Planetary Science
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 Exploration1399 articles archived since 1845
Space Exploration
New Maps of Milky Way Are Biggest and Best Yet
The latest data release from the European Space Agency’s Gaia mission is sparking a frenzy of exciting new astrophysics research
Space Exploration
Record-Breaking Voyager Spacecraft Begin to Power Down
The pioneering probes are still running after nearly 45 years in space, but they will soon lose some of their instruments
Space Exploration
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.
Space Exploration
‘Unsustainable’: How Satellite Swarms Pose a Rising Threat to Astronomy
SpaceX and other companies are still struggling to make their satellites darker in the night sky
Space Exploration
Largest Marsquake Ever Recorded May Be InSight’s Swan Song
NASA’s three-and-a-half-year mission to collect seismic data from Mars is running out of juice
Space Exploration
NASA Hails Starliner Launch Success despite Thruster Glitch
The Starliner team is confident the malfunctions won’t prevent the spacecraft from completing its mission
Medicine
Mars Mission Could Bring Health Benefits on Earth
Flying to space takes its toll on the human body, and this has spurred new research on radiation and microgravity, as well as advances in remote medicine and telehealth, all of which have potential benefits for people on Earth...
Space Exploration
Will NASA Save Europe’s Beleaguered Mars Rover?
Russia’s invasion of Ukraine ended hopes of launching the ExoMars rover in 2022. Now the mission may never lift off at all
Space Exploration
Boeing’s Starliner Launch Will Bring New Cargo and Science to the Space Station
The uncrewed flight includes a payload of food, provisions and a specialized flight-test dummy
Policy
Space Won’t Be Safe until the U.S. and China Can Cooperate
The two countries must put aside their mistrust in order to establish rules for the peaceful use of outer space
Space Exploration
Old Russian Rocket Motor Explodes in Orbit, Creating More Space Debris
Ground stations are currently tracking 16 fragments associated with the event, which occurred on April 15
Engineering
Record-Breaking Jumping Robot Can Leap a 10-Story Building
To propel itself higher than any known engineered jumper or animal can, it had to ignore the limits of biology
Space Exploration
Europe Cancels Joint Moon Missions with Russia
Russia will move forward with lunar exploration without its European partners
Planetary Science
Next Stop, Uranus? Icy Planet Tops Priority List for Next Big NASA Mission
An influential panel’s recommendation makes the ice giant a likely destination for a flagship space mission
Space Exploration
Spy Satellites Confirmed Our Discovery of the First Meteor from beyond the Solar System
A high-speed fireball that struck Earth in 2014 looked to be interstellar in origin, but verifying this extraordinary claim required extraordinary cooperation from secretive defense programs...
Space Exploration
SpaceX’s Starship and NASA’s SLS Could Supercharge Space Science
Scientists are beginning to dream of how a new generation of super-heavy-lift rockets might enable revolutionary space telescopes and bigger, bolder interplanetary missions
Space Exploration
Ax-1, First Private Crewed Space Station Mission, Launches Successfully
Axiom Space’s visit to the International Space Station is a milestone for commercial human spaceflight
Extraterrestrial Life
Researchers Made a New Message for Extraterrestrials
An updated communication could be beamed out for space alien listeners in hopes of making first contact
Space Exploration
COVID Disrupted Everything—Even Rocket Launches
Surprising supply chain breakdowns
