Planetary Science

Discovered by volunteer scientists, this alien planet is out of synch with its siblings

Depending on how you look at it, this catchphrase from a 1980s pop song is decently accurate: you can actually melt the planet if you stop its turning

New laboratory studies could shed light on a rock containing potential signs of alien life that’s stranded on Mars

New experiments show how RNA might form not just on Earth but on other rocky planets, too

Scientific American talks to the author of When the Moon Hits Your Eye, one of our best fiction picks for 2025

Scientists found evidence of a distant planet’s moon system forming

Comets don’t just orbit our sun. “Exocomets” are common around other stars in the galaxy, too

New work pinpoints the origins of the planet Theia, whose ancient collision with Earth likely produced the moon

A machine-learning breakthrough could lift the veil on Earth’s early history—and supercharge the search for alien life

NASA spent years and billions of dollars collecting Martian samples to bring home. Now they might be stranded

Former NASA officials warn that the U.S. looks poised to lose its self-declared race to beat China to the moon

The planet’s brightness is dimming—changing rainfall, circulation and temperature