Solar System
Drama In Low-Earth Orbit As LightSail2 Deploys Its Sails
LightSail 2 has successfully deployed its solar sails. Shortly after 12:00 pm PST The Planetary Society tweeted that the sails…
The Collision that Created the Moon Might Have Also Brought Water to the Early Earth
Scientists at the University of Munster have discovered that Earth got its water from a collision with Theia. Theia was…
Some of Earth’s Gold Came From Two Neutron Stars That Collided Billions of Years Ago
A new study has shown that a good deal of Earth's heaviest elements may have come from a nearby neutron…
New Ring of Dust Discovered in the Inner Solar System
Discovering new things in space is a regular occurrence. Astronomers keep finding more distant objects in the outer reaches of…
The Record for the Most Distant Object in the Solar System has been Shattered. Introducing FarFarOut at 140 Astronomical Units
Remember Far Out, the distant planet at the far reaches of the Solar System, that was discovered in December, 2018?…
Say Hello to Hippocamp! The New Moon Discovered at Neptune, Which Could Have Broken off from the Larger Moon Proteus
Moons have the coolest names, don't they? Proteus, Titan, and Callisto. Phobos, Deimos, and Encephalitis. But not Io. That's a…
Shout Out to Japan! Their Hayabusa2 Spacecraft has Collected its First Samples from Asteroid Ryugu
Japan's Hayabusa2 spacecraft has completed an important part of its mission to asteroid Ryugu. The spacecraft descended to the surface…
Japan’s Hayabusa2 is About to Shoot Up the Surface of Ryugu with Tiny Impactors so they can Collect a Sample
Japan's Hayabusa2 mission is about to get down to business. After arriving at asteroid Ryugu at the end of June…
ESA is Planning a Mission to the Smallest Spacerock Ever Visited: the Moon of an Asteroid
For some small minority of humans, Death By Asteroid is a desirable fate. The idea probably satisfies their wonky Doomsday…
Tiny Object Found at the Edge of the Solar System for the First Time. A Kuiper Belt Object that’s Only 2.6 km Across
The Kuiper Belt, or the Edgeworth-Kuiper Belt, is home to ancient rocks. Kuiper Belt Objects, or KBOs, are remnants of…