Press Releases & Feature Stories Archive - Planetary Systems Lab

NASA Selects Experiments for Possible Lunar Flights in 2019

02.21.2019

NASA has selected 12 science and technology demonstration payloads to fly to the Moon as early as the end of this year, dependent upon the availability of commercial landers.

Lucy Finds Its Place in the Solar System: Navigating NASA’s First Mission to the Trojan Asteroids

12.20.2018

In 2021, the feat of navigation that is the Lucy mission will launch. To steer Lucy towards its targets doesn’t simply involve programming a map into a spacecraft and giving it gas money – it will fly by six asteroid targets, each in different orbits, over the course of 12 years.

NASA's OSIRIS-REx Spacecraft Arrives at Asteroid Bennu

12.03.2018

NASA’s Origins, Spectral Interpretation, Resource Identification, Security-Regolith Explorer (OSIRIS-REx) spacecraft completed its 1.2 billion-mile (2 billion-kilometer) journey to arrive at the asteroid Bennu Monday.

NASA's Lucy in the Sky with … Asteroids?

11.21.2018

Three years from now, a spacecraft named Lucy will begin its exploration that could help determine the early history of the Solar System.

TAGSAM Testing Complete: OSIRIS-REx Prepared to TAG an Asteroid

11.16.2018

On Nov. 14, NASA’s OSIRIS-REx spacecraft stretched out its robotic sampling arm for the first time in space.

Aboard the First Spacecraft to the Trojan Asteroids: NASA Ralph's Next Adventure

11.06.2018

Ralph, one of NASA’s most well-traveled space explorers, has voyaged far and accomplished much: Ralph obtained stunning images of Jupiter and its moons, followed by a visit to Pluto. And, in 2021, Ralph journeys to Jupiter’s Trojan asteroids. Ralph, however, is not an impossibly accomplished astronaut — it is a scientific instrument.

NASA Brings its Science and Supercomputing Advances to SC18

11.05.2018

From designing rocket launch pad components and safer rotorcraft to improving flood and drought forecasts to modeling the formation of planetary disks, NASA will highlight supercomputing advances at SC18, the International Conference for High Performance Computing, Networking, Storage and Analysis, Nov. 12 to 15 in Dallas.

How a NASA Scientist Looks in the Depths of the Great Red Spot to Find Water on Jupiter

08.29.2018

Is there water deep in Jupiter's atmosphere, and if so, how much?

NASA’s OSIRIS-REx Begins Asteroid Operations Campaign

08.24.2018

OSIRIS-REx, caught its first glimpse of asteroid Bennu last week and began the final approach toward its target.

NASA Goddard’s Science Jamboree Connects Disciplines and Interns

07.26.2018

The Goddard Science Jamboree provides an opportunity for interns and senior scientists alike to learn more about the science happening in other disciplines in one room.

Successful Second Deep Space Maneuver for OSIRIS-REx Confirmed

07.03.2018

New tracking data confirms that NASA’s OSIRIS-REx spacecraft successfully completed its second Deep Space Maneuver (DSM-2) on June 28. DSM-2 was OSIRIS-REx’s last deep space maneuver of its outbound cruise to the asteroid Bennu, with arrival scheduled for Dec. 3.

OSIRIS-REx Executes Second Deep Space Maneuver

06.28.2018

NASA’s OSIRIS-REx spacecraft executed its second Deep Space Maneuver today, which put the spacecraft on course for its scheduled arrival at the asteroid Bennu in December. The mission team will continue to examine telemetry and tracking data as they become available and will have more information on the results of the maneuver over the next week.

Will We Know Life When We See It? NASA-led Group Takes Stock of the Science

06.25.2018

In the last decade we have discovered thousands of planets outside our solar system and have learned that rocky, temperate worlds are numerous in our galaxy. The next step will involve asking even bigger questions. Could some of these planets host life? And if so, will we be able to recognize life elsewhere if we see it?

Martian Dust Storm Grows Global: Curiosity Captures Photos of Thickening Haze

06.20.2018

A storm of tiny dust particles has engulfed much of Mars over the last two weeks. NASA's Curiosity rover, which has been studying Martian soil at Gale Crater, is expected to remain largely unaffected by the dust.

2020 Decadal Survey Missions: At a Glance

04.24.2018

Any telescope that reaches the launch pad in the 2030s likely will look much different than the concepts four teams are currently studying to inform the 2020 Decadal Survey for Astrophysics, but the studies do offer a roadmap.

NASA Teams Study the Agency’s Future in Astrophysics; Tackle Formidable Technology Challenges

04.24.2018

As in past decades, the agency won’t make that decision in a vacuum or without understanding the technical obstacles, which are formidable.

Giada Arney Attempts to Answer, "Are We Alone?"

04.19.2018

Giada Arney wants to find out "Are We Alone?"

New Exoplanet Collaboration Hosts Meeting to Explore Molecular Seeds of Life

04.09.2018

The Sellers Exoplanet Environments Collaboration (SEEC) hosts its first annual symposium April 9-13. Researchers will discuss how our knowledge of the early solar system can help the hunt for life on other worlds.

Celebrating 60 Years of Groundbreaking U.S. Space Science

01.31.2018

Sixty years ago, the U.S. launched Explorer 1, rocketing into the Space Age.

Explorer 1: The Beginning of American Space Science

01.23.2018

Sixty years ago, the hopes of Cold War America soared into the night sky as a rocket lofted skyward above Cape Canaveral, a soon-to-be-famous barrier island off the Florida coast.

NASA Goddard Year in Review - 2017

12.20.2017

A look back at 2017 at NASA Goddard.

Spanning Disciplines in the Search for Life Beyond Earth

12.13.2017

Following a gold rush of exoplanet discovery, the next step in the search for life is determining which of the known exoplanets are proper candidates for life — and for this, a cross-disciplinary approach is essential.

An Orbital Dance May Help Preserve Oceans on Icy Worlds

11.30.2017

Heat generated by the gravitational pull of moons formed from massive collisions could extend the lifetimes of liquid water oceans beneath the surface of large icy worlds in our outer solar system, according to new NASA research.