Topic: Solar Systems
Closer Look: Rubin Observatory

Closer Look: Rubin Observatory

by | Jun 25, 2025 | , , , ,

In the early 2000s, the massive scientific return from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey made it clear that there are questions we can only answer by investing in systems that survey the sky and inventory everything visible. From learning about the distribution of galaxies by type to exploring the distribution of stars by age, that survey gave us a glimpse of just how much we don’t yet know. Apache Point hosts the Sloan Digital Sky Survey's telescope. Credit: SDSS The SDSS survey used a 2.5-m telescope to initially explore an 8,000 square degree area of the sky, and has since added new areas and...

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Closer Look: Mars Occupies the Science Journals

Closer Look: Mars Occupies the Science Journals

by | Mar 11, 2025 |

Talk of Mars has been seeping into just about every area of media, as rumors swirl that NASA’s current plans to return humans to the Moon will be replaced with plans to fly directly to Mars. Given that we can’t currently keep people alive on Mars, I’m really hoping...

Suni Williams Breaks Women’s Spacewalk Record

Suni Williams Breaks Women’s Spacewalk Record

by | Feb 14, 2025 |

NASA astronaut Suni Williams conducts spacewalk The US Human presence in space is supposed to be flying back and forth form the ISS on a combo of SpaceX and Boeing crew capsules. Unfortunately, was undermined by it’s own failures to deliver on time and a myriad of...

Protecting Historic Sites on Earth, Moon, and Mars

Protecting Historic Sites on Earth, Moon, and Mars

by | Jan 22, 2025 |

Dominion Observatory in Ottawa Our planet is dotted with old observatories and astronomical research centers that are no longer capable of doing science. Either their equipment is too small, their skies too bright, or both. Both is always an option. I've been lucky...

Ryugu Sample Supports Invading Life

Ryugu Sample Supports Invading Life

by | Dec 28, 2024 |

Ryugu samples showing signs of bacteria contamination. Trying to understand the evolution of planets and life is really a driving motivation for a lot of science and science fiction. Landing squarely in the “I think I read a horror story about this,” scientists found...

Io Doesn’t Actually Have a Gooey Center

Io Doesn’t Actually Have a Gooey Center

by | Dec 27, 2024 |

Collapsed volcanoes form large, dark spots on Io's surface, NASA/JPL/USGS One of our greatest frustrations as a science, is we astronomical and planetary scientists can’t do the same kind of experiments that other kinds of scientists get to do. We look at things from...

Dark Comet Numbers on the Rise

Dark Comet Numbers on the Rise

by | Dec 26, 2024 |

Oumuamua illustration by Stuart Rankin Humans like to label things. In general, this works out for us. If you go to a furniture store and ask for a sofa, they will show you things multiple people can sit on that are clearly sofas. Ask for a chair, and they will show...

Volcanic Moon Orbiting Distant World

Volcanic Moon Orbiting Distant World

by | Dec 1, 2024 |

Let’s look at a world 635 lightyears away that just might have a fiery moon of volcanic goodness. To be honest, every aspect of this system is hot. The star is similar our Sun, but the planet is on an 2.8 day orbit around that star, and this orbit makes Mercury look...