Special guest appearance by our local retrieval principal: The John Batchelor Show S8 Ep463 15 Feb 2026 The show is not a science show. And yet, John’s guest for this episode is Dante Lauretta. You know, Dr. Lauretta, principal investigator… Read More »Batchelor Asteroid Patter
Almost missed this one again… maybe I should give Astronomy magazine more credit: www.astronomy.com/issues/2026/february-2026/www.astronomy.com/science/top-10-space-stories-of-2025/8. An interstellar comet comes to visit6. Bennu and Ryugu may be siblings1. Vera Rubin Observatory begins its surveyHonorable mention: 7. Solar Orbiter, PUNCH, and Proba-3 show… Read More »Telescope Top-Honor Spot
Now up: a lecture, available online, about petrologic Type 1 meteorites and other astromaterials: https://meteoritical.org/society/ed-scott-lecture-series The series, as you might have guessed, are in tribute to Dr. Ed Scott, who died in 2021. Scott was a published and celebrated meteoriticist… Read More »Type 1 Meteorite/Flights, Online…
The January Meteoritics & Planetary Science (vol. 61, #1) is up today. Good on them for recognizing they were behind: Fukai, R. Nishimura, M. Yumoto, K. et al. Nondestructive analysis of Bennu samples toward comparative studies with Ryugu samples P.… Read More »Note, Paper: Sample Analysis And Impacts
Aired Wednesday night, and also available online- a PBS asteroid documentary: https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/video/asteroids-spark-of-life/Nova: Asteroids: Spark of Life? Earth started off as a barren rock. Somehow, it became inhabitable and inhabited. Here we see some of the possible stages in that process,… Read More »Asteroids: Spark of Life? Documentary
Yes, it’s time again for SBAG (NASA Small Bodies Assessment Group), this time the Winter meeting: 34th Meeting of the NASA Small Bodies Assessment Group (SBAG)January 13–14, 2026 https://www.hou.usra.edu/meetings/sbagjan2026/technical_program/?session_no=101 Tuesday, January 13, 2026, 8:30 AM8:30 AM Darryl Seligman Early-Career Icebreaker9:25… Read More »2026 Winter SBAG Meeting, 1
We have a mid-month Geochimica Et Cosmochimica Acta, 15 January 2026 (vol 413): Cody, G. D. Alexander, C. M. O’D. Foustoukos, D. I. et al. Placing asteroid Bennu’s organic solids in molecular and elemental context with those in aqueously altered carbo… Pg 33-47… Read More »Note, Paper: Ample Sample “Time Capsules”
Time for the Autumn meeting of the AGU (American Geophysical Union). The big meet is in New Orleans, Dec. 15-19: https://www.agu.org/annual-meeting As you might expect from the name “Geophysical”, it mostly deals with the Earth. It deals with the Earth… Read More »2025-Fall AGU Meeting
New in PNAS (Pub. Natl. Acad. Scis.) as of Dec 9, 2025 (vol. 122 #49): Mojarro, A. Aponte, J. C. Dworkin, J. P. Prebiotic organic compounds in samples of asteroid Bennu indicate heterogeneous aqueous alteration e2512461122 pnas.2512461122 Organic compounds: yes, asteroids… Read More »Note, Paper: Bennu Stew New Amino
Hit the jackpot… or would that be Natpoj? In the “latest issue” of Nature Astronomy (not even November… early web postings): Nguyen, A.N. Seifert, L.B. Shimizu, K. et al. Abundant supernova dust and heterogeneous aqueous alteration revealed by stardust in… Read More »Note, Paper: Sugar, Prespice, and Everything Ni(tro-)