Planetary science — discoveries, surface data, atmospheres, and what we know about our solar system.
Mercury is shrinking faster than we thought. What's going on inside of it?
Mercury is contracting at a rate roughly twice faster than planetary scientists previously calculated, according to new analysis of the planet's disti…
New Research Shows How Mercury's Crust Formed by Extreme Volcanism
Scientists have cracked a long-standing puzzle about Mercury's geology by using lunar samples to decode the planet's ancient volcanic history. The bre…
NASA’s Hubble Tracks New Decagon Encircling Saturn’s South Pole
NASA's Hubble Space Telescope has detected an enormous, 10-sided atmospheric wave encircling Saturn's south pole, marking a rare and puzzling addition…
Astronomers discover mysterious 10-sided cloud structure at Saturn's south pole
A colossal 10-sided geometric cloud pattern has materialized around Saturn's south pole, marking an unexpected atmospheric phenomenon that challenges …
ESA JUICE probe targets dark Jovian moon Kallichore in 2031
The European Space Agency's JUICE probe has plotted a course to investigate Kallichore, one of Jupiter's diminutive and poorly understood irregular mo…
Pluto losing its planet status may be the best thing that ever happened to solar system diversity
Pluto's reclassification as a dwarf planet in 2006 ranks among the most misunderstood decisions in astronomy. What appeared to the public as a demotio…