Space
We summarize the week's scientific breakthroughs every Thursday.
- Astronomy
Stephen Hawking finds the inner genius in ordinary people
Ordinary people wrestle with big questions in science and philosophy in Genius, a new television series hosted by Stephen Hawking.
- Astronomy
Earth has nothing on this exoplanet’s lightning storms
Lightning storms far more intense than any on Earth might explain radio waves that once came from a planet 124 light-years away.
- Astronomy
Kepler telescope doubles its count of known exoplanets
NASA’s Kepler space telescope adds 1,284 planets to the roster of worlds known to orbit other stars in our galaxy.
- Planetary Science
Mercury’s stunning landscape mapped
First complete topographic map of Mercury reveals plains, craters and both the highest and lowest points on the planet.
- Planetary Science
Long-running lunar mission reveals moon’s surprises
Seven years into its mission, the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter is still going strong and finding surprises on the moon.
- Astronomy
Mercury is about to make a rare journey across the face of the sun
On May 9, Mercury will make a rare appearance as a small dot passing across the face of the sun.
- Astronomy
Nearby exoplanet trio new target in search for life
Three nearby exoplanets might be good spots to go looking for signs of alien life.
- Astronomy
Japan’s latest X-ray telescope is officially dead
The Japanese space agency has officially declared its latest X-ray telescope a loss.
- Planetary Science
Tiny moon orbits dwarf planet
Hubble Space Telescope images from April 2015 show that the dwarf planet Makemake has a tiny moon.
- Planetary Science
Hubble telescope finds small moon orbiting dwarf planet Makemake
Hubble Space Telescope images from April 2015 show that the dwarf planet Makemake has a tiny moon.
- Astronomy
Gas blasts from black holes show surprising alignment
Unexpected alignment of galactic gas geysers might offer new insight into how galaxies and black holes arise from the cosmic web.
- Cosmology
Ancient dwarf galaxy was heavy-element factory
A rare event in an ancient galaxy left traces of heavy elements in its stars.
