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Astronomy

Martian rock from Sahara desert unlike others
Scientists are abuzz about a coal-colored rock from Mars that landed in the Sahara desert: A yearlong analysis revealed it's quite different from ...
Road trip on tap for NASA's Mars rover in new year
Since captivating the world with its acrobatic landing, the Mars rover Curiosity has fallen into a rhythm: Drive, snap pictures, zap at boulders, ...
Final goodbye: Roll call of some who died in 2012
Neil Armstrong would always be taking that first step onto the moon, and Dick Clark was forever "the world's oldest teenager." Some of the notables ...
NASA names moon crash site in honor of Sally Ride
A pair of NASA spacecraft crashed into a mountain near the moon's north pole on Monday, bringing a deliberate end to a mission that peered into the ...
Twin NASA spacecraft prepare to crash into moon
After nearly a year circling the moon, NASA's Ebb and Flow will meet their demise when they crash — on purpose — into the lunar surface. Just don't ...
Distant galaxy regains title as oldest in universe
A galaxy once considered the oldest has reclaimed its title, scientists reported Wednesday. Poring through Hubble Space Telescope photos, the team ...
Hawking, CERN scientists win huge physics prize
A Russian billionaire's foundation is awarding two special prizes of $3 million each to British cosmologist Stephen Hawking for his work on black ...
Alaska reclaims missing moon rocks since 1973
A display of moon rocks that disappeared from an Alaska museum after an arson fire nearly four decades ago has been returned to the state following ...
To the moon? Firm hopes to sell $1.5 billion trips
Attention wealthy nations and billionaires: A team of former NASA executives will fly you to the moon in an out-of-this-world commercial venture ...
Craft spies interesting gullies on asteroid Vesta
Scientists are puzzling over the discovery of gullies inside young craters on the giant asteroid Vesta. NASA's Dawn spacecraft spied two types of ...
Expert panel: NASA seems lost in space, needs goal
NASA, the agency that epitomized the "Right Stuff," seems lost in space and doesn't have a clear sense of where it is going, an independent panel of ...
Below surface, moon reveals a "shattered" history
The moon took quite a beating in its early days, more than previously believed, scientists reported Wednesday. This surprising new view of the moon ...
Mars redux: NASA to launch Curiosity-like rover
If you thought NASA's latest Mars landing was a nail-biter, get ready for a sequel. The space agency on Tuesday announced plans to launch another ...
Rover Opportunity may be at clay-rich site on Mars
After rolling around the Martian plains for more than eight years, the Opportunity rover finally found a spot believed to be rich in clay minerals, ...
NASA: Voyager 1 enters new region of solar system
The unstoppable Voyager 1 spacecraft has sailed into a new realm of the solar system that scientists did not know existed. Voyager 1 and its twin, ...
Mars rover Curiosity: No surprise in 1st soil test
NASA's Curiosity rover has indeed found something in the Martian dirt. But so far, there's no definitive sign of the chemical ingredients necessary ...
NASA: Closest planet to sun, Mercury, harbors ice
Just in time for Christmas, scientists have confirmed a vast amount of ice at the north pole — on Mercury, the closest planet to the sun. The findings ...
NASA scientists eyeing regional dust storm on Mars
NASA is tracking a regional dust storm on Mars, but says it has not affected the operations of its two rovers on the surface. The space agency said ...
Study: Distant dwarf planet has no atmosphere
Astronomers say Pluto's icy more distant sister seems even more alien than thought because it doesn't have an atmosphere. Scientists gained that bit ...
Guide to TV DVD sets as holiday gifts
A TV show DVD set represents more than a holiday gift that's easy to wrap. It also demonstrates respect: you know the recipient is mentally fit and ...