Latest science news in Astronomy & Space
Venus Express' swansong experiment sheds light on Venus' polar atmosphere
Some of the final results sent back by ESA's Venus Express before it plummeted down through the planet's atmosphere have revealed it to be rippling with atmospheric waves – and,...
Mars Dust Storms
Martian dust storms are very much like the severe ones on Earth--"only more so," Jet Propulsion Laboratory planetary scientist says.
Galileo Returns to JPL for Upgrade
The Galileo spacecraft, which had been awaiting launch from NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, has been returned to the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif., where it will be outfitted...
JPL Holds Open House
The Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), the nation's leading center for exploring the solar system with unmanned spacecraft, will hold an open house on the weekends of June 6 and 7...
NASA Instrument Snaps Pictures of Desert in the Sky
The desert takes to the skies in these images of eastern China from NASA's Multi-angle Imaging SpectroRadiometer (MISR).
Astronaut Sees Marvelous Moonset from Space Station (Photo)
His view from the International Space Station set British astronaut Tim Peake up to capture a stunning image of Earth’s moon.
Did the Sun Eat a Primordial Super-Earth?
Was there a so-called 'super-Earth' planet that formed inside the orbit of Mercury? If so, it might have been eaten by our sun.
Stephen Hawking: We Probably Won't Find Aliens Anytime Soon
Will humanity find intelligent alien life anytime soon? Probably not, according to theoretical physicist Stephen Hawking.
Get Ready: Mars Reverses Its Course In the Sky Saturday
Look up this weekend to catch bright Mars as it begins a zigzag detour across the spring sky.
DARPA Space Plane Could Make Daily Satellite Launches Possible
The U.S. Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency's Experimental Spaceplane (XS-1) program, which aims to make launching satellites a daily occurrence, is moving on to new phases of development. The vehicle's...
Does The Full Moon Make Kids Hyper? Here’s What Science Says
A new study looks at whether kids really are more hyper and sleep less on nights with a full moon. Here's what it found.
Two Spacecraft Watch a Towering Inferno on IO
Two NASA spacecraft jointly observing Jupiter's moon Io this winter captured images of a towering volcanic plume never seen before and a bright red ring of fresh surface deposits surrounding...
Volcanoes and Auroras Glow in Eclipse Movie of Jupiter's Moon IO
The first movie ever made of Jupiter's moon Io while it is in eclipse shows bright spots of hot lava and changes in auroral glows.
NASA Gives Go-ahead To Build 'Deep Impact' Spacecraft
The Deep Impact mission, the first mission to ever attempt to impact a comet nucleus in order to answer basic questions about the nature of comets, has successfully completed.
NASA Considers Discovery Mission Proposals
It's a difficult decision: With about $300 million to spend, should NASA buy a spacecraft that could find Earth- sized planets around nearby stars?
Elachi Named New JPL Director
Dr. Charles Elachi has been named the new director of the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Dr. David Baltimore, president of the California Institute of Technology, announced at a press conference today....
New Era Begins as Mars Global Surveyor Completes Prime Mission
NASA's Mars Global Surveyor spacecraft, which has collected more information about the red planet than all previous missions combined, completes its primary science mission today and begins a new era...
Earth Day Portrait is First one Snapped by Mars Odyssey
NASA's 2001 Mars Odyssey spacecraft turned its multipurpose camera homeward last week and took its first picture -- a shot of a faint crescent Earth -- as the spacecraft heads...
Evidence Seen For Wet Past on Ganymede, Jupiter's Largest Moon
Bright, flat terrain in long swaths on the surface of Jupiter's icy moon Ganymede may testify that water or slush emerged there about a billion years ago, say planetary scientists...
Genesis Set to Catch a Piece of the Sun
NASA'S next robotic space explorer is ready to do a little sunbathing on a mission to catch a wisp of raw material from the luminous celestial body around which the...
Stardust Prepares to Pick Up Speed From Earth's Gravity Assist
As it completes the first of three laps of about a billion miles each around the heart of the solar system, NASA's Stardust spacecraft is getting ready for a pit...
Hubble Birthday Bash: 11 Candles, 100,000 Pictures
As NASA's Hubble Space Telescope celebrates its 11th birthday, its JPL-built camera has added picture number 100,000 to its bulging photo album.
Live Web Chat With El Nino-Expert Dr.William Patzert
Oceanographer Dr. William Patzert, of NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif., will discuss one of the planet's most powerful climate phenomenon, El Nino.
JPL Licenses Technology to Map Earth
A new radar mapping technology designed to generate high-resolution, three-dimensional maps of Earth beneath foliage and other vegetation has been licensed by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif., to...
International Students Make History Imaging Martian Terrain
Nine budding scientists can all pat themselves on the back, having become the first-ever elementary and high school students to direct a camera on NASA's Mars Global Surveyor spacecraft and...
JPL Launches
People visiting the popular Old Pasadena district will become sidewalk space explorers when scientists from NASA's JPL in Pasadena bring telescopes, photos and hands-on activities to the One Colorado courtyard...
Numero Uno in Space: Nasa Unveils Web Site In Spanish
Spanish-speaking space fans can hitch a ride via the Internet on an orbiting space observatory, thanks to the first-ever Spanish-language web site tied to a NASA mission.
Why Dazzling Stars are Given Boring but Useful Names
Of the 100 billion stars in our Milky Way galaxy, only a handful have colorful names, while the rest are designated by letters and numbers that are the stellar equivalent...