Planetary Science
- Planetary Science
Martian Radiation: Giving off a faint X-ray glow
Astronomers have for the first time taken an X-ray image of the Red Planet.
- Planetary Science
Leapin’ Lava! Volcanic eruption on Io breaks the record
Pointing a ground-based telescope at Jupiter's moon Io, astronomers have recorded the most powerful volcano ever observed in the solar system.
- Planetary Science
Europa’s freckles
Reddish spots and shallow pits that pepper the surface of Jupiter's moon Europa may mark regions where warmer and less dense ice percolates to the surface.
- Planetary Science
Another moon for Uranus
Astronomers have confirmed the existence of the 21st moon known to be orbiting Uranus.
- Planetary Science
Echoes of Icequakes: Simple probe could measure Europa’s ocean and icy shell
A football-size space probe could provide a low-cost way to determine whether there's a liquid ocean on the Jovian moon Europa.
- Planetary Science
Pluto and the Occult: Rare events illuminate Pluto’s atmosphere
Twice in the past month, astronomers were given a rare opportunity to peer through the tenuous atmosphere of Pluto.
- Planetary Science
Planetary Beginnings: Data reveal Earth’s quick gestation
Two new studies confirm that Earth's core formed in a hurry—during the first 30 million years after the solar system's birth.
- Planetary Science
It’s only a sharper moon
Astronomers have taken what appears to be the sharpest image of the moon ever recorded from Earth.
- Planetary Science
Lost in Space: Comet mission appears to have broken apart
A spacecraft that had just begun its journey to two comets has fallen silent and may have broken apart.
- Planetary Science
Pristine fragments of asteroid breakup
Planetary scientists have for the first time precisely dated a collision that smashed an asteroid into fragments.
- Planetary Science
Odyssey’s Homer: Hints of water near both poles of Mars
Sensors on board the Mars Odyssey spacecraft have spied strong signs of ice buried near both poles of the Red Planet, exactly the regions where scientists previously had said that such frozen water deposits could exist.
- Planetary Science
Hard bodies pair off
About one out of every eight asteroids traveling near Earth has a rocky companion.
