The first mission to a metallic asteroid, scheduled for launch on 5 October, could provide clues to the formation of Earth and the solar system’s other inner planets.
Space & Planets
Posted inENGAGE, News
A Lunar Mission Spots Its Failed Brethren
Data from NASA’s Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter have been instrumental in pinpointing where other Moon-bound spacecraft have crashed.
Posted inNews
Ancient Mars May Have Had a Cyclical Climate
Hexagonal structures in sediments are evidence of repeated wet and dry conditions on the Red Planet.
Posted inResearch Spotlights
James Webb Space Telescope Captures Saturn’s Changing Seasons
Unprecedented images reveal how Saturn’s atmosphere is evolving as summertime winds down in its northern hemisphere.
Posted inFeatures
Uranus: Time to Boldly Go
Scientists say now is the time to unlock the secrets of Uranus and suggest a low-cost, low-risk way to do so.
Posted inFeatures
Cryovolcanism’s Song of Ice and Fire
Ocean moons of the outer solar system hint at ice volcanoes, hydrothermal vents, and the tantalizing chance of habitability.
Posted inAGU News
Oceans of Opportunity
Our solar system’s ocean worlds offer scientists intriguing instances of exotic phenomena and fresh prospects in the elusive search for planetary habitability.
Posted inNews
There and Back Again: Asteroid Samples Return to Earth
OSIRIS-REx will help reveal Bennu’s detailed carbon chemistry and history of space weathering and unlock a key piece of the solar system’s early history.
Posted inResearch Spotlights
Probing Rare Hot Plasma Flows in the Upper Atmosphere
Postmidnight flows appear to be triggered by the same mechanism that drives more frequently observed evening flows.
Posted inResearch Spotlights
Optimizing Carbonate Classification on Mars
Combining data from several of the Perseverance rover’s spectroscopic sensors offers a more accurate means to classify carbonate minerals that may hold hints of ancient life.