Not a planet? Not a problem.

It looks like Pluto might have some enormous ice volcanoes. A new study from NASA’s New Horizon researchers suggests that Pluto experiences large-scale cryovolcanic activity, resulting in unique geological phenomena. Like a good exfoliator, Pluto’s large volcanoes appear to resurface large swaths of land, resulting in a relatively young surface — at least in some spots. That’s one way to get a youthful glow. Pictured: The surface of Pluto shown in greyscale, with an artistic interpretation of how past volcanic processes may have operated superimposed in blue. Image credit: NASA et al.

Hubble has broken its own record for peering deep into space. NASA’s iconic space telescope has detected the light of a star that existed within the first billion years after the big bang. This is the farthest — and therefore oldest — individual star ever seen to date.

ESA wants to find another way to get ExoMars to the Red Planet. Though the mission was recently suspended after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, ESA now says it will consider other collaborators to assist with its Rosalind Franklin rover. The rover will be stored at a Thales Alenia Space site in Italy as plans are made.

X-ray astronomy allows us to see a whole new side of the cosmos. Martin Weisskopf helped invent this technique more than 50 years ago, and still leads the field as project scientist for the spectacular Chandra X-ray Observatory and principal investigator for the brand new Imaging X-ray Polarimetry Explorer or IXPE. He joins this week’s Planetary Radio to talk about the most energetic and enigmatic objects in the cosmos. Pictured: An X-ray image of supernova remnant Cassiopeia A. Image credit: NASA/CXC/SAO/IXPE.

NASA’s new budget request is out. The Biden Administration proposed $26 billion — an 8% increase over the previous year. Our FY 2023 NASA Budget page covers which programs grow (and which ones don’t) and will track all future congressional action.

You can help make sure NASA gets the funding it needs. Right now we’re raising funds to support our space policy and advocacy program, the arm of The Planetary Society that rallies members and advocates in support of planetary exploration funding. By making a gift today, you will ensure that we can continue to speak up for vital space missions.

Want to dive even deeper into space policy? Our chief advocate and senior space policy adviser Casey Dreier’s academic paper proposing a reconstruction of Apollo's budget history was published in the journal Space Policy. Read it online for free.