An analysis suggests that craters degrade faster on Mercury than the Moon, raising questions about landscape evolution on different planetary bodies.
planetary surfaces
Posted inNews
Pluto’s Features Receive First Official Names
Names of mountains, plains, valleys, and craters honor human and technological pioneers, Pluto scientists, and underworld mythology from around the world.
Posted inResearch Spotlights
How Quickly Is Mercury’s Surface Evolving?
New measurements of impact craters on Mercury’s smooth plains suggest that the topography of the solar system’s innermost planet is changing at twice the rate of landforms on the Moon.
Posted inEditors' Vox
Insights into the Habitability of Mars
NASA’s Curiosity rover explored the Kimberley region of Mars to search for signs that the planet was once habitable.
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What to Expect from Cassini's Final Views of Titan
Cassini will fly close to Saturn's largest moon one last time. Here's a look back at what the spacecraft has revealed and ahead to scientists' final close glimpses of the moon.
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Iapetus's Ridge: The Result of Many Small Impacts?
A ridge around Saturn's third-largest moon has scientists scratching their heads.
Posted inScience Updates
Seeking Signs of Life and More: NASA’s Mars 2020 Mission
The next Mars rover will be able to land near rugged terrain, giving scientists access to diverse landscapes. It will also cache core samples, a first step in the quest to return samples to Earth.
Posted inResearch Spotlights
Unprecedented Views of Mercury Constrain Hollow Formation
The consistently shallow depths of the depressions scattered across Mercury's surface suggest their morphology is not determined by the thickness of a volatile-rich outer layer.
Posted inNews
Pluto Observers Find Possible Clouds, Remarkably Bright Surface
Smudges on images could be clouds that form at dawn and dusk, scientists report, and measurements of high reflectivity of Pluto’s “heart” add new evidence of a geologically young surface.
Posted inAGU News
Paola Receives 2016 G. K. Gilbert Award
Christopher Paola will receive the 2016 G. K. Gilbert Award at the 2016 American Geophysical Union Fall Meeting, to be held 12–16 December in San Francisco, Calif. The award recognizes "a scientist who has either made a single significant advance or sustained significant contributions to the field of Earth and planetary surface processes, and who has in addition promoted an environment of unselfish cooperation in research and the inclusion of young scientists into the field."