Planetary Science
- Planetary Science
Close look confirms two eyes on Venus
A spacecraft that recently arrived at Venus has confirmed that the atmosphere above the planet's south pole harbors an unusual storm feature; a giant, double vortex.
- Planetary Science
Jovian storms of surpassing beauty
A new near-infrared image of two giant, oval storms in Jupiter's southern hemisphere reveals that they are now brushing past each other closely, separated by only 3,000 kilometers.
- Planetary Science
Some deadly monikers
Two recently found small moons orbiting Pluto have now been officially dubbed Nix and Hydra.
- Planetary Science
Lots of red dust, but not much noise
In space, no one can hear you scream, but a new analysis suggests that it's pretty quiet on Mars, too.
- Planetary Science
The sands of Titan
Although the surface of Saturn's moon Titan is cold enough to freeze methane, it has sand dunes like those in the Arabian Desert, according to radar images taken by the Cassini spacecraft.
- Planetary Science
Hubble eyes Jupiter’s second red spot
Hubble Space Telescope images are providing astronomers with the sharpest views yet of a new red spot on Jupiter.
- Planetary Science
The Whole Enceladus
Saturn's moon Enceladus has become the hottest new place to look for life in the chilly outer solar system.
- Planetary Science
The Mysterious Smell of Moondust
Long after the last Apollo astronaut left the moon, a mystery lingers: Why does moondust smell like gunpowder? In this account, astronauts describe the surprising smell and taste of moondust, which they experienced firsthand inside their lunar landers. The dust gave one astronaut a case of hay fever. Go to: http://science.nasa.gov/headlines/y2006/30jan_smellofmoondust.htm
- Planetary Science
Ice among the rocks
A newly discovered trio of icy comets, hidden among the thousands of rocks in the main asteroid belt, may be part of a previously unknown class and a primary source of water for the dry, early Earth.
- Planetary Science
Brilliant! Tenth planet turns out to be a shiner
Xena, unofficially called the 10th planet, is the second-most-shiny known object in the solar system.
- Planetary Science
Another visitor to Mars
The newest spacecraft from Earth arrived at the Red Planet on March 10.
- Planetary Science
Making Mercury
New computer simulations of Mercury's violent formation account for the planet's abundance of heavy elements and also reveal that some of the debris generated by the collision could have found its way to Earth and Venus.
