Planets

An artist’s depiction of NASA’s Europa Clipper spacecraft

NASA Launches Europa Clipper to Search for Signs of Life on Jupiter’s Moon

The huge spacecraft is headed toward the icy moon Europa, where it will use an array of instruments to survey for geologic activity, magnetism and more

NASA astronaut Matthew Dominick captured this image of comet C/2023 A3 (Tsuchinshan-ATLAS) from the International Space Station, when the comet was 99.4 million miles away on September 22, 2024.

How to See the Bright Comet Flaring Up in the Night Sky This Week

Comet Tsuchinshan-ATLAS should be visible to the naked eye as it passes Earth on its way out of our solar system

An illustration of the newly detected exoplanet Barnard b, with the red dwarf Barnard's star in the background.

Astronomers Discover a Small Exoplanet That's Our Cosmic Neighbor at Just Six Light-Years Away

Orbiting Barnard's star, the nearest solo star to Earth, the world is too hot to be habitable—a scorching 257 degrees Fahrenheit

A sea turtle swims in a coral reef in Hawaii. Ocean acidification, found to be on the brink of crossing a boundary into higher-risk territory, can affect coral skeleton formation.

Earth Is on the Brink of Breaching a Seventh of Nine 'Planetary Boundaries' That Support Life

A new “health check” for our planet sounds an alarm bell on rising ocean acidification, which is driven by carbon dioxide levels in the atmosphere

An illustration of an asteroid and the moon orbiting Earth.

Earth Is Getting a New 'Mini Moon' for the Next Two Months, Astronomers Say

A roughly 33-foot-long asteroid called 2024 PT5 will chart a horseshoe-like path around our planet

Saturn, the second-largest planet in our solar system, is best known for its layered rings.

The Seven Most Interesting Discoveries We’ve Made by Exploring Saturn

Scientists continue to learn new things about the planet, its sweeping rings and its many moons

Venus, seen in three views as it approaches a conjunction with Earth and the sun, won the planets, comets and asteroids category.

See 11 Breathtaking Space Images From the Astronomy Photographer of the Year Contest

From a solar eclipse to a dolphin-like nebula, these winning shots by astrophotographers from around the world depict the cosmos in sharp detail

The spacecraft offered a clear view of Mercury's south pole while completing its fourth of six flybys.

See New Detailed Photos of Mercury From a Spacecraft's Closest Flyby Yet

BepiColombo, a joint European-Japanese mission, completed its fourth close pass of the innermost planet last week, and it will enter Mercury’s orbit in 2026 to learn more about its mysteries

Jupiter's moon Ganymede is the largest moon in the solar system and is even wider than the planet Mercury.

An Ancient Asteroid Smashed Into Jupiter's Moon Ganymede and Tipped It Over, Study Finds

The cataclysmic impactor was 20 times the size of the rock that wiped out the dinosaurs on Earth

An artist's rendition of a magma ocean on a volcanic planet. Scientists have theorized that our moon was covered in a magma ocean for millions of years after it formed.

Our Moon Was Likely Covered in a Magma Ocean Long Ago, and New Data From India's Lunar Rover Supports That Theory

Soil composition measurements from the Chandrayaan-3 mission reveal white rock called ferroan anorthosite, which would have floated to the surface in an ocean of magma

A full moon rises over the Vasquez Rocks in California.

A Rare 'Super Blue Moon' Will Be Visible Monday Night: What Does That Mean?

Tonight’s full moon will be bigger and brighter than usual, and it’s the third of four full moons this summer

Mars might host an ocean of water within porous rocks miles beneath its surface, according to a new study.

Mars Hosts a Giant Reservoir of Water Underground, We Just Can't Easily Reach It, Study Finds

The water is enough to cover the Martian surface in a mile-deep ocean, but it's beyond the reach of drills for now, according to researchers

Humans couldn't survive outdoors on Mars for a number of reasons, including its extremely low temperatures. Scientists are studying ways to terraform the planet to make it more hospitable.

Humans Could Warm Up Mars for Space Travelers by Spraying Tiny Metal Rods Into Its Atmosphere

Researchers propose a new technique for making the Red Planet more habitable by engineering heat-trapping nanoparticles from Martian dust

After Curiosity unexpectedly cracked open a Martian rock, it revealed yellow crystals that scientists determined were elemental sulfur.

NASA's Curiosity Rover Accidentally Discovers Sulfur Crystals on Mars

The rover’s wheel cracked open a rock and revealed pure elemental sulfur, which researchers have never seen on the Red Planet before

An artist's rendition of the eight planets in our solar system. The planets are depicted closer together than they really are.

Astronomers Propose New Criteria to Classify Planets, but Pluto Still Doesn't Make the Cut

The new definition would define planets based on mass, rather than more ambiguous shape and size characteristics

An artist’s depiction of HD 189733b encountering an eruption of x-rays from the star it’s orbiting

This Nearby Exoplanet Is Hot, Dangerous—and Smells Like Rotten Eggs

Located about 64 light-years away from Earth, the world is the first place astronomers have detected hydrogen sulfide outside our solar system

One of Cassini's last looks at Saturn and its main rings from a distance, produced by combining images taken in October 2016

Here’s What We’ve Learned About Saturn Since Cassini Entered Its Orbit 20 Years Ago

The Cassini-Huygens mission increased our understanding of the planet’s rings and moons

Jupiter's Great Red Spot is a large storm that has persisted for at least 190 years.

Jupiter's Signature Red Spot May Have Evolved More Than Once

The planet's massive storm, known as the Great Red Spot, seems to be different from a spot first observed at roughly the same location in the 17th century, a new study finds

Purple squares illustrate auroras on Mars, as detected by NASA’s MAVEN orbiter between May 14 and May 20. The brighter the purple, the more auroras present.

Mars Was Hit With a Solar Storm Days After Earth's Aurora Light Show, NASA Says

Studying this event could hold lessons for scientists about how to protect astronauts from radiation on future trips to the Red Planet

A simulated perspective of Olympus Mons, the tallest volcano in the solar system, with water frost at its peak.

Astronomers Discover Water Frost on Mars' Tallest Volcanoes

On early winter mornings, a thin layer of ice forms in craters atop the Red Planet's towering peaks, near its equator, according to a new study

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