An artist’s impression of ten hot planets similar to Jupiter outside our solar system that scientists have detected. Creative liberties were taken for the colors of the planets, which are currently unknown. The exception is the top-right one, which is known to sport a blue exterior.

From Worlds That Look Like Cotton Candy to Others Covered in Volcanoes, These Are the Strangest and Most Captivating Exoplanets

Scientists are using an array of instruments to detect other planets, some of which may harbor life—and others that most definitely don’t

How do space programs get their names?

How Do Space Programs Get Their Names? And More Questions From Our Readers

You’ve got questions. We’ve got experts

Don’t let the placid and bland surface fool you—Uranus is a singularly dynamic planet.

The Six Most Amazing Discoveries We’ve Made by Exploring Uranus

Its bland exterior belies a dynamic world full of surprises

SATED can cook a perfectly crisp pizza in a low- to no-gravity environment.

Could This Space Oven Allow Astronauts to Finally Cook in Space?

An aerospace engineer has invented an appliance that can whip up quiches, pizzas and more in a zero-gravity environment

Apollo Lunar Sample Container No. 1008, triple-sealed, in which the Apollo 12 astronauts transported invaluable samples of moon back to Earth.

The Otherwise Unremarkable ‘Rock Boxes’ That Brought Pieces of the Moon Back to Earth

Far from ordinary, it took a cutting-edge NASA design to safeguard these treasures during the Apollo missions

Are humans the only species to drive another to extinction?

Are Humans the Only Species to Drive Others to Extinction? And More Questions From Our Readers

You’ve got questions. We’ve got experts

The MeerKAT radio telescope, part of a 64-antenna array located in South Africa, was used in the recent detection of long-wavelength gravitational waves.

Astronomers Suspect Colliding Supermassive Black Holes Left the Universe Awash in Gravitational Waves

Radio telescopes tracking signals from spinning, ultra-dense stars point to ripples in the fabric of space

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There's More to That

Why Auroras Are Suddenly Everywhere All at Once

Auroras have long mystified humanity. Now that we know what they are and why they happen, we can better predict how best to experience them

Find your nearest dark-sky site and mark your calendars for these stunning astronomical spectacles in 2025.

11 Dazzling Celestial Events to See in 2025, From a Total Lunar Eclipse to Rare Planetary Alignments

Keep your eyes on the sky this upcoming year for a chance to spot breathtaking meteor showers, a special view of Saturn and a blood-red moon

A photo of Neptune, taken by the Voyager 2 probe, with the colors rebalanced to represent its truest appearance

The Six Most Amazing Discoveries We’ve Made About Neptune

Despite the lack of a dedicated mission to the planet, scientists have learned plenty through ground observations and space telescopes

Analysis of the Bullet Cluster, which was formed after two large clusters of galaxies collided, supports the existence of dark matter.

After Decades of Searching, Are Physicists Closing In on Dark Matter?

With no conclusive laboratory results, researchers are turning to other methods to find the elusive substance

A color-enhanced photo of Pluto that was captured by the New Horizons spacecraft in 2015

The Seven Most Amazing Discoveries We’ve Made About Pluto

Though technically not a planet, it has as rich geology as any of its planetary siblings in the solar system

An artist’s depiction of NASA’s Europa Clipper spacecraft

NASA Launches Europa Clipper to Search for Signs of Life on Jupiter’s Moon

The huge spacecraft is headed toward the icy moon Europa, where it will use an array of instruments to survey for geologic activity, magnetism and more

The Milky Way lights up a night sky accented by the bright stars of the “summer triangle.”

How to Find the Ten Brightest Stars in the Night Sky

From Aldebaran to Vega, these gleaming beacons dazzle Northern Hemisphere viewers at various times of the year and provide a useful entry point into amateur astronomy

Saturn, the second-largest planet in our solar system, is best known for its layered rings.

The Seven Most Interesting Discoveries We’ve Made by Exploring Saturn

Scientists continue to learn new things about the planet, its sweeping rings and its many moons

The tinfoil-covered vial at right holds about four grams of an asteroid brought to Earth from deep space. It may also hold the key to how life began here. The vial at left holds ground-up quartz that will act as a control in chemical investigations.

Inside Scientists’ Quest to Find the Secrets of Life in Four Grams of Asteroid Dust

NASA researchers are scrutinizing rocks and dirt brought to Earth from the asteroid Bennu

Apollo 11 astronaut Buzz Aldrin deploys a device to detect moonquakes during the first moonwalk.

Thousands of Moonquakes Rocked the Apollo Landing Sites in Less Than a Decade

A new study found 22,000 previously unidentified lunar seismic events recorded between 1969 and 1977

Apollo 11 astronauts watched the Earth rise above the moon’s horizon on July 20, 1969.

Apollo Astronauts Left American Flags, Boots and Even Poop on the Moon. Here’s Why These Artifacts Matter

Fifty-five years after the first human lunar landing, scholars and experts are looking to preserve the past as more nations and companies undertake moon missions

Could different backyard birds, such as a robin and a bluebird, produce viable offspring? 

Could a Robin and a Bluebird Have Babies? And More Questions From Our Readers

You’ve got questions. We’ve got experts

The Milky Way spreads across the night sky above the Vera C. Rubin Observatory. 

This Revolutionary New Observatory Will Locate Threatening Asteroids and Millions of Galaxies

Beginning next year, the Vera C. Rubin Observatory will use the world’s largest digital camera to give us a whole new view of the universe

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