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Stories, updates, insights, and original analysis from The Planetary Society.
Orion L-2 Report: The Old Gives Way to the New
With less than two days before Orion's maiden voyage, NASA and United Launch Alliance are cautiously optimistic the flight will launch Thursday as scheduled.
Dawn Journal: Looking Ahead at Ceres
This month, Marc Rayman looks ahead to some upcoming activities for Dawn as it approaches the dwarf planet Ceres.
Selecting the Next Creative Idea for Exploring the Solar System
With the release of the official Announcement of Opportunity (AO) early in November, NASA has officially begun the competition to select its next low cost ($450M) Discovery program planetary mission. Because planetary scientists are free to propose missions to any destination in the solar system other than the sun and Earth, these competitions bring out the creativity in the planetary science program.
Your Timeline of Events for Orion's Maiden Voyage
NASA’s Orion spacecraft is ready to embark on its maiden voyage this Thursday. Here is a timeline of events.
“Wanderers”: A Glorious New Film About Where We May Voyage
Mat Kaplan gives his take on the stunningly beautiful short film that's been making the rounds on the internet,
Some Recent Views of Mars from Hubble
Ted Stryk showcases some of his processed versions of recent Hubble Space Telescope views of Mars.
A Rich Potpourri of Future Mission Concepts
The past few months have brought announcements for new missions from India and China as well as a wealth of creative ideas for future missions.
United Launch Alliance Answers Burning Questions about Orion's Rocket
When Orion launches next week, you may notice something alarming: The spacecraft's rocket sort of catches itself on fire. But not to worry, says United Launch Alliance.
Field Report from Mars: Sol 3848 — November 20, 2014
Larry Crumpler returns with an update on Opportunity's recent activities, and its road ahead.
The Science of “Bennu’s Journey”
The OSIRIS-REx project released Bennu’s Journey, a movie describing one possible history of our target asteroid – Bennu. The animation is among the most highly detailed productions created by Goddard’s Conceptual Image Laboratory.
Calling Serious Asteroid Hunters
I am happy to announce a new call for proposals for The Planetary Society’s Gene Shoemaker Near Earth Object (NEO) grant program. Proposals are due Feb. 2, 2015.
In Pictures: Expedition 42 Crew Launches to Station
Three more humans are in space today following the launch of Soyuz TMA-15M from the chilly steppes of Kazakhstan.
Close to the end for Venus Express
Venus Express is nearly out of fuel. Any day could be the last of its long mission to Venus.
Lunar Polar Volatile Puzzle
Deepak Dhingra gives an exciting update from the recent Lunar Exploration and Analysis Group (LEAG) meeting at Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Lab (JHU-APL) in Baltimore.
Quick update about our website
The last two weeks have been extraordinary for The Planetary Society. As amazing as this increased traffic is, it has brought to light some issues with our website including latency and missing content that we are still working on fixing.
A Mission to Europa Just Got a Whole Lot More Likely
Rep. John Culberson, an outspoken supporter of Europa exploration, will assume leadership of an influential congressional committee that funds NASA.
How NASA Plans to Land Humans on Mars
On the surface, NASA's humans to Mars plans seem vague and disjointed. But that's because the agency is playing the long game. Right now, it may be the only game they can play.
Remember Comet Siding Spring? Mars Orbiter Mission got photos, too
A set of photos released by Mars Orbiter Mission last week completes the set of Mars spacecraft observations of the comet. Now we wait for science results!
Curiosity update, sols 782-813: Walking the outcrop at Pahrump Hills
At Pahrump Hills, Curiosity is becoming the field geologist she was intended to be.
Rosetta imaged Philae during its descent -- and after its bounce
This morning ESA released a set of images of the Philae lander taken by the Rosetta orbiter during -- and after -- the lander's first touchdown. The images contain evidence for the spot Philae first touched the comet, and a crucial photo of Philae's position several minutes into its first long bounce.



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