scientists have discovered dunes on Pluto, and say they are likely to have been formed of methane ice grains released into its rarefied atmosphere. Thu, 31 May 2018 14:27:26 EDT //www.koonmotors.com/releases/2018/05/180531142726.htm //www.koonmotors.com/releases/2018/05/180525095412.htm Scientists integrated NASA's New Horizons discoveries with data from ESA's Rosetta mission to develop a new theory about how Pluto may have formed at the edge of our solar system. Fri, 25 May 2018 09:54:12 EDT //www.koonmotors.com/releases/2018/05/180525095412.htm //www.koonmotors.com/releases/2018/01/180123101956.htm A planet can be no bigger than about 10 times the size of Jupiter, an astrophysicist has calculated. Tue, 23 Jan 2018 10:19:56 EST //www.koonmotors.com/releases/2018/01/180123101956.htm //www.koonmotors.com/releases/2017/11/171115130940.htm The gas composition of a planet's atmosphere generally determines how much heat gets trapped in the atmosphere. For the dwarf planet Pluto, however, the predicted temperature based on the composition of its atmosphere was much higher than actual measurements taken by NASA's New Horizons spacecraft in 2015. A new study proposes a novel cooling mechanism controlled by haze particles to account for Pluto's frigid atmosphere. Wed, 15 Nov 2017 13:09:40 EST //www.koonmotors.com/releases/2017/11/171115130940.htm //www.koonmotors.com/releases/2017/10/171012093350.htm The trans-neptunian belt contains four dwarf planets, among which Haumea stands out for its extremely elongated shape and rapid rotation. A stellar occultation makes it possible to establish the main physical characteristics of this previously little known body -- among which most surprising was the presence of a ring. Thu, 12 Oct 2017 09:33:50 EDT //www.koonmotors.com/releases/2017/10/171012093350.htm //www.koonmotors.com/releases/2017/10/171004144511.htm It might be lingering bashfully on the icy outer edges of our solar system, hiding in the dark, but subtly pulling strings behind the scenes: stretching out the orbits of distant bodies, perhaps even tilting the entire solar system to one side. It is a possible "Planet Nine" -- a world perhaps 10 times the mass of Earth and 20 times farther from the sun than Neptune. Wed, 04 Oct 2017 14:45:11 EDT //www.koonmotors.com/releases/2017/10/171004144511.htm //www.koonmotors.com/releases/2017/09/170907112411.htm The Working Group for Planetary System Nomenclature of the International Astronomical Union has officially approved the naming of 14 features on the surface of Pluto. These are the first geological features on the planet to be named following the close flyby by the New Horizons spacecraft in July 2015. Thu, 07 Sep 2017 11:24:11 EDT //www.koonmotors.com/releases/2017/09/170907112411.htm //www.koonmotors.com/releases/2017/07/170712110457.htm Last year, the existence of an unknown planet in our Solar system was announced. However, this hypothesis was subsequently called into question as biases in the observational data were detected. Now astronomers have used a novel technique to analyze the orbits of the so-called extreme trans-Neptunian objects and, once again, they point out that there is something perturbing them: a planet located at a distance between 300 to 400 times the Earth-Sun separation. Wed, 12 Jul 2017 11:04:57 EDT //www.koonmotors.com/releases/2017/07/170712110457.htm //www.koonmotors.com/releases/2017/05/170518140249.htm Astronomers have uncovered a moon orbiting the third largest dwarf planet, 2007 OR10, in the frigid outskirts of our solar system called the Kuiper Belt. Thu, 18 May 2017 14:02:49 EDT //www.koonmotors.com/releases/2017/05/170518140249.htm //www.koonmotors.com/releases/2017/04/170412115749.htm Using the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA), astronomers have revealed extraordinary details about a recently discovered far-flung member of our solar system, the planetary body 2014 UZ224, more informally known as DeeDee. Wed, 12 Apr 2017 11:57:49 EDT //www.koonmotors.com/releases/2017/04/170412115749.htm //www.koonmotors.com/releases/2017/03/170317131205.htm 科比·鲁尼恩想明确一件事情:less of what one prestigious scientific organization says to the contrary, Pluto is a planet. So, he says, is Europa, commonly known as a moon of Jupiter, and so is the Earth's moon, and so are more than 100 other celestial bodies in our solar system that are denied this status under the prevailing definition of 'planet.' Fri, 17 Mar 2017 13:12:05 EDT //www.koonmotors.com/releases/2017/03/170317131205.htm //www.koonmotors.com/releases/2017/02/170223114747.htm The New Horizons flyby of Pluto and its satellites returned a scientific treasure trove of information about these distant and surprisingly complex worlds, showing a vast nitrogen glacier as well as ice mountains, canyons, cliffs, craters and more. Now the categories for official names have been approved and the name proposals can be submitted by the New Horizons team. Thu, 23 Feb 2017 11:47:47 EST //www.koonmotors.com/releases/2017/02/170223114747.htm //www.koonmotors.com/releases/2017/02/170221120816.htm The dynamical properties of these asteroids, observed spectroscopiccally for the first time using the Gran Telescopio CANARIAS, suggest a possible common origin and give a clue to the existence of a planet beyond Pluto, the so-called 'Planet Nine.' Tue, 21 Feb 2017 12:08:16 EST //www.koonmotors.com/releases/2017/02/170221120816.htm //www.koonmotors.com/releases/2017/02/170209163852.htm Many scientists believe the Earth was initially dry and that water, carbon and nitrogen -- the building blocks for life -- likely came as a result of collisions with objects that began their lives in the cold outer reaches of our solar system. Today, scientists report discovery of the existence of just such an object -- one that once orbited a neighboring star. Thu, 09 Feb 2017 16:38:52 EST //www.koonmotors.com/releases/2017/02/170209163852.htm //www.koonmotors.com/releases/2017/02/170209133329.htm For the first time, scientists have witnessed a massive object with the makeup of a comet being ripped apart and scattered in the atmosphere of a white dwarf, the burned-out remains of a compact star. Thu, 09 Feb 2017 13:33:29 EST //www.koonmotors.com/releases/2017/02/170209133329.htm //www.koonmotors.com/releases/2017/01/170109162342.htm A new study provides additional insight into relationship between Pluto and its moon, Charon, and how it affects the continuous stripping of Pluto's atmosphere by solar wind. When Charon is positioned between the sun and Pluto, the research indicates that the moon can significantly reduce atmospheric loss. Mon, 09 Jan 2017 16:23:42 EST //www.koonmotors.com/releases/2017/01/170109162342.htm //www.koonmotors.com/releases/2016/11/161130133750.htm Pluto's "icy heart" is a bright, two-lobed feature on its surface that has attracted researchers ever since its discovery by the NASA New Horizons team in 2015. Of particular interest is the heart's western lobe, informally named Sputnik Planitia, a deep basin containing three kinds of ices--frozen nitrogen, methane and carbon monoxide--and appearing opposite Charon, Pluto's tidally locked moon. Sputnik Planitia's unique attributes have spurred a number of scenarios for its formation, all of which identify the feature as an impact basin, a depression created by a smaller body striking Pluto at extremely high speed. Wed, 30 Nov 2016 13:37:50 EST //www.koonmotors.com/releases/2016/11/161130133750.htm //www.koonmotors.com/releases/2016/11/161116141323.htm A liquid ocean lying deep beneath Pluto's frozen surface is the best explanation for features revealed by NASA's New Horizons spacecraft, according to a new analysis. The idea that Pluto has a subsurface ocean is not new, but the study provides the most detailed investigation yet of its likely role in the evolution of key features such as the vast, low-lying plain known as Sputnik Planitia (formerly Sputnik Planum). Wed, 16 Nov 2016 14:13:23 EST //www.koonmotors.com/releases/2016/11/161116141323.htm //www.koonmotors.com/releases/2016/11/161116140553.htm New research by planetary scientists reveals fascinating clues about Pluto, suggesting the small world at the fringes of our solar system is much more active than anyone ever imagined. Wed, 16 Nov 2016 14:05:53 EST //www.koonmotors.com/releases/2016/11/161116140553.htm //www.koonmotors.com/releases/2016/10/161027115741.htm NASA's New Horizons mission reached a major milestone this week when the last bits of science data from the Pluto flyby -- stored on the spacecraft's digital recorders since July 2015 -- arrived safely on Earth. Thu, 27 Oct 2016 11:57:41 EDT //www.koonmotors.com/releases/2016/10/161027115741.htm //www.koonmotors.com/releases/2016/10/161019174218.htm As the search for a hypothetical, unseen planet far, far beyond Neptune's orbit continues, new research provides additional support for the possible existence of such a world and narrows the range of its parameters and location. Wed, 19 Oct 2016 17:42:18 EDT //www.koonmotors.com/releases/2016/10/161019174218.htm //www.koonmotors.com/releases/2016/10/161019101727.htm Stern said that Pluto's complex, layered atmosphere is hazy and appears to be mostly free of clouds, but the team has spied a handful of potential clouds in images taken with New Horizons' cameras. "If there are clouds, it would mean the weather on Pluto is even more complex than we imagined," Stern said. Wed, 19 Oct 2016 10:17:27 EDT //www.koonmotors.com/releases/2016/10/161019101727.htm //www.koonmotors.com/releases/2016/09/160924222428.htm Ever since NASA's New Horizons spacecraft flew by Pluto last year, evidence has been mounting that the dwarf planet may have a liquid ocean beneath its icy shell. Now, by modeling the impact dynamics that created a massive crater on Pluto's surface, a team of researchers has made a new estimate of how thick that liquid layer might be. Sat, 24 Sep 2016 22:24:28 EDT //www.koonmotors.com/releases/2016/09/160924222428.htm //www.koonmotors.com/releases/2016/09/160919130711.htm What is the origin of the large heart-shaped nitrogen glacier revealed in 2015 on Pluto by the New Horizons spacecraft? Astronomers show that Pluto's peculiar insolation and atmosphere favor nitrogen condensation near the equator, in the lower altitude regions, leading to an accumulation of ice at the bottom of Sputnik Planum, a vast topographic basin. Through their simulations, they also explain the surface distribution and atmospheric abundance of other types of volatiles observed on Pluto. Mon, 19 Sep 2016 13:07:11 EDT //www.koonmotors.com/releases/2016/09/160919130711.htm //www.koonmotors.com/releases/2016/09/160914150515.htm Scientists using NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory have made the first detections of X-rays from Pluto. These observations offer new insight into the space environment surrounding the largest and best-known object in the solar system's outermost regions. Wed, 14 Sep 2016 15:05:15 EDT //www.koonmotors.com/releases/2016/09/160914150515.htm //www.koonmotors.com/releases/2016/09/160914145849.htm In June 2015, when the cameras on NASA's approaching New Horizons spacecraft first spotted the large reddish polar region on Pluto's largest moon, Charon, mission scientists knew two things: they'd never seen anything like it elsewhere in our solar system, and they couldn't wait to get the story behind it. Over the past year, the scientists think they've solved the mystery. Wed, 14 Sep 2016 14:58:49 EDT //www.koonmotors.com/releases/2016/09/160914145849.htm //www.koonmotors.com/releases/2016/07/160711150825.htm Astronomers have discovered a new dwarf planet orbiting in the disk of small icy worlds beyond Neptune. The new object is about 700 km in diameter and has one of the largest orbits for a dwarf planet. Designated 2015 RR245 by the International Astronomical Union's Minor Planet Center, it was found using the Canada-France-Hawaii Telescope on Maunakea, Hawaii, as part of the ongoing Outer Solar System Origins Survey (OSSOS). Mon, 11 Jul 2016 15:08:25 EDT //www.koonmotors.com/releases/2016/07/160711150825.htm //www.koonmotors.com/releases/2016/06/160627214421.htm Scientists have discovered an elusive, dark moon orbiting Makemake, one of the 'big four' dwarf planets populating the Kuiper Belt region at the edge of our solar system. Mon, 27 Jun 2016 21:44:21 EDT //www.koonmotors.com/releases/2016/06/160627214421.htm //www.koonmotors.com/releases/2016/06/160621132532.htm An updated thermal model for Pluto suggests that a liquid water ocean beneath the dwarf planet's ice shell is a fairly likely scenario, and that the ocean is probably still there today. Tue, 21 Jun 2016 13:25:32 EDT //www.koonmotors.com/releases/2016/06/160621132532.htm //www.koonmotors.com/releases/2016/06/160606095533.htm Using computer models, New Horizons team members have been able to determine the depth of the layer of solid nitrogen ice within Pluto's distinctive 'heart' feature -- a large plain informally known as Sputnik Planum -- and how fast that ice is flowing. Mon, 06 Jun 2016 09:55:33 EDT //www.koonmotors.com/releases/2016/06/160606095533.htm //www.koonmotors.com/releases/2016/04/160426144920.htm Peering to the outskirts of our solar system, NASA's Hubble Space Telescope has spotted a small, dark moon orbiting Makemake, the second brightest icy dwarf planet -- after Pluto -- in the Kuiper Belt. Tue, 26 Apr 2016 14:49:20 EDT //www.koonmotors.com/releases/2016/04/160426144920.htm //www.koonmotors.com/releases/2016/03/160317150809.htm A student-built instrument riding on NASA's New Horizons spacecraft found only a handful of dust grains, the building blocks of planets, when it whipped by Pluto at 31,000 miles per hour last July. Thu, 17 Mar 2016 15:08:09 EDT //www.koonmotors.com/releases/2016/03/160317150809.htm //www.koonmotors.com/releases/2016/03/160317150004.htm Pluto's surface exhibits a wide variety of landscapes, results from five new studies. The dwarf planet has more differences than similarities with its large moon, Charon. Thu, 17 Mar 2016 15:00:04 EDT //www.koonmotors.com/releases/2016/03/160317150004.htm //www.koonmotors.com/releases/2016/02/160225085653.htm Using observations from the Cassini spacecraft, a team of astronomers has been able to specify the possible positions of a ninth planet in the Solar System. Thu, 25 Feb 2016 08:56:53 EST //www.koonmotors.com/releases/2016/02/160225085653.htm //www.koonmotors.com/releases/2016/02/160219095642.htm 冥王星最大的月亮可能对我已经太大了ts own skin. Images from NASA's New Horizons mission suggest that Pluto's moon Charon once had a subsurface ocean that has long since frozen and expanded, pushing outward and causing the moon's surface to stretch and fracture on a massive scale. Fri, 19 Feb 2016 09:56:42 EST //www.koonmotors.com/releases/2016/02/160219095642.htm //www.koonmotors.com/releases/2016/02/160208124245.htm Every school kid learns the basic structure of the Earth: a thin outer crust, a thick mantle, and a Mars-sized core. But is this structure universal? Will rocky exoplanets orbiting other stars have the same three layers? New research suggests that the answer is yes -- they will have interiors very similar to Earth. Mon, 08 Feb 2016 12:42:45 EST //www.koonmotors.com/releases/2016/02/160208124245.htm