All Stories by Lisa Grossman
- Astronomy
David Kipping seeks new and unexpected worlds
Astronomer David Kipping became “the moon guy” by deciding no idea is too crazy.
- Astronomy
Why it’s good news that Pluto doesn’t have rings
The New Horizons team searched for rings around Pluto, and found nothing. That suggests the spacecraft’s next destination might be ring-free too.
- Physics
Trio wins physics Nobel Prize for gravitational wave detection
Pioneers of LIGO collaboration win for finding spacetime ripples from two spiraling black holes.
- Astronomy
How a meteor shower helped solve the case of the vanishing comet
A missing comet has been linked to a long-lost meteor shower, helping astronomers recover both.
- Astronomy
New questions about Arecibo’s future swirl in the wake of Hurricane Maria
The iconic Arecibo Observatory was damaged in Hurricane Maria, but not as much as originally thought. But its funding is still in doubt.
- Astronomy
Ice in space might flow like honey and bubble like champagne
Zapping simulated space ice with imitation starlight makes the ice act more like a liquid than a solid, meaning similar ices in space might be good places for organic chemistry.
- Astronomy
Ultrahigh energy cosmic rays come from outside the Milky Way
The biggest cosmic ray haul ever points toward other galaxies as the source of the rays, not our own.
- Astronomy
R.I.P. Cassini
After 20 years, nearly 300 orbits and pioneering discoveries, the Cassini spacecraft plunges to its death in Saturn’s atmosphere — taking data until its very last breath.
- Astronomy
These are Cassini’s parting shots of the Saturn system
In its last hours before plunging into Saturn’s atmosphere, the Cassini spacecraft turned its cameras to some of the system’s well-known features.
- Astronomy
So long, Titan. Cassini snaps parting pics of Saturn’s largest moon
The last swing past Saturn’s largest moon sent Cassini heading directly towards the planet — and showed how future spacecraft will explore other moons.
- Astronomy
The sun’s strongest flare in 11 years might help explain a solar paradox
The sun tends to release its biggest flares at the ends of solar cycles — and we might finally be able to test why.
- Astronomy
Final flyby puts Cassini on a collision course with Saturn
A “last kiss goodbye” with Saturn’s largest moon sent the Cassini spacecraft on its final trajectory into the planet’s atmosphere.
