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Small BodiesStories, updates, insights, and original analysis from The Planetary Society.
LightSail Team Prepares for Sail Deployment
LightSail is almost ready for its moment in the sun. Mission managers are preparing for a manual solar sail deployment this week.
Contact! LightSail Phones Home after 8-Day Silence
The Planetary Society’s LightSail test spacecraft reported for duty this afternoon, heralding the end of an uneasy silence caused by a suspected software glitch.
For LightSail Test Mission, Waiting is the Hardest Part
The Planetary Society's LightSail spacecraft is now entering its second week of silence.
Software Glitch Pauses LightSail Test Mission
The Planetary Society’s LightSail test mission has been paused while engineers wait out a suspected software glitch that has silenced the solar sailing spacecraft.
LightSail Update: All Systems Nominal
It's been 24 hours since The Planetary Society’s LightSail spacecraft was deposited into space yesterday afternoon. All systems continue to look healthy.
Liftoff! LightSail Sails into Space aboard Atlas V Rocket
The first of The Planetary Society’s two LightSail spacecraft is now in space following a late morning launch from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida.
LightSail Sends First Data Back to Earth
LightSail is sending home telemetry following a Wednesday commute to orbit aboard an Atlas V rocket.
Timeline: LightSail's First Day in Space
It's the day before launch at Cape Canaveral. Here's a timeline of events for LightSail's first day in space.
In Pictures: LightSail’s Rocket Rolls to the Launch Pad
Pictures of The Planetary Society’s LightSail spacecraft rollout to the launch pad at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station’s Launch Complex 41.
LightSail Launch Countdown: Ready for Rollout
It’s launch week in Cape Canaveral, Florida, where The Planetary Society’s LightSail spacecraft is buttoned up for flight aboard an Atlas V rocket. Liftoff is scheduled Wednesday sometime between 10:45 a.m. and 2:45 p.m. EDT.
We Love A Crowd!
This month, at the same time that The Planetary Society is launching the long-anticipated LightSail prototype for a shakedown cruise, we are excited to launch another “first”—our first-ever Kickstarter campaign.
What Images Will We Get Back from the LightSail Test Mission?
With less than two weeks before launch, here's an in-depth look at whether the LightSail test mission's attitude control system bug will keep us from seeing pretty pictures taken by the spacecraft.
In Pictures: LightSail, Meet X-37B
United Launch Alliance has released photos showing the Air Force's X-37B spaceplane being stacked on its Atlas V at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station.
LightSail Readiness Tests Prepare Team for Mission Operations
The LightSail team continues to prepare for the spacecraft's May test flight with a series of readiness simulations that mimic on-orbit operations.
New Horizons One Earth Message
The One Earth Message Project is going to send a message to the stars, and we invite members of the Planetary Society to join us in this historic endeavor.
The 2015 Gene Shoemaker NEO Grant Recipients
In 2015, The Planetary Society awarded $53,250 as part of its Gene Shoemaker Near Earth Object (NEO) Grant Program. The grants were made to a group of international researchers to find, track, and characterize potentially hazardous NEOs.
Shoemaker NEO Grant Winners Announced: Saving the World
The six winners of the 2015 Shoemaker NEO Grants will use the grants to upgrade their observatories to improve their abilities to study potentially dangerous asteroids.
A Love Letter to Science Education
The Planetary Society Operations Assistant Whitney Pratz reports from the National Science Teacher Association Conference and on the development of our youth education and outreach program, Planetary Kids.
Revitalized 0.81m telescope studying properties of NEOs
Thanks to a new focal reducer and re-aluminized mirror from a Shoemaker NEO grant, a 0.81-meter telescope in Italy is performing astrometric follow-up observations and physical studies of asteroids.
Your First Timeline of Events for LightSail's Test Flight
The team behind The Planetary Society’s LightSail spacecraft is kicking off a series of simulations to ensure the spacecraft’s ground systems are ready for launch.