Planetary Scientists

In fact, as Jackson pointed out, 'Oumuamua's orbit has the highest eccentricity ever observed in an object passing through our Solar System. Major questions about 'Oumuamua remain. For planetary scientists like Jackson, being able to observe objects like these may yield important clues about how planet ...

Vast oceans on Mars formed thousands of millions of years earlier than previously thought, according to a new study by planetary scientists. Oceans on Mars Two views of Mars show the early ocean known as Arabia (left), as it was 4 billion years ago, and the newer Deuteronilus ocean (right), about 3.6 ...

The Gravity Assist Podcast is hosted by NASA's Director of Planetary Science, Jim Green, who each week talks to some of the greatest planetary scientists on the planet, giving a guided tour through the Solar System and beyond in the process. This time, Green talks to NASA's Laurie Cantillo of the Science ...

For planetary scientists like Jackson, being able to observe objects like these may yield important clues about how planet formation works in other star systems. "The same way we use comets to better understand planet formation in our own Solar System, maybe this curious object can tell us more about ...

Most planetary scientists agree that our Moon was created when a planet-sized body hit Earth after it had almost completely formed. But they seem to disagree on nearly everything else. Now, a group of researchers has come up with an idea that upends that so-called “Big Splat” theory: If the giant impact ...

The Gravity Assist Podcast is hosted by NASA's Director of Planetary Science, Jim Green, who each week talks to some of the greatest planetary scientists on the planet, giving a guided tour through the Solar System and beyond in the process. This week, he is joined by Dr Jared Espley, who is a planetary ...

Despite the fact that astronomers have been observing Mercury with telescopes for centuries, how much do we really know about this strange world? The planet Mercury lies closest to the Sun, orbiting every 88 days. This tiny, crater-ridden world has intrigued planetary scientists for decades, housing water ...

Planetary scientists have noticed that Jupiter's most distinctive feature — the Great Red Spot (GRS) — has been getting smaller in area over time. Because of this, many expected to see the wind speeds inside the GRS increasing as the storm was shrinking. But surprisingly, this isn't the case — the wind ...