In their study, scientists discovered that raindrops are actually similar when examined across various planetary environments, even heavenly bodies as dissimilar as Earth and Jupiter. By absorbing the characteristics of raindrops on other planets, climatologists, astronomers, and planetary geologists can learn more about ancient climates on neighboring bodies such as Mars, enabling them to target habitable planets beyond our solar system.
Credit: Getty Images
“The lifecycle of clouds is really important when we think about planet habitability,” said lead author Kaitlyn Loftus, a graduate student in the Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences. “But clouds and precipitation are really complicated and too complex to model completely. We’re looking for simpler ways to understand how clouds evolve, and a first step is whether cloud droplets evaporate in the atmosphere or make it to the surface as rain.”
When it rains on other worlds in our Solar System, it actually isn’t that much different than the way it rains here on Earth. In fact, the only real significant difference is what’s in the rain.
For example, when it rains on Venus, sulfuric acid drops to the ground; it rains helium and slushy ammonia hailstones on Jupiter; it snows dry ice or carbon dioxide on Mars; pure carbon in the form of diamonds are believed to rain down on Neptune; and liquid natural gas or methane falls from the sky on Saturn’s moon Titan. It may even rain quartz or iron on some planets depending on the weather conditions.
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Alien Raindrops Are Surprisingly Like Rain On Earth Source: AGU
An infographic comparing the projected size of raindrops on different planets. Please note Titan and present-day Mars are too cold for liquid water raindrops. CREDIT Image Credit: AGU
Raindrops on other planets and moons are close to the size of raindrops on Earth despite having different chemical compositions and falling through vastly different atmospheres, a new study finds.
The results suggest raindrops falling from clouds are surprisingly similar across a wide range of planetary conditions, which could help scientists better understand the climates and precipitation cycles of other worlds, according to the researchers.
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