
Future moon missions probably won't carry astronauts - here's why
8 July 2019
Unlike the Apollo missions, the new era of moon exploration might be about mining, tourism or art. The reason we pick to return will define the moon's future

8 July 2019
Unlike the Apollo missions, the new era of moon exploration might be about mining, tourism or art. The reason we pick to return will define the moon's future

19 December 2017
Before artificial lights blinded our sight, reports of nights as bright as day were common. What lay behind the phenomenon was a mystery – until now

25 October 2017
An icy comet just hurtled past the sun on a strange path that suggests it came from outside our solar system, making it the first such interloper we've ever spotted

2 October 2017
The mystery of how water on Mars lasted for millions of years may come down to methane explosions that warmed the planet enough to melt ice and make rivers flow

11 September 2017
The Cassini spacecraft is passing by Titan on its final nosedive into Saturn. Plenty has been revealed about Saturn’s largest moon on Cassini’s 20-year mission

6 September 2017
Multicoloured patchwork ponds in this desert play a key part in tapping sources of potassium chloride, a vital fertiliser

4 September 2017
A 4.4-kilometre-wide space rock whizzed past Earth on its closest orbit in over a century. This asteroid won’t get this close again until after 2500

30 August 2017
Galactic winds once thought to slow star formation may be driving the creation of new stars in distant galaxies, challenging long held beliefs about galaxy evolution

30 August 2017
Six centuries ago, Korean astronomers recorded a bright spot in the night sky. A 25-year hunt for that star has settled a debate about how classical novae behave

31 May 2017
Many rocky worlds may have spent time as a newly named planetary form called a synestia – a loosely connected blob of molten rock and dust with a dented middle