Articles

Stories, updates, insights, and original analysis from The Planetary Society.

Hasta la vista, baby

Terminators abound this week in space, and we’ll be back to Mars if NASA gets the budget it needs.

Aquatic equivalencies

From searching for life to training for spaceflight, water is an essential part of space exploration.

Life on Venus: Your Questions Answered

Is there life on Venus? Was our planetary neighbor ever inhabited? Here are the answers to your most pressing questions about the possibility of alien life on Venus.

Speedy spacecraft and pretty pics

Take a look at some of our favorite recent space images and learn about an express mission to Mars.

Way out there

We’re always learning more about the worlds of the outer Solar System, and even those beyond.

Moon-spying missions and a planetary evil twin

Whether they’re dedicated to it or not, planetary missions can get beautiful and informative glimpses at distant moons. And who’s the evil twin: Venus or Earth?

Want more space? Speak up!

Detailed Mars maps, insights into the Venusian surface, and views of Uranian rings all have one thing in common: they don’t happen without public support for space.

Standing on Venus with Venera 9 (colorized)

What would it be like to stand on the surface of Venus?

With extreme heat and crushing atmospheric pressure, the surface of Venus is one of the most deadly environments in the Solar System. Here’s what it would be like to be there.

A mission to pull back the shroud

VERITAS would peer through Venus’ clouds to study its surface like never before, but it needs your help.

The Planetary Society, American Geophysical Union, and Prominent Academic Institutions Call on Congress to Save VERITAS Mission to Venus

In a joint effort led by The Planetary Society, major organizations and academic institutions are calling on Congress to save the Venus Emissivity, Radio science, InSAR, Topography And Spectroscopy (VERITAS) mission by establishing a 2029 launch date, a 2-year delay from the original baseline schedule.

Why we need VERITAS

NASA's first mission to Venus in decades is in danger. This is why VERITAS is worth saving.

Unusual Uranus! Moist Moon! Volcanic Venus!

A planet shows its pole, another shows possible volcanic activity, and the Moon keeps surprising us with more water.

What the search for aliens can learn from life on Earth

When searching for extraterrestrial life, we have to base our hunt on what we know about life on our own planet. This may seem limiting, but there's a lot we can learn from the astonishingly diverse lifeforms we have here on Earth.

Volcanic Venus, myriad moons, and space sonification

Learn all about the possible volcanic activity found on Venus, the facts about a hyped-up near-Earth asteroid, Jupiter’s newest moons, and what space images sound like.