The Sun is the source of energy for life on Earth and is the strongest modulator of the human physical environment. In fact, the Sun’s influence extends throughout the solar system, both through ...

Spacecraft turn distant worlds from points of light into places with weather, geology, chemistry, and history. Each ...

Unfortunately, this book can't be printed from the OpenBook. If you need to print pages from this book, we recommend downloading it as a PDF. Visit NAP.edu/10766 to get more information about this ...

NASA has selected a team led by Southwest Research Institute to be a founding member of the agency’s new Solar System Exploration Research Virtual Institute (SSERVI). The recently formed team, known ...

Introduction: NASA's solar system exploration paradigm : the first fifty years and a look at the next fifty / James L. Green and Kristen J. Erickson -- Part I. Overview. Exploring the Solar System : ...

The same dirt that clings to astronauts' boots may one day keep their lights on. Researchers created solar cells made out of simulated Moon dust. The cells convert sunlight into energy efficiently, ...

China envisions exploring the solar system, and it seems that would happen soon. The country launched Tianwen-2, an innovative space probe tasked with retrieving samples from an uncharted asteroid and ...

In the coming decades, multiple space agencies and private companies plan to establish outposts on the moon and Mars. These outposts will allow for long-duration stays, astrobiological research, and ...

Our moon is closer in size to Earth than any other moon in the solar system is to its associated planet, however it is far from the largest moon around.