Spectacular Imagery of Solar Eclipses Caused by Phobos and Deimos
When NASA’s Curiosity Mars rover landed in 2012, it brought along eclipse glasses. The solar filters on its Mast Camera (Mastcam) allow it to stare…
Planetary Science
Scientists Calculate the Moon’s Core and Mantle Temperature
Little is known about the inner structure of the Moon, but a major step forward was made by a University of Rhode Island scientist who…
New Findings Emerge About Tiny Moons Nestled In Saturn’s Rings
New findings have emerged about five tiny moons nestled in and near Saturn’s rings. The closest-ever flybys by NASA’s Cassini spacecraft reveal that the surfaces…
NASA’s TESS Mission Discovers Saturn-Sized Planet
Astronomers who study stars are providing a valuable assist to the planet-hunting astronomers pursuing the primary objective of NASA’s new TESS Mission. In fact, asteroseismologists…
Scientists Witness Storm Formation on Neptune for the First Time
In 1989, NASA’s Voyager 2 zipped past Neptune—its final planetary target before speeding to the outer limits of the solar system. It was the first…
Juno Spacecraft Captures Striking View of Jupiter
This striking view of Jupiter’s Great Red Spot and turbulent southern hemisphere was captured by NASA’s Juno spacecraft as it performed a close pass of…
Scientists Simulate Alien Atmospheres on Earth
Researchers at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California, are cooking up an alien atmosphere right here on Earth. In a new study, JPL scientists…
Surprising Discovery Revealed After Sifting Through Solar System Dust
Just as dust gathers in corners and along bookshelves in our homes, dust piles up in space too. But when the dust settles in the…
Scientists Observe Water Molecules Moving Around the Moon
Using an instrument aboard NASA’s Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO), scientists have observed water molecules moving around the dayside of the Moon. A paper published in…
K Stars May Be Perfect for Finding Habitable Worlds
Scientists looking for signs of life beyond our solar system face major challenges, one of which is that there are hundreds of billions of stars…
Kepler’s First Planet Candidate Confirmed, 10 Years Later
Planet: Kepler-1658b Discovered by: Chontos et al. using NASA’s Kepler telescope Date: February 2019 Key Facts: This newly-confirmed exoplanet is a massive hot Jupiter that whips around its star every 3.85…
Why So Many Planets Outside Our Solar System Have An Odd Configuration
For almost a decade, astronomers have tried to explain why so many pairs of planets outside our solar system have an odd configuration — their…
Do-It-Yourself Dwarf Planet Exploring, Creating Little Bits of Ceres in Labs
Ceres, the dwarf planet between Mars and Jupiter, is a mysterious and exotic world, with its complicated history and recent geologic activity. Since scientists can’t…
Hubble Uncovers Origin of Neptune’s Smallest Moon Hippocamp
Astronomers using the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope, along with older data from the Voyager 2 probe, have revealed more about the origin of Neptune’s smallest…
Juno Exposes Dramatic Atmospheric Features of Jupiter
Dramatic atmospheric features in Jupiter’s northern hemisphere are captured in this view from NASA’s Juno spacecraft. The new perspective shows swirling clouds that surround a…
Aboard The First Private Moon Landing Attempt
The last screw is tightened and a private Moon lander is packed in the fairing atop a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket at Cape Canaveral Air…
Hubble Spots Tiny Moon “That Shouldn’t Be There”
Astronomers call it “the moon that shouldn’t be there.” After several years of analysis, a team of planetary scientists using NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope has…
TRAPPIST-1 Exposed to Heavy Bombardment of Charged Particles
TRAPPIST-1 is a system of seven Earth-sized worlds orbiting an ultra-cool dwarf star about 120 light-years away. The star, and hence its system of planets,…