21–40 of 81 results
a small grey rock like object against a rocky terrain orange background

Cosmic Relief with David Grinspoon

Not From Around Here

NASA’s rovers have found meteorites on Mars that came from elsewhere. What secrets do they hold about Martian history and climate?

a half circle of a blue planet with white clouds

Cosmic Relief with David Grinspoon

Venus Is Dead. Long Live Venus.

In which I attempt a contrarian argument against my own contrarian argument.

the curiousity on dark orange land with a light orange sky

Cosmic Relief with David Grinspoon

Mars Coughs Up Another Mystery

What’s behind the strangely fluctuating levels of oxygen on the Red Planet?

a comet streaks by a floating satelitte against a black background with white star dots

Cosmic Relief with David Grinspoon

Mission to an Interstellar Object

It’s time to visit a body from another star system — without leaving ours.

a tall thin building at night with the image of a rocket projected onto it

Cosmic Relief with David Grinspoon

A Fitting Apollo Monument

Fifty years after the fact, the National Mall hosts a spectacular, and deeply moving, celebration.

an artist's rendition of venus with blue and gold streaks on a white background

Cosmic Relief with David Grinspoon

Sea Change on Venus

Tidal drag from a putative ocean might have helped cool our sister planet for billions of years.

Can a Planet Think?

Cosmic Relief with David Grinspoon

Can a Planet Think? The Gaia Hypothesis, Rethought

Humans have irrevocably changed the planet. Have those processes gone so far that Earth’s biosphere has begun to resemble a human brain?

Chang'e 4 lander

Cosmic Relief with David Grinspoon

One Small Step for Plantkind

With a seed germinated on the lunar farside, Earth’s biosphere made its first tentative foray into the cosmos.

Greenland crater

Cosmic Relief with David Grinspoon

Sudden Impact: What Greenland's Crater Means for Our Planet's History

The discovery of a recent huge meteor crater beneath Greenland’s ice sheet has reignited a debate over cosmic influences.

Cosmic Relief with David Grinspoon

NASA Renews Interest in SETI

After a long hiatus, NASA gets back into the SETI game with a workshop on “technosignatures.”

Cosmic Relief with David Grinspoon

Clouds: A Nebulous Existence

In David Grinspoon's latest column, he discusses how, for both Venus and Earth, life's last refuge might lie in the clouds.

Cosmic Relief with David Grinspoon

Variations on a Theme: What Do Earth and Pluto Share in Common?

Nature loves to riff on existing motifs, even in the most unearthly of environments.

Cosmic Relief with David Grinspoon

Advancing the SETI Quest

Hope, perseverance, and the courage of their convictions sustain those seeking hints of alien civilizations and advancing the SETI quest.

Cosmic Relief with David Grinspoon

Chipping Away at Exoplanets

Human ingenuity is helping us unlock the secrets of unimaginably distant worlds — exoplanets.

large grey disk floating against grey background

Cosmic Relief with David Grinspoon

Alien Visitor

The first interstellar object seen entering the solar system is really quite bizarre.

Cosmic Relief with David Grinspoon

Cosmic Communion: A Total Solar Eclipse

Last summer's total solar eclipse provided a profound moment of celestial accord for millions of Americans.

a large orb in shadow with a disk of light to its left

Cosmic Relief with David Grinspoon

Chasing the Elusive 2014 MU69

New Horizons’ next target was hard to find and remains a bear to pin down, but persistence has paid off.

several orbs in a line at increasing closeness and a bright light in the upper left on a dark blue background

Cosmic Relief with David Grinspoon

My Rock of Ages

On being immortalized far out in the asteroid belt.

Cosmic Relief with David Grinspoon

Life Outside the Habitable Zone

What would allow a planet to host life? The habitable zone is often defined as the distance from a star where liquid water can exist on a planet's surface.

Cosmic Relief with David Grinspoon

Not Venus Again

Once more, NASA leaves our sister planet out of the mix of new missions. Ouch.

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