Planetary Science

  1. Planetary Science

    Fertile Frontiers

    Alien-life hunters focus on moons in outer solar system

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  2. Tech

    Growing need for space trash collectors

    On April 2, for the fifth time in less than three years, the International Space Station fired its engines to dodge a piece of orbital debris that appeared on a collision path. Other spacecraft also regularly scoot out of the way of rocket and satellite debris. Such evasive action will be needed increasingly frequently, a new study finds.

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  3. Planetary Science

    White dwarfs gobble Earthlike treats

    Astronomers have found elements in the dead stars’ atmospheres that suggest rocky planetary bodies once orbited the stars.

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  4. Planetary Science

    Messages from Mercury

    The latest data from a NASA spacecraft give compositional clues and reveal craters that could hold frozen water

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  5. Planetary Science

    Saturn’s rings explained

    A huge shattered moon could have sprayed ice particles around the newborn planet.

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  6. Planetary Science

    New rock type found on moon

    Odd spots on the lunar farside could be ancient material that originated deep inside the moon.

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  7. Planetary Science

    Venus, erupting?

    Lava flow suggests recent volcanism on Earth’s nearest planetary neighbor.

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  8. Planetary Science

    A comet’s tail

    Already under observation by astronomers, Hartley 2 will be visible in dark skies when it passes Earth on October 20.

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  9. Planetary Science

    Life’s cold start

    Primordial molecules could have replicated themselves in a slushy place, new experiments suggest.

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  10. Planetary Science

    Worldwide slowdown in plant carbon uptake

    A decade of droughts has stifled the increasing growth of terrestrial vegetation.

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  11. Earth

    Trailing dust devils

    Whirlwinds leave dark paths behind by sucking sand grains clean.

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  12. Astronomy

    Heftiest stars discovered

    At more than 200 times sun’s mass, this giant sets a new record.

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