Planetary Science

Health & Medicine

Readers ponder the randomness of DNA errors

Readers sent feedback on cellular slip-ups, moon mayhem and more.

Planetary Science

Watery exoplanet’s skies suggest unexpected origin story

Compared with Neptune, HAT-P-26b’s atmosphere has few heavy elements, suggesting it formed differently than the ice giants in Earth’s solar system.

Planetary Science

Oxygen on comet 67P might not be ancient after all

Molecular oxygen detected around comet 67P may not be a relic of the solar system’s birth. Instead, it may be generated by interactions of water, the solar wind and the comet’s surface.

Planetary Science

Mars may not have been born alongside the other rocky planets

Mars formed farther away from the sun than its present-day orbit, not near the other terrestrial planets, new research suggests.

Planetary Science

Here’s how an asteroid impact would kill you

Most deaths caused by an asteroid impact would result from shock waves and winds generated from the blast, rather than effects such as earthquakes and tsunamis, new simulations show.

Planetary Science

Cassini’s ring dive offers first close-up of Saturn’s cloud tops

Cassini has completed its first dive between Saturn and its rings. Along the way, it snapped stunning pics of the planet’s atmosphere.

Planetary Science

In ‘grand finale,’ Cassini spacecraft sets off on collision course with Saturn

The Cassini spacecraft will plunge into Saturn’s atmosphere and disintegrate on Sept. 15, but is slated to do some solid science before its demise.

Planetary Science

Nitrogen fizz fuels ‘magic island’ on Titan, simulation suggests

Nitrogen bubbles may be the source of the “magic island” on Saturn’s moon Titan.

Planetary Science

Bubbles may put mysterious fizz in Titan’s polar sea

Nitrogen bubbles may be the source of the “magic island” on Saturn’s moon Titan.

Planetary Science

Food for microbes found on Enceladus

The underground ocean of Saturn’s moon Enceladus harbors an abundance of molecular hydrogen, which could be an important source of food if microbial life exists there.

Planetary Science

Jupiter’s Great Red Spot has company. Meet the Great Cold Spot

A previously unidentified dark mark on Jupiter has been dubbed the “Great Cold Spot” because of its temperature and resemblance to the planet’s Great Red Spot.

Planetary Science

Competing ideas abound for how Earth got its moon

The moon may have formed from one giant impact or from about 20 small ones.