Planetary Science

  1. Planetary Science

    Explore an asteroid with ‘Vesta Trek’

    Vesta Trek lets users explore the asteroid Vesta with data from the Dawn spacecraft.

    By Christopher Crockett
  2. Planetary Science

    MESSENGER mission ends with crash landing on Mercury

    The MESSENGER mission to Mercury came to a spectacular end as the probe crashed into the planet’s surface.

    By Christopher Crockett
  3. Planetary Science

    Pluto’s landscapes come into view as New Horizons closes in

    The New Horizons spacecraft sees surface markings and a possible polar cap on Pluto as it closes in for a July encounter.

    By Christopher Crockett
  4. Planetary Science

    The Martian Diaries

    Curiosity has explored Mars for over two and a half years. What if NASA's rover kept a scrapbook?

    By Alexandra Witze
  5. Planetary Science

    Before moon landings, scientists thought dust or crust might disrupt touchdown

    Moon dust didn’t swallow spacecraft as was suggested in the 1960s. Successful exploration since that has changed our view of the moon.

    By Ashley Yeager
  6. Planetary Science

    The moon is about as old as we thought it was

    Meteorite heat signatures pinpoint the age of the collision that created the moon — confirming many previous lunar age estimates.

    By Helen Thompson
  7. Planetary Science

    Atmospheric water may be giving Saturn its spots

    Planetary scientists think that water in Saturn’s atmosphere could be driving the massive storms that appear every few decades in the ringed planet’s atmosphere.

    By Helen Thompson
  8. Planetary Science

    Comet 67P shows no sign of magnetism

    Philae found no evidence of a magnetic field on comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko, but did send back some clues about its rough landing.

    By Christopher Crockett
  9. Planetary Science

    A modest Plutonian proposal

    Flagstaff, Echidna, Spock. Naming conventions for the landscapes of Pluto and its moons are proposed ahead of the arrival of the New Horizons probe.

    By Christopher Crockett
  10. Astronomy

    Cyanides around young star signal complex organic chemistry

    Abundances of cyanide compounds around a young star match those found in comets in our solar system.

    By Christopher Crockett
  11. Planetary Science

    Minisatellites could detect dangerous asteroids, researchers propose

    Five tiny telescopes orbiting the sun could provide early warning for an Earth-bound asteroid, though other researchers disagree.

    By Christopher Crockett
  12. Planetary Science

    NASA has a plan for putting rock from asteroid in moon’s orbit

    NASA selects concept for its Asteroid Redirect Mission, which will let astronauts train for future missions to Mars.

    By Christopher Crockett