The first in situ measurement of the pressure at the edge of the solar system reveals that there’s still a lot we don’t know about what sets the size of the heliosphere.
spacecraft
Posted inFeatures
The Coming Surge of Rocket Emissions
With the space industry’s rapid growth, rocket exhaust will increasingly accumulate in the atmosphere. How this accumulation might affect the planet is unknown—because we’re not taking it seriously.
Posted inResearch Spotlights
Sampling the Space Between the Stars
Data from the Cassini and Voyager spacecraft reveal new information about the Sun’s magnetic bubble.
Posted inEditors' Highlights
Curiosity Monitors Rare Global Dust Storm From Mars’s Surface
Since the 1970s, no surface platform had made meteorological measurements of a global dust storm on Mars, but last summer NASA’s Curiosity rover witnessed one of these rare events.
Posted inNews
The Cassini Mission May Be Over, but New Discoveries Abound
New analysis of high-resolution images shows ring textures and disruptions within Saturn’s rings in unprecedented detail.
Posted inFeatures
How Cassini Ran Rings Around Saturn and What It Helped Us Learn
Once and future rings: During its final 22 orbits, the Cassini spacecraft provided a completely new look at one of our solar system’s most famous features.
Posted inGeoFIZZ
Spirits Are Flying High for Dragonfly and Titan
We’re sending a mission back to Titan, and it’s time to celebrate.
Posted inNews
Ultraprecise Clock Will Facilitate Space Exploration
NASA’s Deep Space Atomic Clock, slated to launch later this month for a demonstration flight, will help spacecraft more efficiently navigate the solar system.
Posted inEditors' Highlights
Extending the Envelope for Known Safe Locations in Space
When unattached electrons collide with spacecraft, the build-up of electric charge can cause malfunctions, but recent observations model near-Earth regions that are likely safe zones.
Posted inNews
Israeli Spacecraft Will Land on Moon Today
Beresheet will be the first privately developed craft to attempt a soft landing on the Moon. The landing will be broadcast live.