Space News & Blog Articles

It wasn't aliens after all — an astrochemist and an astronomer have teamed up to explain why the interstellar object 1I/'Oumuamua behaved the way it did.

Prebiotic compounds previously found in meteorites have now turned up in pristine samples from the asteroid Ryugu, confirming their extraterrestrial origin.

A large elliptical galaxy spewing a black hole–powered jet might have eaten its neighbors, leaving it on its own.

The European Space Agency is working to get its ambitious Mars rover back on track after complex delays.

The crescent Moon visits Venus. The Orange Triangle turns nearly equilateral. And as evening grows late, Arcturus begins to dominate the low northeast. It's turning spring.

After decades of searching, scientists have finally found a clear sign of active volcanism on Venus.

Newly discovered Comet C/2023 A3 might reach naked-eye brightness when it flies past Earth in 2024. Check out our forecast of what to expect to see in the months ahead.

Phone battery dead? Learn how to tell time with the Big Dipper. Also, don't miss a remarkable transit of Ceres in front of the bright spiral galaxy M100.

The newest observations will help astronomers understand a planetary-scale wave in the atmosphere of our sister planet.

Astronomers studying the water vapor around a newborn star find that it’s chemically similar to ice in solar system comets, a possible source of Earth’s oceans.

Venus and Jupiter widen in twilight. Mars, Aldebaran, and Betelgeuse form a triangle of similar orange sparkles. And there's lots to explore with optical aid off the trailing foot of Gemini, including the Toes.

New research shows diamonds might condense out of Neptune's mantle, but not Uranus', explaining a decades-old discrepancy.

Two decades of observations show a dusty gas cloud elongating as it approaches our galaxy's supermassive black hole.

When skies are cloudy, sucker holes may offer us a view — albeit often only a brief one — of the universe overhead.

Venus and Jupiter draw majestically apart in the evening twilight, 1° farther each day. Much higher, Mars makes its third pass in the last five months between the horntip stars of Taurus.

An accounting of satellite streaks across two decades of Hubble Space Telescopes finds their appearance is increasing.

A planet-hunting consortium is marking five successful years by releasing data on more than 50 worlds.

Five new studies give a full accounting of the aftermath of the impact of NASA's DART mission on a nearby asteroid.

These are the nights to get ready for the aurorae — and tonight may be your lucky night. Not only is the current solar cycle swiftly intensifying, March is one of the best times of the year to see the northern lights.

As the Northern Hemisphere edges toward the March equinox and beyond, stargazers have an abundance of brilliant stars overhead as darkness falls. Anchoring the celestial parade is Orion, the Hunter. Download or listen to this month’s Sky Tour to learn about — and how to spot — the Winter Hexagon of big, beautiful winter stars.

Astronomers have taken a closer look at a system containing three stars and five planets and may have solved a mystery around its formation.