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Moon

The Space Launch System rocket lifted off from Cape Canaveral, Florida, early Wednesday morning, kicking off NASA's Artemis moon program.

The Revolution in Moon Exploration

NASA Launches Artemis 1 in Giant Leap Toward Returning to the Moon

The historic event has brought humanity one step closer to walking again on the lunar surface

HAARP's antennas

Why Scientists Are Sending Radio Signals to the Moon and Jupiter

Researchers conducted wide-ranging experiments at Alaska’s HAARP facility, known for atmospheric research and conspiracy theories

NASA’s Volatiles Investigating Polar Exploration Rover, or VIPER, will seek out ice deposits in the craters of the lunar South Pole.

The Revolution in Moon Exploration

These Five Innovative Rovers Will Soon Explore the Moon

From a team of mini-bots launched by a catapult to a remote-control golf-cart-sized vehicle, these robots will help us understand the moon’s geology

The Apollo 11 Command Module Columbia, the only part of the spacecraft from the first moon-landing expedition to return to Earth, is on view with the space suit that Neil Armstrong wore when he walked on the moon in July 1969.

A New Look for the National Air and Space Museum

The Incredible Technology That Made Humanity’s Moon Dreams a Reality

A new, completely reimagined exhibition goes beyond the Cold War narrative to explore the full story of lunar landings

Asteroid moonlet Dimorphos as seen by the DART spacecraft 11 seconds before impact. 

NASA Successfully Altered an Asteroid’s Orbit

The agency’s DART mission exceeded expectations, marking the first time humans have changed the trajectory of a celestial body

Mangroves in Northern Australia

World’s Largest Mangrove Die-Off Was Likely Aided by the Moon

A lunar “wobble” affects tides, creating a cycle of growth and dieback for these carbon-sequestering trees

NASA's Double Asteroid Redirection Test (DART) spacecraft launched in November 2021 in California, riding atop a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket.   

NASA Successfully Crashed a Spacecraft Into Its Asteroid Target

The Double Asteroid Redirection Test (DART) is a first step toward defending Earth from threatening space rocks

The Space Launch System Rocket on the pad on August 17

The Revolution in Moon Exploration

Artemis 1 Launch Postponed Again and What Else You Need to Know About the Mission

NASA’s historic return to the moon will begin when the rocket takes off from Florida

A mannequin named after Arturo Campos is headed into space on NASA's now-postponed Artemis 1 mission.

How Artemis 1 Honors an Apollo 13 Hero—and a Champion for Diversity in Space

A mannequin that will orbit the moon is named for Arturo Campos, a Mexican-American electrical engineer who worked on several NASA missions

An artist’s rendering of astronauts working near NASA’s Artemis base camp, complete with a rover and RV.

The Revolution in Moon Exploration

Four Things We’ve Learned About NASA’s Planned Base Camp on the Moon

Eventually the station will allow astronauts to spend up to two months on the lunar surface

An illustration of a suited astronaut looking out of a Moon lander hatch across the lunar surface.

The Revolution in Moon Exploration

The Revolution in Moon Exploration

In a series of in-depth features, Smithsonian magazine reports on humanity’s renewed push to understand the moon.

One reader wonders: Why do we see the Moon during the day and not the Sun at night?

Why Can We See the Moon During the Day? And More Questions From Our Readers

You’ve got questions. We’ve got experts.

View from above of a pit crater in an area of the Moon called Mare Tranquillitatis, or “Sea of Tranquility”.

The Revolution in Moon Exploration

Lunar Pits Maintain Surprisingly Comfy Temperatures

Scientists found caves under the surface of the Moon that stay around 63 degrees Fahrenheit day and night

The spacecraft will study the moon for at least a year.

The Revolution in Moon Exploration

South Korea to Send Its First Mission to the Moon

The unmanned spacecraft will launch next week and begin to orbit the moon in mid-December

Aldrin's Apollo 11 inflight coverall jacket

These Objects Tell the Story of Buzz Aldrin’s Career

The astronaut is auctioning off his moon-landing jacket and other space gear

The plants in lunar soil were compared to a control group of plants grown in volcanic ash and a lunar soil simulant known as JSC-1A. The lunar samples on the right do not appear as developed as the control samples grown in volcanic ash on the left.

Innovation for Good

Scientists Prove That Plants Can Grow in Soil From the Moon

The experiment is a milestone in the path to helping humans one day experience extended stays on the lunar surface

Each sample in the redesigned facility is handled with gloves in a sealed, nitrogen-free box and stored inside a walk-in freezer kept at minus 20 degrees Celsius.

Fifty Years Later, Researchers Unbox Samples From Apollo 17

The lunar surface material was kept in a freezer at NASA’s Johnson Space Center since December 1972

This device can accelerate from 0 to 60 mph in 30 feet per second. 

Robot Jumps a Record-Breaking 100 Feet in the Air

The device can launch three times higher than the current record for a robotic leap

Reseachers tested out the backpack dubbed KNaCK in a volcanic field in New Mexico, and are hoping the tech can support astronaunts on future lunar missions.

Innovation for Good

Lunar Backpack Could Aid Astronauts on Future Missions to the Moon

The pack can create 3-D maps in real-time of uncharted terrain

Europa became an interest to researchers as a place that potentially could harbor life after observations from Earth-bound telescopes and space probes found evidence of an ocean 10 to 15 miles beneath the icy surface. This drawing illustrates a possible water pocket within the ice that may contribute to ridges forming on the moon's surface.

Europa’s Icy Shell May Be Habitable for Life

The moon of Jupiter could have shallow water pockets within its frozen surface

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