There is more on the line for Starship than just Artemis III. The rocket is set to transform the landscape of low Earth orbit by making launches easier. What may be the first private space station, Voyager Space’s Starlab, is slated to go up on Starship in …
A quick background on NASA reauthorization NASA is a federal agency, and as such, is governed by the roles and responsibilities outlined in the U.S. Code. Specifically, Title 51 governs government and commercial space activities. Unlike agencies like the …
Breathing easy and getting home again Rather than bringing large quantities of oxygen to Mars, future astronauts could live off the land, using materials they find on the planet’s surface to survive. This concept, called in-situ resource utilization (ISRU) …
Europe’s newest rocket successfully launched for the first time. On July 9, the European Space Agency’s new Ariane 6 rocket (pictured) launched its first payload into low Earth orbit. Ariane 6 builds on the longstanding success of the Ariane 5 rocket, …
The Planetary Society, along with a coalition of scientific organizations and over 40 members of Congress, supports a restoration of space science funding to $9 billion. It was a lofty goal, but one fully justified: NASA has been directed to pursue a …
China’s first planetary defense test is taking shape. An ambitious mission that aims to launch as soon as 2027 will use a single launch to observe and impact a near-Earth asteroid. The target is 2015 XF261, a roughly 30-meter-diameter (98-foot) asteroid …
First up, Alycia Weinberger spoke about the origin and importance of the Decadal Surveys as a way for the scientific community to identify key science questions, objectives, and priorities. “We stand on the threshold of new endeavors that will transform …
The new JDSE article also helpfully lays out hitherto undisclosed science goals and payloads, revealing what China hopes to learn from the mission. The main aims are, of course, conducting impact experiments and observing the entire impact process. Beyond …
From orbit, Titan is beautiful and intriguing. But what about from the ground? One of our latest articles explores what it might be like to stand (or fly, or swim) on Saturn’s moon Titan. From hydrocarbon seas to plastic sand dunes and chubby rain, there’s …
From Gonzalo Fornas of Spain: “Thanks to the new camera, we’ve reported more measurements of NEOs to the Minor Planet Center, we're on the alert list for near-Earth asteroids "Meerkat" by the ESA, we’ve measured light curves of asteroids and …
Titan is the only moon in the Solar System with a thick atmosphere, which completely obscures its surface at visible wavelengths. But unlike Venus, whose dense atmosphere creates crushing pressure at the surface, atmospheric pressure on Titan is only about …
The Planetary Society’s Shoemaker NEO Grants fund efforts to find, track, and characterize near-Earth objects to help protect our planet from hazardous impacts. Many of our grant winners are skilled binary asteroid hunters. Two-time Shoemaker grant …
Planetary defense means knowing asteroids. Whether or not we can deflect a potentially dangerous asteroid could come down to how well we understand what’s barreling toward us. Our new guides bring you the latest on what asteroids are made of — everything …
Asteroid composition is important because it can teach us about the early Solar System. All of the planets and moons we know of have changed since their initial formation, with their surfaces dramatically reshaped by processes like volcanism, erosion, and …
Find somewhere with a relatively open view of the sky and head there several minutes before the ISS passes above. Expect the ISS to rise in the west (the direction the Sun sets in), and consider using Spot the Station to find out exactly what direction it …
Exo! Exo! Read all about ‘em! The latest issue of The Planetary Report is all about exoplanets, the diverse and intriguing worlds that orbit other stars. Read about the latest in the search for Earth-like worlds, meet some superlative-worthy exoplanets, …
“I am saddened to hear this news of Ed Stone's passing, but also grateful to have crossed paths and shared some orbits of the Sun with such a preeminent, impactful, and kind planetary science colleague. I first encountered Ed at JPL during the Voyager …
The rover was on its way to becoming a first for the European and Russian space agencies and a testament to international collaboration in space. The European Space Agency would build the rover and manage the procurement of its scientific instruments, …
Scoring a bulls-eye Just two weeks after impact, NASA confirmed that DART changed the orbit of Dimorphos around Didymos. Whereas it once took Didymos 11 hours and 55 minutes to make an orbit, it now takes 11 hours and 32 minutes. This far exceeded the …
When Drake first proposed this equation, it wasn’t meant to yield a precise, accurate number, only that the result was greater than zero, meaning that it was worth looking for life beyond Earth. All but the first factor were unknown at the time. With the …
