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an illustration showing the hypothetical Planet 9 with blue rings and a question mark over it, with stars and a galaxy in the background
Planet Nine: Is the search for this elusive world nearly over? Astronomers have been scouring the outer solar system for signs of a hypothetical ninth planet for almost a decade, without success. However, we may finally be on the cusp of finding it, experts say.
Each bright spot in this image, the first all-sky image by eRosita, is black hole or a neutron star.
5 space discoveries that scientists are struggling to explain From "runaway" black holes shooting across the cosmos to secret planets in our own backyard, space is overrun with mysterious objects that scientists are clamoring to explain. Here are five of the strangest sights in the universe, as well as their possible origins.
An illustration of a large, round asteroid having a close encounter with the blue Earth
NASA's most wanted: The 5 most dangerous asteroids to Earth What is the most dangerous asteroid, how probable is an impact, and how much destructive power would a collision with Earth have? Here are 5 big space rocks that NASA is watching closely.

Latest about space

Europa surface.

Jupiter's moon Europa lacks oxygen, making it less hospitable for sustaining life

By Jennifer Nalewicki published

Data compiled from NASA's Juno mission shows that Europa, Jupiter's ice-covered moon, severely lacks oxygen.

Jupiter
The blue marble of Earth creeps over the lunar horizon during a solar eclipse. The moon's black shadow can be seen over Australia.

'Everything has changed since Apollo': Why landing on the moon is still incredibly difficult in 2024

By Sharmila Kuthunur last updated

More than 50 years after the Apollo era, major governments and well-funded private companies still struggle with lunar landing missions. Why is landing on the moon so hard in 2024?

The Moon
A star in the Lizard constellation appears to be dragging a trail of stardust behind it.

Passing stars may have changed Earth's orbit and climate, study finds

By Abha Jain published

Passing stars may have altered Earth's orbit, and its climate, many times throughout cosmic history. New research digs into what that means when it comes to understanding our planet's past.

Cosmology
Close-up image of a petri dish containing lab-grown mini brains being held by a scientist wearing blue gloves. The scientist's face can be seen blurred in the background

Could mini space-grown organs be our 'cancer moonshot'?

By Emily Cooke published

Scientists say they're growing "organoids" in space to better understand cancer, neurological diseases and aging, and to hopefully uncover treatments.

Anatomy
The six planets orbit their central star HD 110067 in a harmonic rhythm with planets aligning every few orbits.

'Mathematically perfect' star system being investigated for potential alien technology

By Sharmila Kuthunur published

A distant star system housing 6 planets that move in 'mathematically perfect' orbits has ignited a search for possible alien technosignatures.

Exoplanets
The final images of ERS-2 tumbling through the sky. They were captured by the Tracking and Imaging Radar (TIRA) at the Fraunhofer Institute for High Frequency Physics and Radar Techniques FHR in Germany.

Radar images show Europe's doomed ERS-2 satellite buckle and burn during final orbits of Earth

By Andrew Jones published

New radar images show surprise changes to the doomed ERS-2 spacecraft as it tumbled through Earth's atmosphere on Feb. 21.

Exoplanets
Illustrated in this artist concept are two possible structures for asteroid 2011 MD. NASA Spitzer infrared camera helped reveal that this asteroid consists of about two-thirds empty space.

Earth has extra moons, and they may hold the secrets of our solar system's past

By Kiley Price published

Earth's closest cosmic companions, known as 'minimoons' or 'quasi-moons', could hold the secrets to the history of our early solar system.

Asteroids
An illustration shows a gravastar stacked like a cosmic matryoshka doll.

Bizarre 'Russian doll stars' predicted with Einstein's general relativity equations

By Robert Lea published

A new solution to Albert Einstein's theory of general relativity suggests hypothetical gravitational stars that look like black holes could be nested within one another.

Cosmology
A full moon rises in Chile's Atacama Desert.

February's full 'Snow Moon' rises this weekend. Here's why it's one-of-a-kind.

By Jamie Carter last updated

February's 'Snow Moon', the second full moon of 2024, will be the farthest from Earth this year and will appear the smallest in the sky when it rises on Saturday (Feb. 24).

The Moon
An illustration shows the TMTS J0526 binary star system.

Dead star smaller than Jupiter is one of the tiniest in the known universe

By Robert Lea published

The discovery or an ultra-tiny white dwarf could reveal how stars smaller than Jupiter are born.

Cosmology
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