Scientists uncover origins of the Sun’s swirling spicules

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At any given moment, as many as 10 million wild jets of solar material burst from the sun’s surface. They erupt as fast as 60 miles per second, and can reach lengths of 6,000 miles before collapsing. These are spicules, and despite their grass-like abundance, scientists didn’t understand how they form. Now, for the first […]

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June 23, 2017 at 07:49AM

Will Mars Go Mute? NASA’s Aging Orbiters May Not Last Long Enough to Support Future Exploration

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A cry for help has come from planetary scientists pleading for a Next Mars Orbiter—or NeMO for short. Researchers say the spacecraft fleet currently orbiting the Red Planet is aging and there are no replacements in the works, imperiling future Mars landers, rovers and even possible human missions that will depend on orbiters to talk […]

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June 23, 2017 at 07:49AM

Scientists Are Putting Tens of Thousands of Sea Fossils Online

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Some 100 million years ago, much of what is now North America was underwater. The body of water scientists calls the Western Interior Seaway covered a swath of land that stretched over the entire Midwest. But its secrets have been preserved in countless fossils—and now, over 100,000 of these fossils are being digitized. Eight institutions are in […]

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June 23, 2017 at 07:29AM

Kuiper Belt tilt suggests a mysterious planetary mass lurks in the outer solar system

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Astronomers have yet to confirm the existence of a ninth planet lurking beyond Pluto. But a new analysis of the Kuiper Belt suggests a planetary mass is likely hiding in the outer reaches of the solar system. The orbital planes of several rings of rocks in the Kuiper Belt — the disk of an asteroid […]

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June 23, 2017 at 07:24AM