Triton – Astronomy Now

NASA evaluates four ‘concept studies’ for possible planetary missions

13 February 2020 Astronomy Now

NASA has selected four possible planetary science missions for further evaluation, two focused on Venus, one on volcanic Io and one on icy Triton.

30 years later, Voyager 2’s flyby of Neptune still thrills

22 August 2019 Astronomy Now

Three decades ago, on 25 August 1989, the Voyager 2 spacecraft raced past Neptune and its icy moon Triton, thrilling scientists and the public at large with spectacular images that remain unrivaled today.

Star-hop your way to viewing planets Uranus and Neptune at their best

23 September 2018 Ade Ashford

Clear nights of early Northern Hemisphere autumn offer ideal opportunities to track down the two outermost planets of the solar system, Uranus and Neptune. What’s more, you don’t need a big telescope to find them. We show you how to locate these gas giants using binoculars. The Moon also passes close to Neptune on 20 October.

Flying observatory SOFIA expanding frontiers in solar system and beyond

16 November 2016 Astronomy Now

NASA’s Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy (SOFIA) is a Boeing 747SP jetliner modified to carry a 100-inch diameter telescope to study the universe at infrared wavelengths that cannot be detected from ground-based observatories. SOFIA’s Science Cycle 5, which runs from February 2017 through January 2018, spans the entire field of astronomy from planetary science to extragalactic investigations.

Solving the mystery of how comets are born

29 July 2016 Astronomy Now

Detailed analysis of data collected from Comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko by ESA’s Rosetta spacecraft show that comets are the ancient leftovers of early solar system formation, and not younger fragments resulting from subsequent collisions between other, larger bodies.

Mars’ moon Phobos is slowly falling apart

10 November 2015 Astronomy Now

Orbiting a mere 3,700 miles above the surface of Mars, Phobos is closer to its planet than any other moon in the solar system. Mars’ gravity is drawing in the 17 × 14 × 11 mile body by about 6.6 feet (2 metres) every hundred years. The long, shallow grooves lining the surface of Phobos are likely early signs of its structural failure as scientists expect it to be pulled apart.

See outermost planet Neptune at its best

29 August 2015 Ade Ashford

When Pluto was reclassified as a dwarf planet in 2006, Neptune regained the title of the solar system’s outermost planet. Since this fascinating gas giant reached opposition on 1 September in the constellation Aquarius, now is a great time to seek it out. We show you how to locate Neptune with binoculars and small telescopes.