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Small BodiesStories, updates, insights, and original analysis from The Planetary Society.
‘SuperCam’ Update: Multi-purpose Instrument Coming Together for 2020 Launch to Mars
Excitement is building within the SuperCam team as the instrument enters the final stages of assembly and testing toward an anticipated launch aboard NASA’s Mars 2020 rover.
The Mars Exploration Rovers Update Special Report: Perseverance Science So Far, New View of Endeavour at LPSC 2018
For the 15th year in a row, Opportunity drove into the spotlight during an afternoon session at the 49th Lunar & Planetary Science Conference.
Space Policy & Advocacy Program Quarterly Report - April 2018
The Planetary Society's Space Policy and Advocacy team publishes quarterly reports on their activities, actions, priorities, and goals in service of their efforts to promote space science and exploration in Washington, D.C.
Funpost! I do solemnly swear
A far-from-comprehensive look at the oath of office.
Introducing Space Advocacy 101
Space Advocacy 101 is a new online course to help space fans become empowered space advocates.
Pew pew! Lasers will help determine where LightSail 2 is
The International Laser Ranging Service, or ILRS, will lend its services to the LightSail 2 mission.
What kind of asteroid is Ryugu?
What do we already know about Ryugu, and why is it so hard to know what it looks like? Hayabusa2 Mission Manger Makoto Yoshikawa
Moon Monday: Prometheus
Happy Monday! Here's a picture of Prometheus. You may think it's a picture of Saturn. Look hard, toward the bottom, and you'll see Prometheus, doing its part to keep the F ring in line.
OSIRIS-REx shows us space isn't entirely empty
What a cool photo of OSIRIS-REx's sample return capsule! But wait, what's that black dot near the top?
The Opportunity selfie: 5000 Sols in the making
A personal story recounts how a NASA team used a microscopic imager to take a selfie of the Opportunity rover.
Funpost! Can you name a space vehicle for each letter of the alphabet?
There are NASA choices for all letters except Y and Z; for those two, you'll need to go international.
Recap: Breakthrough Discuss 2018
If you had a spaceship and could take it anywhere in the solar system to search for life, where would you go?
Curiosity Update, sols 1972-2026: Completing the Vera Rubin Ridge Walkabout
The Curiosity team has completed its initial survey of the top of Vera Rubin Ridge, and is ready to make another attempt at drilling after the rock at Lake Orcadie proved to be too hard.
Space grade electronics: How NASA’s Juno survives near Jupiter
Take a look at how electronics of spacecraft are built to survive the harshness of space environments.
Moon Monday: Deimos
Digging into the Viking archives to produce a new old composite of Mars' smaller moon.
Pretty Pictures of the Cosmos: Hidden in Plain Sight
Award-winning astrophotographer Adam Block shares of his latest work.
Funpost! A funny thing happened on the way to the Moon
A few ripping good yarns from 1969. And a truly terrifying cartoon.
Diving into Juno JIRAM data archives
The Jovian Infrared Auroral Mapper (JIRAM) instrument can obtain images in two infrared bands. JIRAM can see the nightside of Jupiter (including the winter pole) and takes spectacular animations.
The Mars Exploration Rovers Update: Opportunity Presses On in Perseverance, Pace Picks Up
In the west rim of Endeavour Crater, Opportunity continued her exploration of Perseverance Valley in March.
Seeing InSight
Last week, I received a golden ticket that gave me rare access to a sacred space: the cleanroom facility where NASA's next Mars lander, InSight, is undergoing final preparations for launch.