Space Exploration1123 articles archived since 1845

How to Map an Exoplanet's Rings [Video]

Dips in starlight reveal the architecture of a super Saturn around a distant star

China's Dark-Matter Satellite Launches Era of Space Science

"Monkey King" is first in a line of Chinese space missions focused on scientific discovery

Astronomers Skeptical about "Planet X" Claims

Two controversial new studies suggest the discovery of large objects at the outer reaches of the solar system

Can Time Travelers Reach the Past via Wormholes?

Astronauts already skip ahead in time, but the laws of physics seem to forbid going backward—or do they?

Ceres Is Cloudy, with a Chance of Cryovolcanoes

New findings reveal a crater’s vaporous hazes, and hint at the dwarf planet’s possible origin in the outer solar system

Super Spiral Galaxies Amaze Astronomers

A new breed of giants raises questions about how the biggest galaxies arise

A Tale of 2 Habitable Planets

New study explores how life on one exoplanet could spread to its neighbor

Japan Orbiter Seeks a Second Shot at Venus [Update]

Five years after a failed insertion into planet's orbit, Akatsuki tries again

New Law Paves the Way for Asteroid Mining--but Will It Work?

A newly passed bill sets the stage for the future of the private spaceflight industry, and could have big implications for asteroid mining

Hawaiian Court Revokes Permit for Planned Mega-Telescope

Decision throws construction of the Thirty Meter Telescope into question

Better Than Sci-Fi

The Case of the Disappearing Quasars

A dozen quasars in the early universe appear to have shut down in just a few years, baffling astronomers

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

Birth of Planets! Formation of Alien Worlds Photographed for First Time

Scientists photograph a gas-giant exoplanet forming around a young star that lies about 450 light-years from Earth

Graphic: A World of Exoplanet Discoveries

What we know about alien worlds—and what’s coming next

Telescopes Have Grown from Huge to Humongous [Slide Show]

The next-generation, gigantic land-based telescopes are under construction, and they utterly dwarf their predecessors

Little Galaxy Keeps Churning Out Stars

The recently discovered small galaxy Leo P contains only about a hundred-thousandth as many stars as the Milky Way, but it's bucking the small galaxy trend by continuing to make new ones  ...

Oh the Places We Won't Go: Humans Will Settle Mars, and Nowhere Else [Excerpt]

Planetary Society co-founder Louis Friedman argues the Red Planet will be humanity’s final destination, but our robots could reach the stars

Closest Earth-Size Exoplanet Found May Be a Venus Twin

Rocky world found orbiting nearby red dwarf star, 39 light-years from Earth

Astronomers Find the Farthest-Out Solar System Object Ever Seen

More than a hundred times as distant from the sun as Earth is, the object could be a pristine remnant from the primordial solar system