Scientists Thought Mars’s North Polar Ice Was 25% Dust. They Were Way Off
When NASA’s Mars Phoenix mission successfully sampled ice from the Martian arctic regions, it made astrobiological history. This…
In July 2028 NASA launches a car-sized, 1,000-pound nuclear drone toward Saturn’s moon Titan, a six-year, $3.35 billion trip to a world where the air is four times denser than Earth’s, gravity is one-seventh as strong, and flying is the easy part.
The upcoming Dragonfly mission is unlike any planetary mission NASA has ever attempted. Instead of another slow-moving rover,…
Astronomers Detect Sugar in Interstellar Space for the First Time
Astronomers have long suspected that sugar exists in deep space—frontiers beyond our solar system. That hypothesis was proven…
Scientists Challenge a Fundamental Assumption About Consciousness
Could consciousness exist without a brain like ours? Philosophers at the University of California, Riverside argue that consciousness…
NASA Moon Base Could Become Earth’s First Defense Against Alien Microbes
Scientists say the Moon could serve as Earth’s first biological shield by housing a secure facility for quarantining…
Why Mars May Remain Uninhabitable for Centuries
Realistic image of a completely terraformed Mars. Credit: Daein Ballard Making Mars Earthlike is not impossible in principle,…
Scientists Just Found All 5 Genetic “Letters” of DNA and RNA on an Asteroid
Ryugu sample in its return capsule. Credit: JAXA The discovery of all five nucleobases on Ryugu strengthens the…
NASA Finds New Way Earth May Have Received Elements Needed for Life
NASA-supported scientists have provided new information about how the early Earth may have acquired some elements necessary for…
NASA Research Shows Early Life Relied on Rare Metal
NASA-funded scientists have discovered that life on Earth over 3 billion years ago relied on the metal molybdenum,…
Scientists Stunned by New Organic Molecules Found on Mars
NASA’s Curiosity Mars rover took this selfie at a location nicknamed “Mary Anning” after a 19th century English…
Why Most Alien Worlds May Be Too Dry for Life
This image of Venus taken by NASA’s Mariner 10 spacecraft (left) is paired with an artist’s depiction of…
NASA’s Perseverance, Curiosity Panoramas Capture Two Sides of Mars
Learn how NASA’s Curiosity and Perseverance Mars rovers are exploring different chapters of the Red Planet’s ancient history.…