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Exoplanet-hunter TESS completes its primary mission
NASA's 2nd planet-hunter, TESS, has spent 2 years surveying the sky for exoplanets orbiting distant stars. It has found over 2,000 exoplanets so far. TESS now moves into its extended mission phase.
August 16, 2020
Ceres’ bright spots come from salty water below
The mysterious bright spots on Ceres caused a sensation when the Dawn spacecraft first spied them in 2015. Now, they're known to be salt deposits from a recent or ongoing percolation of briny water from a large reservoir in Ceres' interior.
August 14, 2020
Astronomers spy a Milky Way look-alike 12 billion light-years away
This distant galaxy - SPT0418-47 - surprised astronomers by being organized enough to have a spinning disk and a galactic bulge, early in the history of our universe.
August 13, 2020
Arecibo Observatory damaged by broken lashing cable
The new damage to Arecibo, caused by the heavy cable, happened while repairs from 2017's Hurricane Maria were still ongoing.
August 12, 2020
Surprising number of exoplanets could host life
A new study suggests that distant stars in our Milky Way galaxy might be orbited by as many as 7 Earth-like planets, in the absence of a gas giant planet like Jupiter.
August 11, 2020
Images show Martian night sky pulsing with ultraviolet light
Vast areas of Mars’ nightside atmosphere glow and pulsate with ultraviolet light, according to images from NASA’s MAVEN spacecraft.
August 11, 2020
A deep, giant cloud disruption found on Venus
Researchers have discovered a giant atmospheric wave-like phenomenon in Venus' lower atmosphere, unlike anything else seen in the solar system. Evidence shows it has existed since at least 1983, but went completely undetected until now.
August 10, 2020
A surprising spiral around a planet factory
A new image of the planet-forming disk around the young star RU Lup reveals a beautiful and unexpected massive spiral of gas, reminiscent of a spiral galaxy.
August 9, 2020
Mars big as the moon on August 27?
We can't believe it. One of the most popular articles at EarthSky this week is the one asking, will Mars be as big as the moon on August 27? Short answer … no. This hoax has been circulating since 2003.
August 7, 2020
Could ice sheets, not rivers, have formed the channels on Mars?
New research suggests that many of Mars' ancient channels, thought to have been carved by flowing surface water, were formed instead by meltwater beneath glacial ice sheets.
August 7, 2020
