All Stories by Christopher Crockett
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Planetary ScienceAccolades, skepticism and science marked Science News’ coverage of Apollo
Science News’ coverage of the Apollo program stayed focused on the science but also framed the moon missions in the broader social and political context of the era.
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Planetary ScienceSaturn has two hexagons, not one, swirling around its north pole
NASA’s Cassini spacecraft spied a vortex growing high over Saturn’s north pole, whose hexagonal shape mirrors a famous underlying cyclone.
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Planetary ScienceJupiter’s magnetic field is surprisingly weird
New results from NASA’s Juno spacecraft reveal different magnetic behavior in the planet’s northern and southern hemispheres.
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Planetary ScienceNew Horizons has sent back the first images of Ultima Thule, its next target
NASA probe gets its first look at distant Kuiper Belt object
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Particle PhysicsA new quasiparticle lurks in semiconductors
Strange entities called collexons hint at undiscovered physics among interacting subatomic particles in a semiconductor.
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Planetary ScienceSatellite smashups could have given birth to Saturn’s odd moons
Nearly head-on collisions between icy moonlets might be responsible for the peculiar shapes of some of Saturn’s moons, computer simulations suggest.
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Planetary Science4 surprising things we just learned about Jupiter
Polar cyclones, surprisingly deep atmosphere and a fluid mass spinning as a rigid body are among the latest discoveries at Jupiter.
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Planetary Science‘Death Dive to Saturn’ celebrates the Cassini probe’s accomplishments
A new documentary, “Death Dive to Saturn,” takes a look back at the Cassini spacecraft’s 13 years at Saturn and what to expect from its final days.
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AstronomyLife might have a shot on planets orbiting dim red stars
The number of planets in the habitable zone of dim red suns, known as M dwarfs, is growing. They’re a good place to look for life.
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AstronomyObservers caught these stars going supernova
Thirty years ago, astronomers witnessed a nearby stellar explosion, but it wasn’t the first. Humanity has been recording local supernovas for nearly two millennia.
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Astronomy30 years later, supernova 1987A is still sharing secrets
The 1987 explosion of a star near the Milky Way 30 years ago set off years of fascinating findings.
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Planetary ScienceThe moon is still old
New analysis of moon rocks points to our satellite forming about 4.51 billion years ago, roughly 60 million years after the start of the solar system.