Far beyond Neptune, in the frozen depths of the Kuiper Belt, many ancient objects oddly resemble giant snowmen made of ice and rock. For years, scientists wondered how these delicate two-lobed shapes ...

While its star projector leaves a lot to be desired, the Science Can Solar System Planetary Projector is a fantastic educational tool for kids, with its solar system model, complete with talking ...

Our solar system is a smashing success. A new study suggests that from its earliest period — even before the last of its nebular gas had been consumed — Earth’s solar system and its planets looked ...

CREDIT: ALMA(ESO/NAOJ/NRAO)/M. McClure et al. Get the Popular Science daily newsletter💡 Breakthroughs, discoveries, and DIY tips sent six days a week. Terms of ...

Federal funding is about to run out for 19 active space missions studying Earth’s climate, exploring the Solar System, and probing mysteries of the Universe. This year’s budget expires at the end of ...

Microscopic crystals extracted from meteorites could help settle a debate about the birth of our patch of the Milky Way.

A newborn planetary system is forming around HOPS-315, a protostar (one that recently formed) that sits some 1,300 light-years away in the constellation Orion the Hunter. This star isn’t in the ...

Simulations reveal that Jupiter’s rapid growth disrupted the early solar system, creating rings where new planetesimals formed much later than expected. These late-forming bodies match the ages and ...

Astronomers have found a septet of superclouds lying just beyond the solar system. These giant strings of gas — five of which were previously unknown — sit nearly parallel to each other, and most of ...

The updated measurements won't take away Jupiter's status as the solar system's biggest planet. NASA / JPL-Caltech / SwRI / MSSS Scientists may have been overestimating the size of the solar system’s ...