Science News

Hubble Sees Light and Dust in a Nearby Starburst Galaxy
April 10, 2013
Visible as a small, sparkling hook in the dark sky, this beautiful object is known as J082354.96+280621.6, or J082354.96 for short. It is a starburst galaxy, so named because of the incredibly (and unusually) high rate of star formation occurring within it.

Don't Let This Happen to Your Planet
March 29, 2013
Science@NASA Headline News — 2013
Life as we know it doesn't thrive on planets without ozone layers, which is why the recovery of Earth's ozone layer is so important. A new instrument slated for launch to the ISS will monitor our planet's protective ozone cocoon with greater depth and precision than ever before.

Collision Course? A Comet Heads for Mars
March 26, 2013
Science@NASA Headline News — 2013
A comet is heading for Mars, and there is a chance that it might hit the Red Planet in October 2014. An impact wouldn't necessarily mean the end of NASA's Mars program. But it would transform the program along with Mars itself.

Universe Older Than Previously Thought
March 21, 2013
Science@NASA Headline News — 2013
The European Space Agency's Planck spacecraft has released the most detailed map ever made of the oldest light in the universe, revealing new information about its age, contents and origins.

Sunset Comet
March 15, 2013
Science@NASA Headline News — 2013
Comet Pan-STARRS has survived its encounter with the sun and is now emerging from twilight in the sunset skies of the northern hemisphere. A NASA spacecraft has beamed back spectacular pictures of a "wild and ragged" tail behind the comet's active nucleus.

Rover: Conditions Once Suited for Life on Mars
March 12, 2013
Science@NASA Headline News — 2013
An analysis of a rock sample collected by NASA's Curiosity rover shows ancient Mars could have supported living microbes.

Amplified Greenhouse Effect Shifts North's Growing Seasons
March 10, 2013
Science@NASA Headline News — 2013
Vegetation growth at Earth's northern latitudes increasingly resembles lusher latitudes to the south, according to a NASA-funded study. "It's like Winnipeg, Manitoba, moving to Minneapolis-Saint Paul in only 30 years," says one of the lead researchers.

Solar Wind Energy Source Discovered
March 8, 2013
Science@NASA Headline News — 2013
Using data from an aging NASA spacecraft, researchers have found signs of an energy source in the solar wind that has caught the attention of fusion researchers.

NASA Science Satellite Tracker iSat
March 7, 2013
NASA Science has just created the newest form of tracking satellites. The Interactive Satellite Tracker, or iSat, is now available and is conveniently launched in your browser.

Solar Cycle Update: Twin Peaks?
March 1, 2013
Science@NASA Headline News — 2013
Something unexpected is happening on the sun. 2013 is supposed to be the year of Solar Max, but solar activity is much lower than expected. At least one leading forecaster expects the sun to rebound with a double-peaked maximum later this year.