
Do We Really Need to Send Humans into Space?
Automated spacecraft cost far less; they’re getting more capable every year; and if they fail, nobody dies
Donald Goldsmith is an astronomer and science writer in Berkeley, California.

Do We Really Need to Send Humans into Space?
Automated spacecraft cost far less; they’re getting more capable every year; and if they fail, nobody dies

Could Life survive in the Universe's Far-Distant Future?
Some say its glory days are long gone, but the universe has life in it yet. Brand-new types of celestial phenomena will unfold over the coming billions and trillions of years

When 14 Billion Years Just Isn't Enough Time
Some say its glory days are long gone, but the universe has life in it yet. Brand-new types of celestial phenomena will unfold over the coming billions and trillions of years

The Planetary Tease
Astronomers are on the verge of finding other Earths—but still far from knowing whether they are inhabited