Solar system

NASA sees two paths for saving its beleaguered plan to retrieve materials from the Red Planet but won’t choose between them until 2026

Pluto and its largest moon Charon could have come together via a 10-hour “kiss-and-capture” encounter after a grazing collision

The familiar zodiac constellations are defined by Earth’s motion around the sun, but they don’t define your fate

According to a tenet scientists call the cosmological principle, our place in space is in no way exceptional. But recent observations could overturn this long-held assumption

The Parker Solar Probe will swoop just 6.1 million kilometers above the sun’s surface on Christmas Eve. Scientists are thrilled at what we might learn

The moon may have melted 4.35 billion years ago—explaining a lunar age mystery

Material from asteroid Ryugu riddled with earthly microbes provides a cautionary tale for scientists seeking signs of alien life

The celestial equivalent to latitude and longitude lets astronomers find their way across the heavens

While contending with lingering hardware issues for its crewed lunar plans, the U.S. space agency projects confidence and urgency in a time of transition

NASA’s presumptive next leader, billionaire private astronaut Jared Isaacman, already has big plans for the space agency

“Twilight rays” are but one of several viewing treats for the liminal time between day and night

The far side of the moon offers grounds for compromise between advocates and opponents of lunar development