These tiny satellites, equipped with ion thrusters, could change how we explore space
An engineer at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology wants to explore the cosmos with CubeSats and ion engines inspired by static electricity.
Uranus’ magnetic forces switch ‘on and off’
Uranus’ weirdness takes a fresh form via a new model of its magnetosphere, just as NASA mulls a return to the icy giant.
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The science that shaped 2016
What did 2016 mean for science? Science correspondent Miles O’Brien sits down with William Brangham to discuss some of the more remarkable discoveries, innovations and setbacks this year, including the confirmation of one of Einstein's major predictions, the global outbreak…
Column: Like it or not, these billionaires are shaping the direction of discovery
Today’s billionaires regularly channel their wealth into traditional areas of philanthropy like education and public health. But the richest of the rich are also devoting significant resources to futuristic moonshots.
Tinkering in the heavens has emerged as an important plank of China’s geopolitical strategy.
Astronaut Scott Kelly spent 340 days -- the longest an American has ever been in space -- on the International Space Station before descending into Kazakhstan by capsule Tuesday evening. Kelly’s extraterrestrial sojourn was part of a study on the…
For 29 years, fifth-grade teacher Michael Wilkinson has used space exploration to teach his students about math, science and the power of imagination. He shares his memories of the Challenger space shuttle disaster and why he never gave up on…
On Saturday, Philae, the European Space Agency's comet lander, communicated with its team on Earth for the first time since going into hibernation in November of last year.
The world’s first space telescope celebrates a quarter century this week. NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope launched into orbit aboard the space shuttle Discovery 25 years ago Friday, on April 24, 1990.
