The Planetary Report®
Cradle and Compass

Features

September Equinox 2025

Your place in space

Seeking worlds to know our own

By Bill Nye, Planetary Society CEO 

In this issue, we look at Earth. It has a special place in space exploration. I understand that some readers may be surprised by the focus, given The Planetary Society’s decades-long focus on other worlds. But understanding Earth is not a departure from our mission — it’s deeply connected to it. Planetary exploration and understanding Earth are inextricably linked. 

People have pondered our place in space from a planetary perspective for some time. When we collect data about other worlds — their surface temperatures, the chemistry of their atmospheres, their magnetic fields, even just their sheer mass — it tells us quite a bit about those planetary bodies. But those numbers become especially significant when they’re compared with those of our own world. This is what we call comparative planetology.

When we study how changes in Venus’ atmosphere turned the planet from a hospitable place to a toxic hellscape, we learn more about the threat of climate change here on Earth. When we note that Mars doesn’t have much of an atmosphere and not much of a magnetic field, we come to understand the role of Earth’s magnetic field in protecting us from atmosphere-scraping particles streaming our way in the solar wind. When we study planets around other stars, we learn how rare planets like ours might be. And if you’ve been part of The Planetary Society for long, you may have heard (or read) a proposition I’ve suggested many times: If we discover life out there, it will forever change our world and the way we think about ourselves. 

We explore other worlds because we want to know more about them and our larger cosmic neighborhood. But even so, Earth will always be at the center of space exploration. Where did we come from? Are we alone in the Universe? These are the deep questions that space exploration aims to answer. Let’s go.

Members on deck

Looking up from here on Earth

For many people who are passionate about space, it’s easy to picture yourself out there seeing it all firsthand. But in truth, the vast majority of humans experience space from here on Earth. 

We look through telescopes at distant planets, enjoy images sent home from far-flung spacecraft, and cheer on astronauts as they venture into space on behalf of all humanity — all from the comfort of our planet. Some may think that’s limiting, but for others, it’s something to be appreciated. Earth is, after all, a beautiful place. 

These Planetary Society members captured that beauty especially well in their photos of cosmic views with Earthly context. When we appreciate where we’re looking up from, it adds to the enjoyment of our place in space.

These member photos were submitted in a call for astrophotography in The Planetary Society’s members-only online community. Log in today at community.planetary.org.

From the chief scientist

A cosmic roundup from The Planetary Society’s chief scientist

By Bruce Betts, Planetary Society Chief Scientist

In the sky

The Geminid meteor shower peaks the night of Dec. 13/14, with increased activity several days before and after. The Geminids are usually the best shower of the year, with 100+ meteors per hour from a dark site. When the shower peaks, a 30% full Moon will rise around 2:00 a.m., washing out some of the meteors. In the evening sky, reddish Mars is low to the horizon in the west, sinking below the horizon during October. In September, yellowish Saturn is just rising in the east in the early evening, and by December, it is high overhead in the evening. Super-bright Venus is in the predawn east, but it drops lower as the weeks pass, becoming very tough to see by November. Mercury makes an appearance low in the predawn east in late November and early December. By December, northern winter constellations such as Orion are shining brightly in the evening skies. 

For more night sky tips, you can always check out planetary.org/night-sky.

Random space fact

For every human on Earth, there are (very approximately) 30 stars in the Milky Way galaxy.

Trivia contest

Our March Equinox contest winner is Pete Benttinen of Duxbury, Massachusetts, USA. Congratulations! 

The question was: What was the last mission to fly by Jupiter on its way to somewhere else? 

The answer: New Horizons in 2007 on its way to the Pluto system and beyond.

Try to win a copy of the new book “Earth: Our Home Planet with The Planetary Society” by Bruce Betts and a Planetary Radio T-shirt by answering this question: In kilometers or in miles, how much bigger is Earth’s equatorial radius compared to its polar radius? 

Email your answer to [email protected] or mail your answer to The Planetary Report, 60 S. Los Robles Ave., Pasadena, CA 91101. Make sure you include the answer and your name, mailing address, and email address (if you have one). By entering this contest, you are authorizing The Planetary Report to publish your name and hometown. Submissions must be received by Dec. 1, 2025. One entry per person. The winner will be chosen in a random drawing from among all the correct entries received.

Space art

"Earth-like Moon"

Do you want to see your artwork here? We love to feature our members throughout this magazine. Send your original, space-related artwork to [email protected].

Society notes

Celebrate space around the world

In October, join people around our planet to celebrate space together in two international events. 

On Oct. 4, look up at our cosmic companion for the NASA-led International Observe the Moon Night. Everyone on Earth is invited to learn about lunar science and exploration, take part in celestial observations, and honor cultural and personal connections to the Moon. Go to moon.nasa.gov/observe-the-moon-night to learn more. 

And that same day kicks off World Space Week, an international celebration of science and technology and their contribution to the betterment of the human condition. World Space Week 2025 takes place Oct. 4–10. Go to worldspaceweek.org to learn more. 

The Planetary Society is proud to partner with both events, which include in-person and virtual events, educational resources, and fun activities for all ages.

Tune in to Planetary Radio

Sept. 30 is International Podcast Day. Have you given Planetary Radio a listen yet? 

The Planetary Society’s weekly podcast takes you to the outer reaches of the Solar System and beyond. Host Sarah Al-Ahmed visits with scientists, engineers, mission leaders, astronauts, advocates, and writers who provide their unique and exciting perspectives on the exploration of our Universe. New episodes are published every Wednesday. 

Our monthly Planetary Radio: Space Policy Edition brings you in-depth interviews between The Planetary Society’s Chief of Space Policy Casey Dreier and special guests, diving deep into the policy and politics behind what we do and where we go in space. New episodes are published on the first Friday of every month. 

Go to planetary.org/radio or find Planetary Radio wherever you stream podcasts.

The America’s Favorite Teacher competition

This year, The Planetary Society partnered with the America’s Favorite Teacher competition, hosted by Colossal. The 2025 winner, second-grade teacher Jonathan Koch from Newark, New Jersey, earned $25,000, a dream getaway to Hawaii, a school assembly hosted by Bill Nye, and an appearance in Reader’s Digest. Through the competition, Colossal raised a whopping $3.2 million for The Planetary Society to support our work in educating and inspiring the next generation.

NASA budget watch

News leaked in April of this year that the Trump administration was planning drastic cuts to NASA’s budget. In May, that news was confirmed: The president’s 2026 budget request includes a staggering 47% cut to NASA’s science programs as part of a 25% cut to NASA overall. 

In response to these threats to the U.S. space program and all the science it enables, The Planetary Society began one of the largest advocacy campaigns in our organization’s history. We have organized public petitions, letter-writing campaigns, and events in Washington, D.C., and we have coordinated advocacy efforts with the Congressional Planetary Science Caucus and many science institutions around the United States. In response to these threats, The Planetary Society began our largest-ever advocacy campaign. Within months, we facilitated nearly 100,000 messages to Congress, led hundreds of advocates to Washington, D.C., organized joint statements by major scientific and commercial space organizations, and briefed hundreds of media outlets and congressional staff. Our strategy: get Congress to reject the cuts by being bipartisan, data-driven, and consensus-oriented. 

And Congress listened. In July, the House and Senate each approved funding bills that rejected the full extent of the proposed cuts. 

This initial success is due to the energy and passion of our advocates. But much lies ahead, and we cannot stop now. This funding legislation still must be signed into law. Until then, the risk of massive cuts to space science remains. Your voice as an advocate is more important than ever.

To see the latest developments and take action, go to planetary.org/save-nasa-science.

The Cosmos Award

The Planetary Society established the Cosmos Award for Outstanding Public Presentation of Science in 2005. Only six individuals have received it since then. They include James Cameron, Neil deGrasse Tyson, Alan Stern, Paula Apsel, and Stephen Hawking. 

This year, we were proud to add acclaimed author Dava Sobel to that distinguished list — a storyteller who embodies the spirit of science communication with grace, clarity, and curiosity. 

Dava joined Bill Nye, our board of directors, and special guests in Washington, D.C., on May 30 to receive the award. We congratulate her and thank her for carrying us along on this voyage that is advancing our own vision: to know the Cosmos and our place within it.