Blogs
Blog Archive
Talking to Pluto is hard! Why it takes so long to get data back from New Horizons
Posted by Emily Lakdawalla on 2015/01/30 09:53 CST | 7 comments
As I write this post, New Horizons is nearing the end of a weeklong optical navigation campaign. The last optical navigation images in the weeklong series will be taken tomorrow, but it will likely take two weeks or more for all the data to get to Earth. Two weeks! Why does it take so long?
Don't Miss This Great New Video About Europa
Posted by Casey Dreier on 2014/11/21 02:38 CST
JPL released a slick new video highlighting the significance of Europa, the moon of Jupiter with more liquid water than the Earth.
Rosetta NAVCAM's Shades of Grey
Posted by Claudia Mignone on 2014/10/27 09:51 CDT | 1 comments
What do “light” and “dark” mean for an object like Comet 67P/C-G? Here are some details on how Rosetta's NAVCAM images are taken and displayed to make a wide range of surface features possible.
Using Lasers to Lock Down Exoplanet Hunting
Posted by Bruce Betts on 2014/09/26 05:59 CDT
The Planetary Society is launching a new collaboration with Yale exoplanet hunter Debra Fischer and her team, the Exoplanets Laser project. We will support the purchase of an advanced, ultra stable laser to be used in a complex system they are designing to push radial velocity exoplanet hunting to a whole whole new level.
OSIRIS-REx Spacecraft Passes First Major Qualification Test
Posted by Dante Lauretta on 2014/09/12 10:18 CDT
The development of the OSIRIS-REx spacecraft continues to make great progress having recently completed static load testing.
Curiosity wheel damage: The problem and solutions
Posted by Emily Lakdawalla on 2014/08/19 08:21 CDT | 27 comments
Now that a Tiger Team has assessed the nature and causes of damage to Curiosity's wheels, I can finally answer your frequently-asked questions about what wheel damage means for the mission, and why it wasn't anticipated.
How CRISM picks the pixels that guide Opportunity's travels
Posted by Emily Lakdawalla on 2014/06/05 03:29 CDT | 4 comments
How scientists are working with CRISM, an aging but still exceptional spectrometer on Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter, to find the rocks where Opportunity's work will tell the story of ancient water on Mars.
The construction of OSIRIS-REx has begun!
Posted by Dante Lauretta on 2014/06/05 09:54 CDT
The construction of OSIRIS-REx has begun! Seeing the core structure being assembled demonstrated that OSIRIS-REx is no longer just a set of drawings and PowerPoint charts, it is starting to become a real spacecraft.
Complete 2014 Astronomy Course Online
Posted by Bruce Betts on 2014/05/19 11:05 CDT | 6 comments
Bruce Betts has completed the lectures for his online 2014 Introduction to Planetary Science and Astronomy Course at CSUDH: all are online and you can earn a Certificate of Achievement for watching them.
A new Earthrise over the Moon from Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter's pushframe camera
Posted by Emily Lakdawalla on 2014/05/13 11:53 CDT
Earth's brilliant colors shine above the drab lunar horizon in this new "Earthrise" photo from the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter. An animation that accompanied the image release helped me to write an explainer on how pushframe cameras like Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter's Wide-Angle Camera works.
Intro Astronomy 2014. Class 13: Galaxies, the Universe, Life
Posted by Bruce Betts on 2014/05/08 01:17 CDT
Discover the Universe including the Big Bang, dark matter, dark energy, galaxies, life and more in this video of class 13 of Bruce Betts' Introduction to Planetary Science and Astronomy class.
Asteroid Workshop Streamed Public Lectures This Week
Posted by Bruce Betts on 2014/05/05 09:25 CDT | 1 comments
There is an asteroid threat and space debris workshop in Scotland this week that Planetary Society support helped lead to, and that will include two public lectures you can tune into live.
Posted by Bruce Betts on 2014/05/01 07:21 CDT
There are swirly indications from a study of how to optimize the lander pad portion of the Planetary Society/Honeybee Robotics PlanetVac planetary surface sampling system.
Intro Astronomy 2014. Class 12: The Sun and Stars
Posted by Bruce Betts on 2014/05/01 05:31 CDT
Explore the physical characteristics and inner workings of the Sun and then learn all about Stars and Stellar Evolution in this video of class 12 of Bruce Betts' Introduction to Planetary Science and Astronomy class.
Intro Astronomy 2014. Class 10: Trans Neptunian Objects including Pluto, KBOs, Comets
Posted by Bruce Betts on 2014/04/18 06:42 CDT
Explore the worlds beyond Neptune including Pluto, Kuiper Belt Objects and comets in this video of class 10 of Bruce Betts' Introduction to Planetary Science and Astronomy class.
Intro Astronomy Class 9: Titan, Uranus and Neptune Systems
Posted by Bruce Betts on 2014/04/11 02:31 CDT
Examine Saturn's moon Titan and explore the Uranian and Neptunian systems in this video of class 9 of Bruce Betts' Introduction to Planetary Science and Astronomy class.
Intro Astronomy 2014. Class 8: Icy Galilean Satellites, Saturn System
Posted by Bruce Betts on 2014/04/11 02:28 CDT
Explore the icy moons of the Jupiter System and tour the Saturnian system in this video of class 8 of Bruce Betts' Introduction to Planetary Science and Astronomy class.
Comet Siding Spring Mars encounter: Ya gotta have a little ‘tude
Posted by ESA Mars Express Team on 2014/03/24 03:44 CDT
In the latest update on how the Mars Express flight control team is planning to deal with Comet Siding Spring is all about attitude -- and hiding behind the biggest guy in the fight.
PlanetVac at the IEEE Aerospace Conference
Posted by Bruce Betts on 2014/03/07 04:35 CST | 1 comments
PlanetVac project leader Kris Zacny of Honeybee Robotics reports on presenting results of the Planetary Society project PlanetVac that created a prototype planetary dirt sampling system and tested it under Martian pressures.
Intro Astronomy Class 5: Venus (continued) and Mars
Posted by Bruce Betts on 2014/03/06 10:49 CST
Continue exploring Venus and begin looking at Mars in this video of class 5 of Bruce Betts' Introduction to Planetary Science and Astronomy class.
JOIN THE
PLANETARY SOCIETY
Our Curiosity Knows No Bounds!
Become a member of The Planetary Society and together we will create the future of space exploration.
Featured Video
Intro Astronomy 2015. Class 4: Eclipses, Mercury, Venus-Earth-Mars Atmospheres, Venus
Connect With Us
Facebook! Twitter! Google+ and more…
Continue the conversation with our online community!
