Articles

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

Chandrayaan-2 Launch Delayed until July

India's combination lunar orbiter, lander, and rover spacecraft was previously scheduled to lift off in May.

What Can We Learn from a Failed Return to the Moon?

Thirty years ago, President George H.W. Bush announced an ambitious program to return humans to the Moon. It failed. Today the Trump Administration wants the same thing. Can a failed lunar return effort help this one succeed?

The Mars Exploration Rovers Update: The Final Report

It’s a fall afternoon at Endeavour Crater. The summer winds finally lost their energy and the dust storm season is over. But there are no more signals coming from Earth. No more comm sessions with the orbiters. Nothing like it used to be.

Shifting Rocks at the Aberlady Drill Site

Curiosity Update, Sols 2313-2387: Two New Drill Holes Despite Memory Problems

The Curiosity team is touring Glen Torridon, the Valley of Clay, south of Vera Rubin Ridge, happily photographing everything and zapping rocks. It’s clearly a delight for the team to be in a place they’ve been hoping to reach for 7 years.

Dust accumulation on InSight's solar panels to sol 122

InSight Detects Some Very Small Marsquakes

InSight has finally detected its first Marsquakes, but so far, none have been large enough to produce good science. Still, it’s great news that the seismometer is producing sensible data.

HiRISE view of Curiosity, sol 1207 (December 29, 2015)

HiRISE Team Overcomes Imaging Glitches as Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter Eyes another Decade in Orbit

Blurred images and battery issues are no longer an immediate problem.

Chang’e-4 Updates: Yutu-2 Roves into Overtime, Returns More Images

China’s Chang’e-4 lander and Yutu-2 rover are continuing to function well and have completed their fourth lunar day.

Software Command to Fix Faulty Sensor Doomed Beresheet

Six days after SpaceIL's Beresheet spacecraft crash-landed on the Moon, we now have an explanation for what went wrong.

Ganymede and Jupiter Global Voyager 2 Mosaic

Voyager Wide-Angle Views of Jupiter

Last month marked the 40th anniversary of the historic Voyager 1 encounter with Jupiter in 1979.

Beresheet images the Moon from 22 kilometers

Beresheet Comes Close before Crashing on the Moon

Mission controllers announced Beresheet had a problem with its main engine, and the spacecraft stopped transmitting shortly thereafter.

Beresheet is about to Land on the Moon

A successful landing will make SpaceIL the first private organization, and Israel the fourth country, to soft-land on the Moon.

2007 OR10 Needs a Name!

It’s time to give 2007 OR10 a name. We’re asking for your help to pick a suitable name for the largest as-yet-unnamed solar system world to submit to the International Astronomical Union (IAU).