The STESSy Group is a research and development team of scientists and engineers based at the Instituto de Astrofísica de Andalucía–CSIC (Granada-Spain). It devotes its efforts to develop instruments for the exploration of our Solar System with the aim of obtaining scientific data. The analysis and interpretation of these data allow us to advance in the understanding of the nature of the planets, their satellites, and the small bodies.
Latest news
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A faint young Sun and a warm and wet Mars, how could that be?
Mars today is a cold, dry desert. But, around 3.8 billion years ago, during the Noachian period, the planet showed clear signs of an active water cycle, with rivers, lakes, and even oceans which we can observe shorelines today. Yet, at that time, the Sun was only about 75% as bright as it is today,…
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The paths that sculpt a comet
When the Rosetta spacecraft imaged the nucleus of comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko, the appearance was seen to vary significantly across the surface: some areas showed rock-like, exposed solid material, while others appeared to be coated in a blanket of dust. Subsequently, researchers understood the dust covering to consist of particles ejected by the comet’s own activity but…
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A single episode may explain Tempel 1’s smooth terrains
A new study led by Juan Luis Rizos, member of the STESSy group, reveals that a large smooth structure observed on comet 9P/Tempel 1 may have formed as recently as 600 to 1,200 years ago. This timeframe notably coincides with a period of abrupt orbital changes caused by multiple close encounters with Jupiter (Fig. 1),…