Solar system

Wispy whorls on the moon’s surface are as lovely as they are strange. Scientists are starting to unravel their origins

Even Earth’s mightiest telescopes aren’t up to the task of imaging Apollo lunar landing sites. A lack of resolution is the biggest reason why

The Polaris Dawn mission—a partnership between SpaceX and billionaire Jared Isaacman—will soar to historic heights and attempt the first-ever commercial spacewalk

Surging solar activity means enormous sunspots are in the space-weather forecast. Here’s how to view them safely

New evidence points to a carbonaceous asteroid from the outer solar system as the culprit for Earth’s most recent mass extinction

An underground Martian ocean could hold enough liquid to cover the Red Planet with a mile of water

Early risers get a double sky treat: a Mars and Jupiter conjunction and the Perseid meteor shower will occur at once

Reports of Earth-orbiting astronauts glimpsing the Great Wall of China and many other artificial structures are wildly exaggerated, but humanity’s planetary influence isn’t entirely invisible from afar

A former space agency official argues that cutting a robotic explorer pulls the scientific teeth from the Artemis program

There’s more than one way for a star to die. Some go with a whimper, and some go with a very, very big bang

Activity on the sun heats up as the solar cycle progresses

NASA’s NEOWISE telescope has searched for asteroids, brown dwarfs and luminous galaxies. The spacecraft will soon burn up in Earth’s atmosphere