Planetary Science
- Planetary Science
This meteorite’s diamonds hint that it was born in a lost planet
Bits of metal nestled inside diamonds suggest the space rock could have formed in a Mars-sized protoplanet in the early solar system.
- Space
Lasers squeezed iron to mimic the conditions of exoplanet cores
In the first experiment to measure what exoplanets might be like on the inside, scientists hit iron with 176 lasers at once.
- Paleontology
Readers debate dinosaur designation and more
Readers had questions about the dino family tree and Venus' habitability.
- Planetary Science
Water may have killed Mars’ magnetic field
Extra hydrogen near the Red Planet’s iron core could have shut down convection.
- Planetary Science
This spinning moon shows where debris from giant impacts fell
A new map shows that light-colored lunar plains point back to huge impact basins, raising questions about the age and history of the moon.
- Planetary Science
Venus may be home to a new kind of tectonics
Venus’ surface seems to be divided into jostling blocks of crust, defying conventional wisdom about how the surfaces of rocky planets work.
- Anthropology
Readers ponder children’s pretend play, planetary dust storms and more
Readers had questions about children’s fantasy play, lasers creating 3-D images and dust storms on Mars.
- Planetary Science
5 things we’ve learned about Saturn since Cassini died
The Cassini spacecraft plunged to its death into Saturn six months ago, but the discoveries keep coming.
- Planetary Science
Some TRAPPIST-1 planets may be water worlds
Two of TRAPPIST-1’s planets are half water and ice, which could hamper the search for life.
- Artificial Intelligence
AI bests humans at mapping the moon
AI does a more thorough job of counting craters than humans.
- Planetary Science
Dwarf planet Ceres may store underground brine that still gushes up today
Waterlogged minerals and changing ice add to evidence that Ceres is geologically active.
- Astronomy
New Horizons’ next target has been dubbed Ultima Thule
NASA has named New Horizons spacecraft’s next target Ultima Thule after the public suggested tens of thousands of monikers for the Kuiper Belt object.
