Space & Physics
Scientists Explain Pluto’s Red-Headed Moon
Data from the New Horizons probe suggests Pluto's atmosphere paints the north pole of Charon, its largest moon
Stories by Nola Taylor Tillman
Space & Physics
Some “Goldilocks” Planets May Be Too Hot-Blooded for Life
A new study questions whether “habitable zone” planets can sweat off internal heat
Space & Physics
Water Ice on Ceres Boosts Hopes for Buried Ocean
The largest and only dwarf planet in the solar system’s Asteroid Belt might harbor hidden water where life could evolve
Space & Physics
New Alien Planet Boasts Rare Triple Suns
KELT-4Ab is only the fourth known system to contain three stars
Space & Physics
Rare Christmas Full Moon Will Add to Holiday Light
Keep your eyes to the night skies because this won't happen again until 2034
Space & Physics
Mars May Become a Ringed Planet Someday
A collision between the Red Planet and its innermost moon, Phobos, could create a Saturn-like field of debris
Space & Physics
Could Liquid Lakes Form on Mars Today?
Water from sources such as aquifers could last long enough to pool, with larger pools remaining liquid for at least a year, according to researchers
Space & Physics
Gigantic Ice Cloud Spotted on Saturn Moon Titan
Findings from NASA’s Cassini spacecraft suggests winter in Titan's southern hemisphere will be even colder than predicted
The Sciences
Amazing Jupiter Video Shows Slowing Shrinkage of the Great Red Spot
The Hubble Space Telescope reveals that the planet's trademark feature is still shrinking, but not as fast as previously observed
Space & Physics
It's Official: The Universe Is Dying Slowly
Research reveals today's produced energy is only about half of what it was 2 billion years ago
Space & Physics
Galaxy-Sized Lens Reveals Star Birth in the Deep Universe
The ALMA telescope array glimpses a far-distant galaxy through an Einstein ring
Space & Physics
Mineralogy of Newfound Planets Could Point to Habitability
Astrobiologists hope that the detection of certain minerals on exoplanets by ever-more-sensitive space telescopes could indicate biochemical processes associated with life
Space & Physics
Mars Mission Could Return Samples to Earth by 2020
A private spacecraft is planned to skim through the atmosphere of Mars to gather dust and return home, without the difficulty of landing...
Space & Physics
Extraterrestrial Life May be Common around Binary Stars
Low-mass binary stars could make the best hosts for alien life because their combined energy extends the habitable region farther away than would exist around a single star
Chemistry
Violent Asteroid Impacts Shaped Protoplanet Vesta’s Odd Interior
Computer models reveal a pair of 32-kilometer-long asteroids caused Vesta's crust to melt and then re-form, making it thicker than can be explained by typical rock layering
Space & Physics
Space Bursts Provide Insight into Theory of Everything
Gamma rays emitted during the formation of neutron stars and black holes allow scientists to study fundamental principles like superstring theory
Space & Physics
Double-Star Systems May Hide a Third Companion
Scientists speculate that an energetic "kick" could boot a star out of orbit and drive the remaining pair closer together
Space & Physics
Strange Star Spiral Offers Clues to Sun's Fate
The spiral, created by a red giant's companion star, lets astronomers see when layers of the red giant were lost
Space & Physics
Meteoroids Change Atmospheres of Earth, Mars, Venus
Similarities in the upper atmospheres of the three planets may be due to meteoroids' shedding heavy elements as they pass through
Space & Physics
Ancient Star Explosion Is Most Distant of Its Kind
The finding should help scientists better understand the ever-expanding universe and the nature of dark energy
