Articles

Stories, updates, insights, and original analysis from The Planetary Society.

Going the distance to get the shot

A brief history of space imaging

Out-of-this-world astronauts (literally)

Celebrating 50 years of Apollo 17, the last crewed mission to the Moon.

Your guide to rings of the Solar System

Tour the rings of Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune, plus asteroids, a dwarf planet, and an exoplanet.

The Best of 2022

Announcing the winners of our Best of 2022 campaign!

Much has passed in decades past

With anniversaries come reflections, and there’s a lot to look back on in the history of space.

NASA’s economic impact? Hundreds of thousands of jobs.

In 2021, NASA supported an estimated 339,645 jobs across the United States. A new report details the astounding economic benefits of the space agency in every state.

Best space pictures of the month: November 2022

NASA's chief of exploration mission planning Nujoud Merancy walks us through a picture from the Orion spacecraft.

A Full Moon Rising Near the U.S. Capitol

What the 2022 midterm elections mean for NASA

Republicans regain control of the House. The Senate remains under Democratic control. This divided governance could slow down the pace of space legislation, even for “must-pass” items like NASA's annual budget.

Gifts from above

The Cosmos has so many gifts to give us, from awe-inspiring images to fascinating discoveries. We’ve got our own set of gifts to recommend too.

2022 impact report

A review of the results The Planetary Society achieved in 2022 thanks to the support of our members.

The best gift ideas for space fans in 2022

The perfect presents for the space enthusiasts in your life, hand-picked by our staff and other space fans.

The Space Advocate Newsletter, November 2022

Divided control of Congress could slow the pace of space.

Launching and descending

Artemis I is on its way to the Moon, Planetary Academy is here to inspire your kids, and LightSail 2 has come down.

LightSail 2 completes mission with atmospheric reentry

The three-and-a-half-year solar sailing mission showed LightSail 2 could change its orbit with sunlight alone.

NASA’s Artemis I mission has successfully launched

Despite several setbacks and delays, NASA's Artemis I mission successfully launched from Kennedy Space Center on November 16, 2022.

Meet The Planetary Academy

Our lifetime love of space exploration can start when we are very young. And so, we have developed The Planetary Academy, a 100% space-related membership created for kids 9 years old and younger.

LightSail 2 image of Gulf of Aden and Red Sea

LightSail 2 is about to burn up

After 3.5 years, 18,000 orbits of the Earth, and 8 million kilometers (5 million miles) traveled, The Planetary Society’s successful LightSail 2 solar sail spacecraft will burn up as it reenters the Earth’s atmosphere in the next few days.