New radar observations and refined illumination maps reveal uneven water ice deposits twice the size of those found around the planet’s north pole, suggesting the source may be a recent comet impact.
Space & Planets
Posted inOpinions
Earth Day Message from an Astronaut on the Space Station
NASA astronaut and geoscientist Drew Feustel reminds us: High above Earth, you see no borders; you barely see cities. You do see evidence of Earth’s raw power.
Posted inNews
Exoplanet-Hunting Telescope Launches
Scanning for traces of faraway worlds, TESS will make observations over an area hundreds of times larger than that observed by its predecessor, the Kepler Space Telescope.
Posted inEditors' Vox
Electric Currents in Outer Space Run the Show
A new book explores our understanding of electric currents, which are fundamental to the structure and dynamics of space plasmas.
Posted inNews
History of Mars’s Water, Seen Through the Lens of Gale Crater
Research uncovers more of Mars’s past, when flowing water may have been transient before eventually disappearing.
Posted inResearch Spotlights
Increasing Radiation Levels May Challenge Space Exploration
New research shows that solar radiation levels are growing 10% faster than previously believed and that the radiation environment in space will worsen with time.
Posted inNews
An Aurora of a Different Color
Meet STEVE, a purple and green, low-latitude, aurora-like phenomenon whose inner workings were uncovered with the help of citizen scientists.
Posted inNews
New Juno Data Reveal Four Key Secrets of Jupiter
Deep clouds, polar storms, lopsided gravity, and a uniformly rotating interior demonstrate that the gas giant plays by different rules than Earth.
Posted inEditors' Vox
The Big Picture in Geospace
A NASA stereo-imaging mission called TWINS continues to push the boundaries of what we know about the region of space close to Earth.
Posted inEditors' Highlights
Evidence That Earth’s Forehead Controls the Wagging of its Tail
Yes, Earth has a tail, a magnetotail, and there is debate about how much Earth’s upper atmosphere plays a role in the controlling the dynamics of this region of space.