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Water molecules have been detected on the surface of an asteroid for the first time, revealing new clues about the distribution of water in our solar system. Scientists studied four silicate-rich asteroids using data gathered by the now-retired Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy (SOFIA), a telescope-outfitted plane operated by NASA and the German Aerospace Center. Observations by SOFIA's Faint Object InfraRed Camera (FORCAST) instrument showed that two of the asteroids — named Iris and Massalia — exhibit a specific wavelength of light that indicated the presence of water molecules at their surface, a new study reports. "Asteroids are leftovers from the planetary formation process, so their compositions vary depending on where they formed in the solar nebula," study lead author Anicia Arredondo, of the Southwest Research Institute in San Antonio, said in a statement. "Of particular interest is the distribution of water on asteroids, because ...

There is no known record of when the first UFO was sighted on Earth. Now, we have an enormous amount of data to confirm the sightings, but there is much more lost to History . Ancient alien theorists collected several examples that might suggest some medieval UFO sightings. But what is the oldest record of a UFO sighting? About 780,000 years ago (or 790,000-800,000), a strange object entered the solar system with speeds well over 20,000 miles per hour, which was far less than other space objects. It was about 2 kilometers wide, 110 times larger than the Chelyabinsk meteor that hit Russia in 2013. There are two conceivable outcomes when a huge body falls towards Earth at such enormous speeds: either the object will be accelerated by our planet’s gravity or it will hit the surface. The nature of the second scenario is devastating. However, studies by NASA showed that the object had placed itself in orbit, perhaps with the ability to slow down...