Space Sciences

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Is A Hidden Planet at the Edge of Our Solar System?

Did we just uncover a new member of our solar system? Astronomers have spotted 2017 OF201, a newly discovered object with an orbit that stretches from over 4 billion to nearly 150 billion miles from the Sun.
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Solar Rain Caught on Camera! High-Def Plasma Shower Images

Did it just rain on the Sun?! Scientists captured high-resolution footage of plasma rain, cooling plasma that falls back to the solar surface along the star's magnetic field lines.
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NASA Astronaut Fixed the Hubble Then Mowed the Lawn

When NASA astronaut Dr. Jeffrey Hoffman returned home from repairing the Hubble Space Telescope he was met with his wife's chore list at home.
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200 Meteors an Hour?! Don't Miss the Daytime Arietids Meteor Shower

Get ready for the strongest daytime meteor shower of the year — the Arietids! 🌟 Peaking around June 7 (with activity between June 5–10), the Arietid meteor shower can produce up to 200 meteors per hour, making it one of the most powerful meteor showers on...
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What’s What in the Outer Solar System

There’s a new minor planet in the solar system! Actually, that’s a lie, this minor planet, 2017 OF201, has been in the solar system probably since it formed. But now we know about it! So today, inspired by the news of 2017 OF201’s discovery, we’re going...
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Wednesday, May 21 | 7:00 pm

Beyond the Telescope: Space Travel in the Milky Way

Journey through a 3-D Milky Way to uncover how, where, and when stars are born — and what that reveals about our place in the cosmos — through immersive visualizations in the Planetarium.
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Don't Miss Venus at Its Farthest Point From the Sun!

Have you spotted an unusually bright light in the early morning sky lately? That’s not a star — it’s Venus, the brightest planet visible from Earth!
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Planetary Profile: The Vagaries of Venus

A lot of things are weird and interesting about Venus. Since every planet has its own little quirks, doesn’t Venus deserve some attention? Let’s dig into the weirdnesses of Earth’s twin.
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Is Planet Nine Hiding in Our Solar System?

Planet Nine might finally be showing signs of its existence. We explore the latest study that suggests something massive could be influencing the orbits of objects in the Kuiper Belt. Could this be the elusive Planet Nine?
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That Time Jupiter Almost Killed Earth

When I think about my favorite solar system theories, I think about things like the Grand Tack Hypothesis. Since you are unlikely to know what the Grand Tack Hypothesis is unless you also happen to be a raging space nerd (hi friend!), let’s find out about...
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NASA Astronaut on Floating 400 Miles Above Earth

In this unforgettable moment, veteran NASA astronaut Jeff Hoffman recounts the surreal experience of letting go during a spacewalk, floating freely 400 miles above Earth.
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Star Wars vs Science: What’s a Parsec?

If you’ve ever watched Star Wars, you’ve probably heard Han Solo brag that the Millennium Falcon made the Kessel Run in less than 12 parsecs. But here's the twist—a parsec isn’t a unit of time at all.
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Planet Nine or No Planet Nine?

I saw an very untrue science headline this week: “Astronomers make groundbreaking discovery of planet hiding in our solar system with 'promising' evidence of life”. So what is Planet Nine and what did this study actually see (and why was this headline so...
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50 Meteors Per Hour - Don’t Miss the Eta Aquariids

50 meteors per hour are about to light up the sky! The Eta Aquariid meteor shower peaks before sunrise on May 4, bringing dazzling fireballs from Halley’s Comet.
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Hubble’s 35th Birthday

Happy Birthday Hubble!! It was 35 years ago, on April 24, 1990, that the game-changing Hubble Space Telescope was lofted into orbit in the cargo hold of the Space Shuttle Discovery. In honor of the birthday of one of the greatest tools in history, let’s...