A new special issue of JGR: Planets presents findings on sand motion, morphology, and mineralogy from the Curiosity rover’s traverse of the active Bagnold dune field in Gale crater.
planetary surfaces
Posted inEditors' Highlights
Comparing Craters
An analysis suggests that craters degrade faster on Mercury than the Moon, raising questions about landscape evolution on different planetary bodies.
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.
Posted inNews
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.
Posted inNews
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.