Space

The Kuiper Belt

Video | 02:29

The kuiper belt is like the asteroid belt, only twice as wide, twice as tall and has at least twice as much stuff. The most famous member of the kuiper belt is the dwarf planet Pluto. The kuiper belt is suspected to host as many as 100,000 objects.

That's a Big Black Hole!

Video | 01:43

Recently astronomers identified a black hole near a star called LB-1 and they found out it is 70 times the mass of the sun. How did the black hole get this big?

Hubble's Greatest Moments

Video | 05:05

Astrophysicist Paul. M. Sutter counts down his favorite moments made possible by Hubble in celebration of its 30th birthday.

Crew-1 Mission Overview

Video | 01:42

After a successful NASA and SpaceX Demo-2 Mission, NASA prepares for the first operational mission of SpaceX's Crew Dragon with four astronauts.

Crew-1 Launch Well Wishes

Video | 00:56

Actor Jim Belushi, Illusionist Zach King, Astronaut Chris Hadfield wish the NASA SpaceX Crew-1 astronauts good luck and a safe journey to the International Space Station.

NASA's VIPER MIssion

Video | 01:37

NASA's VIPER mission will rove around on the crater-pocked Lunar surface, finding any water it can, take a sip and let us know if it's good enough for human consumption.

Space Out | How Giant Stars Die

Video | 01:53

Stars don't live forever and different stars go out with a bang in different ways. But how do giant stars die? It's all about core power.

The Kuiper Belt: When Solar Systems Dance

Article

Pluto isn't alone after all. Besides being the home of Pluto, the Kuiper belt hosts dwarf planets, and smaller bits of rock and ice.

The Origin of Cosmic Cows

Article

Keep reading, I'm serious... Yes, there is a certain kind of astronomical object called a “cow” and it’s actually pretty awesome.

Astronomers See Flashes from Behind a Black Hole

Article

Want to see what’s behind a black hole? Easy. You just…stare at it. The whole thing is pretty weird to contemplate, but an excellent example of the space-bending (and mind-bending) powers of black holes.

Farewell, Earth’s Mini-moon

Article

It's time to say goodbye to the mini-moon that's no bigger than your car.

The Moon Event: Happy National Moon Day

Photo Gallery | 7 Photos

Take a Trip Through the Oort Cloud, It’s Fun

Article

The most distant spacecraft launched by humans, Voyager 1, is currently 155 times farther away from the Sun than the Earth is. That’s almost four times more distant than Pluto, and the Voyager 1 craft has been traveling at over 38,000 mph for over four decades.

The Great Conjunction is Coming and it's Going to be Epic

Article

On December 21, Jupiter and Saturn will appear closer to each other than they have in nearly 400 years. This once in four lifetimes cosmic event will be visible to many--clear skies permitting--but Lowell Observatory has you covered either way.

Who’s Going to Pick Up All the Space Trash?

Article

We all know we’re not supposed to litter, right? It’s gross and harms the environment. But somebody forgot to tell all the space agencies that have been launching rockets into Earth orbit for well over half a century now – and leaving their space junk all over the place.

Female Firsts: Meet Dr. Kathy Sullivan

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In honor of Women's History Month, we're celebrating the achievements of women around the globe and throughout history. From the pages of The Explorers Journal, we're sharing stories from four women who broke boundaries in exploration, research, and science. In our final spotlight, meet the first American woman to walk in space and to reach the deepest known point in the ocean, Dr. Kathy Sullivan.

Why Does Pluto Have Such a Weird Orbit?

Article

Pluto is the black sheep of the planets in our solar system and it looks like astronomers aren’t sure how long Pluto will remain in its present orbit.

The New Warp Drive Idea Isn’t Very Warpy

Article

Headline after headline is sharing the exciting news: a pair of theoretical physicists have realized that our sci-fi dreams may be real: it may be possible to build an actual, operational warp drive. One problem: it doesn’t go all that fast.