Paul Scott Anderson 
Back in 2005, the first asteroid sample-return mission – Japan’s Hayabusa spacecraft – reached its target, the asteroid Itokawa. In 2010, Hayabusa (Japanese for “peregrine falcon”) arrived back at Earth with its precious cargo of dust samples from the asteroid. In the years since, scientists have …
Jupiter is sometimes called the king of the planets in our Solar System, due to its enormous size. It has some 300 times Earth’s mass. Jupiter is thought to have become the largest planet early in our Solar System’s history. Still, questions remained about how …
When New Horizons sped past Pluto and its moons in July 2015, it revealed some incredible new worlds to explore. They are no longer just very tiny dots of light in the sky, they are actual places, with diverse geological wonders. Now, for the first …
Read MoreMapping new worlds: Researchers release first global maps of Pluto and Charon
The Kepler Space Telescope has revolutionized our understanding of exoplanets, or worlds orbiting other stars. It’s been the most successful planet-hunter by far, so far discovering thousands of exoplanets since 2009, with the promise of more to come. On May 23, 2018, NASA announced that …
This past weekend NASA launched its next mission to Mars, but this one will be a little different than the previous ones. Unlike the rovers Curiosity and Opportunity, both still actively examining rocks and sand on the surface, the new InSight lander won’t go anywhere. …
Read MoreInSight mission launches to study the ‘heart’ of Mars
The James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) may not be launching until 2019, but the first targets for the powerful new observatory have already been chosen, including Jupiter, organic molecules in star-forming clouds and baby galaxies in the distant Universe. JWST is the long-awaited “successor” to the …
Read MoreFrom Jupiter to the Universe: First science targets chosen for James Webb Space Telescope
NASA’s Cassini spacecraft just completed its 17th ring crossing at Saturn, part of the Grand Finale phase of the mission, leaving only 5 more to go before the mission ends on Sept. 15. As before, the ring crossing was a success, with Cassini sending back …
Read MoreOnly 5 ring crossings left as Cassini nears end of historic mission at Saturn