Space, astronomy and planetary science

An answer to a lunar mystery: Why is the moon’s gravity so uneven?Simulations based on GRAIL data show how gravitational anomalies developed early in lunar history.

New five-planet system contains two that are in the ‘habitable zone’Potentially habitable planets are slightly larger than Earth.

NASA selects MIT-led TESS project for 2017 mission$200 million project will launch telescopes to perform full-sky search for transiting exoplanets.

CERN announces measurement of antimatter excess in spaceMIT physicist and AMS spokesman Samuel Ting presents results via webcast.

Mapping the early history of the moonIn 41st annual Killian Lecture, Maria Zuber describes looking deep into the moon’s interior to chart its early history.

Mercury may have harbored an ancient magma oceanMassive lava flows may have given rise to two distinct rock types on Mercury’s surface.

Students take control of satellites on the International Space Station200 high-school students participate in MIT’s annual Zero Robotics competition.

When the first stars blinked onThe very first stars may have turned on when the universe was 750 million years old.

GRAIL reveals a battered lunar historyTwin spacecraft create a highly detailed gravity map of the moon, finding an interior pulverized by early impacts.

Scientists discover water ice on MercuryIce and organic material may have been carried to the planet by passing comets.

Scientists find first evidence of dynamo generation on an asteroidA meteorite found in Antarctica holds evidence of a once-active dynamo on Vesta.

NASA-JPL director Charles Elachi talks about latest Mars missionCuriosity is the most ambitious planetary rover mission ever, but it’s just one of the many exploratory projects JPL is undertaking.

Explained: Near-miss asteroidsWhat to do in the event of an asteroid streaking toward Earth? Activate the asteroid ‘fire drill.’

Researchers calculate size of particles in Martian clouds of CO2 snowMars’ carbon dioxide ‘snowflakes’ are about the size of red blood cells.

Zuber wins faculty’s Killian AwardPlanetary trailblazer recognized for ‘extraordinary skills and talent.’

A close-up view of MercuryResearchers find the planet may have had a dynamic past.

Marwan Hussein SDM '12: Complexity and Interplanetary Space Systems

X-ray monitoring mission comes to an endThe RXTE satellite retires after 16 years.

Mysterious electron acceleration explainedComputer simulation identifies source of aurora-causing high-speed electrons in space

An element that's rare on Earth is found far, far awayTellurium detected for the first time in ancient stars.

Robots go head to head, 250 miles above EarthThird annual Zero Robotics competition pits robots against each other on the International Space Station.

Battered asteroid may have warm coreNew analysis of Lutetia finds evidence for molten interior.

3 Questions: Greg Chamitoff on the final frontierAlum-astronaut relives some of the highlights of his space shuttle career.

MIT’s TESS project awarded $1 million NASA grant

To the moonMIT-led GRAIL mission to map the lunar gravitational field.

Stellar eclipse gives glimpse of exoplanetNew data reveals a ‘super-Earth’ next door, astronomically speaking

Helping space shuttles achieve liftoffMIT has contributed 27 alumni-astronauts, plenty of earthbound expertise.

3 Questions: Richard Binzel on near-Earth asteroids'2011 MD,' found by a Lincoln Lab team, will pass close to the planet on Monday.