Explorations in 2009
January 14 The Stardust spacecraft got a gravitational “kick” when it flew past Earth. After gathering particles from Comet Wild […]
Explorations of Minor Bodies
Galileo is best known for its reconnaissance of Jupiter. As it transited the asteroid belt en route to Jupiter, though,
Explorations of Outer Planets
Voyager images (clockwise from top left) of Saturn, Jupiter, Uranus, and NeptuneVoyager 1 and 2 conducted a “grand tour” of
Explorations of the Inner Solar System
Lunar farside, 1959In 1962, the American Mariner 2 staged the first successful encounter with another planet when it flew past
Why can’t we see stars in the pictures of spacewalking or moonwalking astronauts?
The stars aren’t visible because they are too faint. The astronauts in their white spacesuits appear quite bright, so they
Why can’t we see stars in the pictures of spacewalking or moonwalking astronauts? Read More »
Our Star, the Sun
The Sun was born about 4.6 billion years ago from the gravitational collapse of a vast cloud of gas and
What causes the bright halo that sometimes surrounds the Moon?
This bright ring of light is quite common. It’s related to the same process that creates rainbows: refraction. In this
What causes the bright halo that sometimes surrounds the Moon? Read More »
Are there shortcuts through space?
According to Albert Einstein’s Theory of General Relativity, it is feasible in areas of intensely strong gravity to create “wormholes”
What is the nearest star?
Of course, the nearest star to Earth is the one we see every day — our dear old Sun. At
How big is the solar system?
The farthest known object orbiting our Sun is a ball of ice and rock unofficially called FarFarOut, which lies about