The feature may be a ‘skylight’ in an underground lava tube.

Scientists have traced the reappearance of cotton pests in west-central Texas to a tropical storm.

Jonathan Eberhart's name lives on in a new planetary-sciences award.

Researchers have found the first compelling evidence for a rocky planet beyond the solar system. (p. 8)

At least once a second, a dim, elderly star somewhere in the cosmos turns into a thermonuclear bomb. Briefly outshining its home galaxy, the explosion, known as a type 1a supernova, unleashes the equivalent of 1028 megatons of TNT — enough energy to destroy an entire solar system. Astronomers have marveled at these cosmic firecrackers for centuries. But so far nobody has explained in detail how these supernovas explode. Now, theorists are on the verge of attaining that understanding — and just in time, because astronomers are observing type 1a supernovas with a new urgency. In fact, t... (p. 22)

Simultaneous snapshots reveal that northern and southern auroras aren’t always alike. (p. 14)

A new model predicts that rises in sea level, combined with subsiding lands, will claim a tenth of the state by century’s end. (p. 15)

A new study assesses the chances that two planets will collide or a planet will plunge into the sun in the next 5 billion years. (p. 9)