Space
A passing star could fling Earth out of orbit
Simulations show that the stars’ tug could send Mercury, Venus or Mars crashing into Earth — or let Jupiter eject our world from the solar system.
Planetary Science
More Stories in Planetary Science
- Planetary Science
Check out some of the weird rocks that have turned up on Mars
Some of the unusual rocks carry stories about water on Mars. One has hints of long-gone microbes. All tell of a dynamic, complex planet.
- Space
The nearest single star to Earth has four small planets
Last year, astronomers announced that a planet orbits Barnard’s star. Now, researchers have confirmed the existence of three more.
- Chemistry
A new iron compound hints ‘primordial’ helium hides in Earth’s core
Earth’s core could contain helium from the early solar system. The noble gas tucks into gaps in iron crystals under high pressure and temperature.
- Planetary Science
Uranus emits more heat than previously thought
Uranus radiates more energy than it gets from the sun, two new studies find — just as Jupiter, Saturn and Neptune do.
- Planetary Science
Juno reveals dozens of lava lakes on Jupiter’s moon Io
NASA’s Juno spacecraft identifies over 40 enormous lava lakes on Io, shedding light on the extreme volcanism sculpting Jupiter’s moon.
- Planetary Science
A private mission to Venus aims to look for signs of life
If successful, Morning Star would be the first private mission to another planet and the first in over 30 years to directly measure Venus’s clouds.
- Planetary Science
Ancient Mars wasn’t just wet. It was cold and wet
Mars may once have held enough water to fill oceans and form coastlines. The planet’s red dust contains water and likely formed in cold conditions.
- Physics
A weird ice that may form on alien planets has finally been observed
High-pressure experiments generated the first direct observation of plastic ice, which has qualities of both crystalline ice and liquid water.
- Planetary Science
The moon’s two grand canyons formed in less than 10 minutes
Two gargantuan canyons on the moon were carved by a hailstorm of rocks — and that’s good news for future lunar astronauts.
