Planetary ScienceSeptember 28, 2022
Extra Hard Space Diamonds May Have Formed in an Ancient Cosmic Collision
A new formation method for rare “lonsdaleite” diamonds may illuminate a better way to produce them on Earth
Planetary Science
Planetary ScienceSeptember 26, 2022
NASA’s DART Spacecraft Successfully Smacks a Space Rock—Now What?
The DART spacecraft has purposefully crashed into the asteroid Dimorphos, hopefully changing its orbit by a few minutes, in a milestone test of future planetary defense techniques
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Planetary ScienceSeptember 21, 2022
NASA’s Asteroid-Crashing DART Mission Is Ready for Impact
The DART mission to redirect an asteroid could be just the beginning of a robust planetary-defense program
Planetary ScienceAugust 30, 2022
Webb Telescope Finds Carbon Dioxide on a Distant Exoplanet
The result offers a sneak peek at the observatory’s transformative potential for studying worlds beyond the solar system
Planetary ScienceAugust 19, 2022
Here’s Why Earth Just Had Its Shortest Day on Record
How wind, ice and rock may have combined to give our planet its shortest day
Planetary ScienceAugust 15, 2022
NASA’s UFO Study Isn’t Really Looking for Space Aliens
A new investigation of unidentified aerial phenomena could have bigger impacts on atmospheric science than on astrobiology
Planetary ScienceJuly 28, 2022
Seismic Missions Could Reveal the Solar System’s Underworlds
Seismology has been a long-overlooked tool in planetary exploration, but the success of NASA’s InSight lander has reignited the field
Planetary ScienceJuly 1, 2022
New Satellite Is a ‘Swiss Army Knife’ in Space
The hyperspectral probe can pick out extreme detail of materials on Earth’s surface
Planetary ScienceJune 23, 2022
Controversy Grows Over whether Mars Samples Endanger Earth
Planetary scientists are eager to bring Red Planet rocks, soil and even air to Earth, but critics fear the risk of contaminating our world’s biosphere
Space ExplorationJune 7, 2022
NASA’s Perseverance Rover Begins Key Search for Life on Mars
Rolling up an ancient river delta in Jezero Crater, the rover starts crucial rock sampling.
Planetary ScienceJune 1, 2022
50, 100 & 150 Years Ago: June 2022
Innovation and discovery as chronicled by Scientific American
Planetary ScienceMay 5, 2022
NASA Spacecraft Will Visit Apophis, Once Earth’s Deadliest Asteroid Threat
After delivering extraterrestrial samples to Earth in 2023, OSIRIS-REx will embark on an extended mission to a potentially planet-threatening space rock