Snapshots from Space

No Icecaps at the Lunar Poles

Emily Lakdawalla • November 14, 2003

New observations reported this week in the journal Nature have cast doubt on the theory that thick deposits of ground ice lie conveniently close to the surface in permanently shadowed crater floors at the lunar poles.

Researchers Discover Lakes on Titan

Emily Lakdawalla • October 16, 2003

Recent radar observations of Saturn’s moon Titan have produced the first direct evidence that the second largest moon in the solar system may be hiding pools of liquid hydrocarbons underneath its smoggy atmosphere.

Watching Spirit Launch to Mars

Emily Lakdawalla • June 10, 2003

Spirit has successfully launched to Mars, and I was there with members of the science team to witness it.

Scientists Detail Ambitious Goals of Mars Express

Emily Lakdawalla • April 25, 2003

Scientists working on the European Space Agency's (ESA's) Mars Express detailed the mission's ambitious plan to study Mars from the top of its atmosphere to several kilometers beneath its surface, at a press conference in London, England last week.