Until recently, magnetic fields in the outskirts of galaxies were too faint to be detected. Although it's still not clear what causes them or how they're maintained, astronomers have started to create images of their observations of galaxies' magnetic fields producing beautiful aurora-like effects. See them here.
Astronomers have spotted “something” near Alpha Centauri A, in the star system nearest our Earth and sun. If it turns out to be a planet, it'll be the first time a planet has been directly imaged within the habitable zone of a star.
The Chinese Tianwen-1 mission to Mars successfully entered Mars orbit on February 10, 2021, only one day after the United Arab Emirates mission Hope arrived at the red planet on February 9. They'll be followed soon by NASA's Perseverance mission which is set to arrive and land on February 18.
New research suggests that particles escaping from Mars' atmosphere have been accumulating on the surface of the planet's largest moon Phobos for billions of years. They could provide important new details about the history of both worlds.
During a White House press briefing on February 4, 2021, White House press secretary Jen Psaki confirmed the Biden administration's support fo NASA's Artemis program, whose long-term goal is to send the next man and first woman to the moon by 2024.
A new study of data from NASA's bountiful Cassini mission shows that Titan's largest methane sea, Kraken Mare, is at least 1,000 feet - 300 meters - deep near its center. That's plenty of room for a future robotic submarine to explore.