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We summarize the week's scientific breakthroughs every Thursday.

  1. Science & Society

    2017 delivered humility, and proved our potential

    Acting Editor in Chief Elizabeth Quill reflects on some of the top scientific stories of 2017.

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  2. Astronomy

    This year’s neutron star collision unlocks cosmic mysteries

    A rare and long-awaited astronomical event united thousands of astronomers in a frenzy of observations.

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  3. Astronomy

    Seven Earth-sized planets entered the spotlight this year

    The discovery of seven Earth-sized planets orbiting a single cool star fuels a debate over what counts as good news in the search for life outside the solar system.

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  4. Astronomy

    New Horizons’ next target might have a moon

    New Horizons’ next target, Kuiper Belt object MU69, may have a small moon.

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  5. Planetary Science

    Jupiter’s massive Great Red Spot is at least 350 kilometers deep

    NASA’s Juno spacecraft has measured the depth of Jupiter’s Great Red Spot for the first time.

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  6. Earth

    Watching this newborn island erode could tell us a lot about Mars

    The birth and death of a young volcanic island in the Pacific Ocean may shed light on the origins of volcanoes in Mars’ wetter past.

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  7. Planetary Science

    Saturn’s rings mess with the gas giant’s atmosphere

    Data from Cassini’s shallow dives into Saturn’s ionosphere show that this charged layer in the atmosphere interacts with the planet’s rings.

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  8. Astronomy

    Most complete map of Titan reveals connected seas and cookie-cutter lakes

    The latest map of Titan, based on all the data from the Cassini spacecraft, displays new details about the moon’s lakes and seas.

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  9. Astronomy

    The most distant quasar ever spotted hails from the universe’s infancy

    The new record-holder for faraway quasars comes from a period of rapid change in the universe.

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  10. Astronomy

    We still don’t know where the first interstellar asteroid came from

    Astronomers are tracking stars to see if one of them launched the first interstellar asteroid at Earth.

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  11. Physics

    Collision illuminates the mysterious makeup of neutron stars

    Scientists size up neutron stars using gravitational waves and light.

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  12. Astronomy

    Here’s what really happened to Hanny’s Voorwerp

    Glowing clouds of gas known as Hanny’s Voorwerp offer a way to study galaxies and black holes in the distant past.

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