Are we there yet?

Io’s volcanoes may be fueled by pockets of magma. New data from NASA’s Juno spacecraft suggest that Jupiter’s volcanic moon Io may not have a subsurface ocean of magma as previously thought. Instead, its active volcanoes — the most numerous of any body in the Solar System — may be fueled by individual chambers of magma under the moon’s crust. Pictured: An artist’s impression of Io’s subsurface magma. Image credit: NASA/Caltech-JPL/SwRI.

The age of Saturn’s rings remains unclear. Although recent research suggested that the gas giant’s iconic rings may have formed within the last 400 million years, a new study has offered an alternative explanation. The observation that the rings are relatively “clean” of micrometeoroid debris may not be because they’re young, but because their composition makes them resistant to this kind of “pollution.”

Tech funded by The Planetary Society will launch to the Moon next month. PlanetVac is a new sample return technology funded in part by Planetary Society members. In January, it will launch aboard Blue Ghost, a private lunar lander built by Firefly Aerospace. The mission to the Moon, funded by NASA as part of the agency’s Commercial Lunar Payload Services program, will use PlanetVac to collect a sample of lunar regolith. Learn more about the technology and the mission taking it to the Moon.

NASA has released new plans for Mars science and its Moon-to-Mars architecture. NASA recently announced two new strategy documents: a plan for the next 20 years of scientific Mars exploration, and a roadmap for the agency’s long-term plans for lunar exploration in preparation for future crewed missions to Mars.

The Artemis Accords now have 51 signatories. Panama, Austria, and Thailand all recently signed the Accords, bringing the total number of participating nations to 51. The Artemis Accords, initiated by the United States in 2020, are a set of best practices in spaceflight in areas ranging from sharing scientific data to utilizing space resources.

Get ready for another great year in space! Get your calendars out now and start filling in dates, because there’s a lot to look forward to in 2025. Our calendar of space events lists everything coming up in the next year, from celestial spectacles like eclipses and meteor showers to exploration milestones like launches and flybys. Pictured: Saturn’s rings will appear edge-on like this from March to November of 2025. Image credit: Erich Karkoschka/University of Arizona/NASA/ESA.

Mars spiders and space policy myths — the latest on Planetary Radio. If “Mars spiders” sound intriguing to you, listen to this week’s episode of Planetary Radio to learn all about the strange Martian features and how they form. Plus, catch the latest episode of Planetary Radio: Space Policy Edition to hear a discussion about whether the concept of presidential leadership in space policy is all just a myth.

The Congressional Planetary Science Caucus has spoken up for space. As part of the fiscal year 2025 budget negotiations, 22 Members of Congress signed a bipartisan letter supporting a higher topline budget for NASA and addressing the challenges the agency is facing. The Planetary Science Caucus is an informal group that unites Members of Congress who support space science, research, and exploration, and was rechartered this year with the support of The Planetary Society. If you want to take your own action as a space advocate, sign up for our annual Day of Action, taking place in Washington, D.C. on March 24, 2025.

Coming up in the Planetary Society book club. On Jan. 7, book club members can join a live virtual Q&A with David Brin and Stephen Potts, the editors of “Project Solar Sail.” Then, in January book club members will be reading “Is Anyone Listening?” by Denise L. Herzing, a book about dolphin communication and how it connects to groundbreaking work on animal languages. We’ll explore what the search for extraterrestrial intelligence (SETI) can learn from all of this. All of this is available to Planetary Society members in our digital member community. Not yet a member? Join today.

It’s been a big year for The Planetary Society. In 2024, we rallied our members to protect NASA science missions, provided grants to researchers at the cutting edge of space science and technology, launched a book series to teach kids about space, educated Congress about the value of Venus and Moon research, and so much more. Take a look at everything we accomplished with the support of our members in our 2024 impact report.

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