The Sun's magnetic field is about to flip

(Phys.org) —Something big is about to happen on the sun. According to measurements from NASA-supported observatories, the sun's vast magnetic field is about to flip.

Mars rover Curiosity's other mission: PR

NASA's Curiosity rover was designed to search Mars for places capable of supporting life. But the $2.5 billion mission has another, unofficial objective: To serve as a goodwill ambassador for the Jet Propulsion Laboratory ...

O, Pioneers! (Part 1): The motes in God's eye

March 2012 marks the fortieth anniversary of the launch of one of the most extraordinary spacecraft ever constructed - Pioneer 10 - the first true deep space probe. The story of the Voyager spacecraft is well known but that ...

Nonterrestrial artifacts hard to pin down

(PhysOrg.com) -- Two Pioneer probes left our solar system carrying plaques about humankind, and two Voyager probes will soon join them to gather information about places far out in our galaxy. We can and will send more autonomous ...

Voyager set to enter interstellar space

(PhysOrg.com) -- More than 30 years after they left Earth, NASA's twin Voyager probes are now at the edge of the solar system. Not only that, they're still working. And with each passing day they are beaming back a message ...