Planetary Science

Six “sub-Neptune” worlds locked in a delicate dance around a nearby star offer fresh insights for the orbital evolution of planetary systems

The best-yet map of active volcanoes on Jupiter’s moon Io hints at a hidden magma ocean—and more

Amid uncertainty over space agencies’ plans for future Venus exploration, enthusiasm for a private-sector mission grows

The Lucy spacecraft’s encounter with asteroid Dinkinesh has revealed a bizarre “contact binary” double-moon companion

NASA’s Lucy mission flew past an asteroid nicknamed Dinky, only to discover an even smaller space rock orbiting it

Fine particles kicked up by the Chicxulub asteroid impact could have blocked out the sun for years, resulting in global cooling and disastrous consequences for ecosystems

An impact with a protoplanet called Theia 4.5 billion years ago seems to have left remnants deep inside Earth

Fresh investigations find that the Red Planet’s liquid-metal core is smaller than scientists thought

NASA’s Lucy mission is starting its science studies way ahead of schedule

As space agencies turn their gaze to the moon, we need to consider what werewolves might mean for lunar exploration—and vice versa

Defunct satellites and other pieces of orbital debris are pumping metals into Earth’s fragile upper atmosphere, with effects unknown

Images from each and every spacecraft now orbiting Mars have ruled out a meteorite strike as the cause of a 4.7-magnitude marsquake, the strongest temblor ever detected beyond Earth