Space
- Planetary Science
Odysseus’ historic moon mission comes to an end
Odysseus downloaded data from all payloads before going to sleep February 28. The cold lunar night proved fatal to efforts to reawaken the lunar lander.
- Astronomy
JWST spies hints of a neutron star left behind by supernova 1987A
Signs of highly ionized atoms in dusty clouds at SN 1987A’s explosion site suggest a powerful source of X-rays — likely a neutron star — lurks within.
- Space
The first U.S. lunar lander since 1972 touches down on the moon
Odysseus, the first spacecraft to land on the moon since NASA’s Apollo 17, ended up tipped on its side but it appears to be operating OK.
- Planetary Science
NASA’s OSIRIS-REx nabbed over 120 grams of space rocks from asteroid Bennu
After being stymied by two stuck screws, NASA finally accessed a trove of Bennu asteroid bits. Mission scientist Harold Connolly tells what’s next.
- Space
How to build an internet on Mars
Future Red Planet inhabitants will need new ways to connect, including improved relay networks and an offshoot internet.
- Space
How ‘Our Moon’ shaped life on Earth and human history
Science News reviews Rebecca Boyle’s new wide-ranging book, which tells the story of the moon and its relationship with the inhabitants of Earth.
- Planetary Science
Saturn’s ‘Death Star’ moon might contain a hidden ocean
A fresh look at Cassini data reveals slight changes in the tiny moon’s orbit that suggest the presence of a vast ocean beneath the satellite’s icy shell.
- Planetary Science
An asteroid may have exploded over Antarctica about 2.5 million years ago
Tiny spherules of rock found in Antarctic ice may point to the oldest known “airburst,” or midair disintegration of an incoming asteroid.
- Planetary Science
Bacteria that can make humans sick could survive on Mars
Experiments suggest that common illness-causing microbes could not only survive on the Red Planet but also might be able to thrive.
- Planetary Science
NASA’s Ingenuity helicopter officially ends its mission on Mars
NASA’s Ingenuity helicopter suffered damage during a recent flight and has ended its mission on Mars after nearly three years on the Red Planet.
- Space
Astronomers have snapped a new photo of the black hole in galaxy M87
The Event Horizon Telescope image shows material around the black hole has moved, but other aspects remain the same, proving Einstein is right again.
- Astronomy
Astronomers are puzzled over an enigmatic companion to a pulsar
The strange entity has a mass between that of a neutron star and a black hole. It’s either one or the other or something else entirely.
