Polarimetric radar advances enable scientists to measure orientations of crystals, bubbles, and other properties that affect the flow of glaciers and ice sheets—and their contributions to sea level.
spacecraft
Posted inResearch Spotlights
What Makes Mars’s Magnetotail Flap?
Spacecraft reveal a key driver of up-and-down motions of thin, current-carrying plasma sheets on the nightside of Mars.
Posted inResearch & Developments
Artemis II Crew Splashes Down
After a journey to and around the Moon, the Artemis II crew splashed back to Earth off the coast of San Diego at 5:07 p.m. local time (8:07 p.m. ET) on 10 April.
Posted inEditors' Vox
Distant Cousins? How Field Work on Earth Could Help Us to Better Understand Titan
What do Saturn’s moon Titan and the Earth have in common? Quite a lot as it turns out, from hydrocarbon deposits to polar clouds, lakes and rivers, craters and canyons, and more.
Posted inResearch & Developments
Curiosity Stumbles Upon Evidence of Ancient Martian Winds
Researchers have found evidence of a sandstorm on Mars that occurred about 3.6 billion years ago.
Posted inNews
Asteroid Hosts All Ingredients for DNA and RNA
Samples collected from asteroid Ryugu contain the four genetic “letters” of DNA, reinforcing the hypothesis that the chemical origins of life were present when the solar system began.
Posted inResearch & Developments
Humanity Returns to the Moon with Artemis II
Today, four intrepid astronauts began a journey around the Moon and back.
Posted inNews
Solar Flare Spotlights the Martian Ionosphere
A “lucky” linkup between orbiters helped scientists study how the Red Planet’s ionosphere responds to solar events.
Posted inFeatures
Discovering Venus on Iceland
Scientists trekked across Icelandic lava flows that served as stand-ins for Venus’s volcanic landscapes, testing tools and methods the upcoming VERITAS mission will use when it reaches the planet.
Posted inEditors' Highlights
Is Convection Wobbling Venus?
Venus’s rotation axis is not where it should be – but atmospheric torques, not mantle convection, are likely responsible.