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Map of ancient volcano on Mars

Solar System

Giant Ancient Volcano Discovered on Mars

Scientists have identified a colossal volcano on Mars using satellite imagery. It was undetected for decades due to extensive erosion.

Phobos over Mars

Solar System

Icy Impactor Might Explain the Formation of Mars’s Moons

In a new study, scientists suggest an impact with a giant icy object could explain the formation of Mars's moons, Phobos and Deimos.

Titan art

Solar System

Methane Icebergs Could Float in Titan’s Seas

The “magic islands” that appear and disappear in Titan’s methane-ethane seas could be hydrocarbon icebergs, a new study finds.

Galaxies

“Rogue Black Hole” Could Be Something Much Simpler

An unusual streak of stars thought to have formed in the wake of a wandering supermassive black hole might just be a spiral galaxy seen edge-on.

solar flare

Solar System

The Sun's Ramping Up Activity — But Still Weaker Than in the Past

The Sun has recently experienced an uptick in activity, with lots of sunspots accompanied by flares, coronal mass ejections, and visible auroras — but experts still expect a mild solar cycle.

a light grey circle with tentrils coming off it against a dark grey background

Solar System

85,000 Volcanoes Mapped on Venus

A new catalog pinpoints volcanic cones in the best available surface images of Venus – those gathered 30 years ago by NASA’s Magellan spacecraft.

full Moon

Learning About the Sky

Native American Full Moon Names for 2023

Native American tribes each had their own full Moon names — we introduce the most commonly used ones and the traditions behind them.

Solar nebula

Solar System

Meteorite Evidence Suggests Earth’s Water Was Here Before Earth Was

Where did Earth’s water come from? One of the oldest meteorites on Earth is adding new pieces to an old puzzle.

Arabia Terra from orbit

Solar System

Mars Hosted Supervolcanoes in the Ancient Past

Scientists have found massive ash deposits that formed over millions of years of volcanic super-eruptions, the first evidence for such explosive activity on Mars.

Solar System

NASA’s Curiosity Takes Step Toward Solving Mars Methane Mystery

New measurements from NASA’s Curiosity rover show that methane concentrations near the Martian surface vary on a daily cycle. The finding could help reconcile conflicting data.

Young solar system

Solar System

Radioactive Aluminum Sheds Light on Solar System History

Astronomers thought giant stars were reponsible for flooding the early system with a radioative isotope — but the Sun itself might have made it.

Magma ocean and crust

Solar System

Long-lived Lunar Magma Ocean Points to a Younger Moon

Most lunar scientists today think that the Moon formed after a Mars-size body hit the still-forming Earth, launching enough material into orbit to form our satellite. But there is still lively debate about the age of the Moon, and its evolution after it formed. A Mars-size body smashed into Earth…

Chaotic terrain on Mercury

Solar System

Why Have Parts of Mercury's Landscape "Deflated"?

A type of landscape on Mercury known as “chaotic terrain” might have released materials stored underground for eons.

Solar System

New Horizons Reveals Full Picture of Arrokoth...and How Planets Form

New Horizon’s flyby of Arrokoth, a planetesimal in the Kuiper Belt, reveals a pristine object untouched since the solar system’s origin. Its shape and geology show that planetesimals form more gently than previously thought.

Venus in false-color

Solar System

The Clouds of Venus Puzzle Scientists

Japan’s Akatsuki spacecraft has revealed some previously unknown dynamics in the Venusian atmosphere, but their origin is far from clear.

Curiosity selfie

Solar System

A Possible Solution to Mars’s Methane Problem

A small amount of seepage could explain conflicting measurements of methane in the Martian atmosphere.

Two planets colliding

Solar System

Could a Long-Ago Collision Explain Our Two-Faced Moon?

New research shows that a planetoid impact could have made our Moon asymmetric.

Taurus-Littrow Valley

Solar System

Apollo-era Data Reveal Moon’s Tectonic Activity

A new look at old seismic data gathered during the Apollo missions reveals young active faults as a possible origin of shallow moonquakes.

Seismometer on NASA's Insight lander

Solar System

What the First Marsquake Means for NASA's Insight

After two months, InSight’s seismometer has picked up the first rumblings in Martian soil. Turns out marsquakes may be less frequent than thought.

ExoMars Trace Gas Orbiter looks for methane (art)

Solar System

The Martian Methane Mystery Continues

The most advanced instrument ever sent to Mars to study its atmosphere has failed to find any methane after months of searching.

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