SUNSET: 
Spotlight on New Horizons
Jupiter looks great through a backyard telescope, but can you imagine how much better it'd look from just 1.4 million miles away? NASA's Pluto-bound spacecraft got that chance last February.
Iapetus Yields Dark Secrets
Saturn's black-and-white moon has mystified astronomers for centuries. Finally, however, they're learning what a bizarre place it truly is.
Imaging Mercury
A team of astronomers have found new features on the innermost planet using an approach familiar to many amateur astronomers.
Kaguya: To the Moon!
With a brief rocket firing on October 4th, the Japanese spacecraft Kaguya slipped into lunar orbit — the first step in what promises to be an exciting scientific mission.
Uranian Moons Transit Tonight
This evening, if you've got a good planetary imaging setup, see if you can rcord the shadows of Titania and Ariel as they drift across the cloud tops of Uranus.
Sun 1, Comet Tail 0
A solar explosion plows into a comet's tail. Care to place a wager on which one wins?
Skylights into Martian Caves
NASA's Mars Odyssey orbiter may have found deep black pits — possibly sinkholes — that act as skylights for extensive caves on the slopes of the volcano Arsia Mons.
Dawn Heads to Vesta (Finally!)
After many delays (and near termination), NASA's ambitious asteroid mission is finally under way following a picture-perfect launch on Thursday.
A Hot New Comet
The Solar and Heliospheric Observatory has 1,350 comet discoveries to its credit. But only one of them has been a repeat visitor.
Neptune's "Warm" Pole
The big blue planet's south pole is warmer than everywhere else, and that might be triggering Neptune's strong winds.
Japan Launches a "Lunar Princess"
On September 14th, during a picture-perfect launch, a powerful rocket heaved Japan's latest scientific satellite toward the Moon.
Close-up on Iapetus
NASA's Cassini spacecraft zoomed in to take detailed pictures and other measurements of one of Saturn's weirdest moons.
Opportunity is Going In
Now that the dust storms have passed, the Mars Exploration Rover Opportunity should begin studies inside Victoria Crater in the coming weeks.
Prepare to Be Blown Away by Iapetus
Cassini finally encounters Saturn's wacky moon Iapetus today. Don't wait for the processed pics to be released. Check out the raw images now!
The Source of the Dinosaurs' Asteroid
Did a colossal collision in the asteroid belt 160 million years ago doom the dinosaurs? A just-published analysis argues strongly for exactly that.
The Sun Shakes the Earth
A team of scientists makes a compelling case that sound waves rattling around inside the Sun are literally shaking Earth's interior.
The Sun's Hot Corona: Mystery Deepens
Why is the Sun's atmosphere so hot? Physicists thought they knew the answer — powerful waves of energy moving up from the solar surface — but now they're not so sure.
Mars Rovers Rolling Again!
Predictions that the twin Martian explorers wouldn't survive the dust storm thankfully proved to be wrong. Spirit and Opportunity are back in business.
Rings of Uranus on Edge
For the first time since the rings of Uranus were discovered, astronomers are studying their edge-on view.
Icy Shower Poses No Threat for Cassini
Scientists are confident that the towering ice geysers on Saturn's moon Enceladus shouldn't harm the Cassini spacecraft during a close flyby next March.
