Find uplifting stories about heroes, innovations, and solutions
31 results for "planetary science"
NASA's James Webb Space Telescope just captured the most detailed 3D view ever of Uranus' upper atmosphere, revealing how its bizarre tilted magnetic field creates sweeping auroras unlike anywhere else in our solar system. The findings could help us understand distant planets beyond our own cosmic neighborhood.
Astronomers have discovered a rare planetary system in its "adolescent" phase, offering the first real look at how planets transform from youth to maturity. The 210-million-year-old system is shedding light on a cosmic mystery scientists have never been able to study before.
The James Webb Space Telescope mapped Uranus's glowing pink auroras across a full day, revealing how the ice giant's strange tilted magnetic field shapes its atmosphere. These stunning observations bring us closer to understanding the galaxy's most common type of planet.
NASA's James Webb Space Telescope just captured the most detailed view ever of Uranus's upper atmosphere, revealing how auroras dance across the ice giant's surface in ways unlike anywhere else in our solar system. The breakthrough is helping scientists understand mysterious distant planets beyond our own cosmic neighborhood.
Scientists discovered Earth's magnetic field took up to 70,000 years to flip during one ancient reversal—seven times longer than expected. The finding helps us understand how our planet's protective shield has protected life through history.
Scientists used the James Webb Space Telescope to create the first three-dimensional map of Uranus's upper atmosphere, revealing how energy moves through the ice giant and shaping our understanding of distant planets. The groundbreaking observations captured a full rotation of the planet and discovered how its unusual magnetic field creates sweeping auroras.
NASA is sending a car-sized helicopter to Saturn's moon Titan in 2028, and it will start flying before it even touches the ground. The Dragonfly mission will explore one of the most mysterious worlds in our solar system when it arrives in 2034. ---
Scientists used the James Webb Space Telescope to create the first-ever video of Uranus spinning through space, revealing dancing auroras shaped by the planet's unusual magnetic field. The breakthrough gives us an unprecedented look at one of the solar system's most mysterious atmospheres.
Astronomers discovered a puzzling solar system 116 light-years away where a rocky planet orbits farthest from its star, defying expectations and offering fresh clues about how planets come to be. This rare finding could rewrite what we know about planetary birth.
Scientists used the James Webb Space Telescope to create the first 3D maps of Uranus's auroras, revealing how energy moves through the planet's strange, tilted magnetic field. The breakthrough could help us understand distant worlds beyond our solar system.
Scientists now believe Saturn's iconic rings could have formed when two ancient moons collided 100 million years ago, creating Titan and triggering cosmic chain reactions. The discovery solves multiple mysteries about Saturn's strange tilt and its unusual moon family.
Scientists discovered a solar system that flips our understanding of how planets form, with a rocky planet orbiting beyond gas giants in a pattern never seen before. The finding could reshape what we know about planetary birth around the universe's most common stars.
Astronomers discovered four planets orbiting a small star in a pattern never seen before: rocky, gaseous, gaseous, then rocky again. The find challenges everything scientists thought they knew about how planets form around stars.
Scientists discovered two massive zones of superheated rock deep inside Earth that help control our planet's protective magnetic shield. This breakthrough explains mysteries about how Earth stays geologically active and magnetically protected.
Scientists just discovered Jupiter contains far more oxygen than anyone expected, using new technology to peer beneath the gas giant's violent clouds. The finding helps solve mysteries about how our solar system formed billions of years ago.
For the first time in years, NASA's Curiosity rover turned on LED lights to photograph a Martian drill site at night, revealing hidden rock textures scientists couldn't see in daylight. The experiment worked so well it could change how future Mars missions study the Red Planet.
%2Fhttps%3A%2F%2Ftf-cmsv2-smithsonianmag-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Ffiler_public%2Fc5%2F21%2Fc521706d-f428-493f-b754-947d50a77b7b%2Fbeautiful-frost-pattern-window.jpg)
Researchers squeezed water between diamonds at extreme pressure and discovered a new form of ice that could exist on Jupiter's and Saturn's icy moons. This breakthrough might help us understand where life could emerge in our solar system.
Scientists found the strongest evidence yet that Mars once held an ocean half the size of the Red Planet. The discovery suggests ancient Mars could have supported life.
Scientists discovered that Mars, despite being just one-tenth Earth's mass, plays a surprisingly important role in keeping our planet's climate cycles stable. This finding could change how we search for habitable worlds beyond our solar system.
The James Webb Space Telescope captured the most detailed view ever of the Helix Nebula, showing how a dying star transforms into the building blocks for new planets. The stunning image reveals what could happen to our own Sun billions of years from now.
Showing 20 of 31