Astronomy

The BepiColombo spacecraft flew less than 200 miles from Mercury's surface and photographed volcanic plains and icy craters.

To get so close, the Parker Solar Probe had to withstand the sun's extreme heat and radiation like no spacecraft before it.

Early interactions with the Earth may have heated up the Moon and caused it to remelt, producing new lunar rocks and erasing old craters.

The Geminids are one of the best and most visible annual meteor showers, when at least 120 meteors can usually be seen per hour. But 2024 will be different, thanks to the year's final full moon.

The next supermoon — which appears larger and brighter than a regular full moon due to its proximity to Earth — will not be visible for nearly a year.

The North and South Taurids occur every year in September, October, and November. They may have originated from a comet that broke up about 10,000 years ago.

Your unusual chance to see a comet in the sky is here. C/2023 A3 Tsuchinshan-ATLAS was discovered by astronomers in 2023 — and will appear to the naked eye over the next couple weeks.

The meteor shower creates an opportunity to sit outside at night and watch shooting stars. It's also an opportunity for researchers to do some science.

NASA estimates about 50 to 100 meteors can be seen per hour as the Earth passes through the dusty trail left behind by the comet Swift-Tuttle.

NASA is facing a tight budget and wants to wrap up the Chandra X-ray Observatory, but astronomers don't want to see the 25-year-old X-ray space telescope mission go.