HomeThe Planetary Science Journal

The Planetary Science Journal

Saturn's moon Titan

Saturn’s moon- Titan, could harbor only a tiny amount of life

Life-supporting energy and nutrients on Titan could come from its surface and core. Organic matter from Titan's atmosphere deposits on the surface, and as...

Full Moon / A full moon is the lunar phase that occurs when the Moon.

Moon is not as “geologically dead” as previously thought

Study found evidence of relatively recent activity.

"Spiders" in the southern hemisphere

NASA scientists recreated Mars’ ‘spiders’ in a lab

Tests on Earth appear to confirm how the Red Planet’s spider-shaped geologic formations are carved.

NASA’s DART Impact Permanently Changed the Shape and Orbit of Asteroid Moon

NASA’s DART mission alters Asteroid Moon’s shape and orbit

Insights on the geophysics behind asteroid formation and evolution.

water molecules on the surface of an asteroid

Water molecule found on Asteroid for the first time

A feature that is unambiguously attributed to molecular water.

The epicenter of one of the strongest moonquakes

Moon shrinking causes moonquakes and faults near lunar south pole

Shallow moonquakes capable of producing strong ground shaking in the south polar region.

Mercury’s north polar chaotic terrain

Evidence of potential salt glaciers on planet Mercury

Unveiling mercury’s geological mysteries.

The large mound structures that dominate one of the lobes of the Kuiper belt object Arrokoth are similar enough to suggest a common origin, according to a new study led by Southwest Research Institute (SwRI) Planetary Scientist and Associate Vice President Dr. Alan Stern

Large mounds on Kuiper belt object Arrokoth may have a common origin

These “building blocks” could guide further work on planetesimal formational models.

Image showing sun and mercury

How the solar wind interacts with Mercury’s surface?

New insight into how interactions with the Sun alters the surface and produces Mercury’s very thin atmosphere.

asteroid Phaethon being heated by the Sun

Asteroid’s comet-like tail is not made of dust

A weird asteroid has just gotten a little weirder.

a signal or “light signature” of water

The first detailed, wide-area map of water distribution on the Moon

A new map reveals the distribution of Water near the Moon's south pole.

oxygen aurora on Jupiter’s moon Ganymede

New Aurorae detected on Jupiter’s four largest moons

The team detected aurorae at visible wavelengths.

Saturn's moon Enceladus

What it would take to discover life on Saturn’s icy moon Enceladus?

Enceladus is a hot candidate for potentially harboring alien life.

Maat Mons

Massive volcanism may have transformed ancient Venus’ climate

Massive volcanism may have altered ancient Venus’ climate.

Jupiter’s moon Europa

Shallow lakes in Europa’s Icy Crust could erupt

Any plumes or volcanic activity at the Jovian moon’s surface are caused by shallow lakes in its icy crust.

Sharpest Earth-based images of Europa and Ganymede

Sharpest Earth-based images of Europa and Ganymede reveal their icy landscape

The cocktail of chemicals that make up the frozen surfaces on two of Jupiter's largest moons are revealed.

Info graphic which shows what effects the collision of DART could have on the orbit of Didymos B

World’s first full-scale planetary defense test against potential asteroid impacts

A giant asteroid's impact is considered the likely cause of the mass extinction of the dinosaurs almost 66 million years ago. While there is no...

moon's snakelike Schroeter's Valley

Ancient moon volcanoes may one day provide astronauts with drinkable water

Roughly 41% of the water from volcanoes may have condensed onto the moon as ice.

Venus might be habitable today, if not for Jupiter

Venus might be habitable today, if not for Jupiter

Study shows destabilizing effect of the giant gas planet.

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