moving along with a population of nearby stars. Its position and motion play a big role in shaping the environment of the Solar System and maintaining long-term planetary stability. Location in the Orion Arm The Sun resides in the Orion Arm, a smaller...

Explore the science and impact of solar wind on planets and space exploration. Learn about coronal heating, magnetic fields, aurora formation, and the latest research discoveries. The vast expanse of space is more dynamic than it may seem, influenced...

changes in the solar wind because those changes shape the heliosphere, the vast bubble carved by the Sun that shields the solar system from incoming galactic cosmic rays. Variations in the solar wind also change where a planet’s magnetopause sits, and...

principle postulated in quantum mechanics—as Werner Heisenberg's Uncertainty Principle. This suggests a deviation from the solar system-like electron orbits in the Bohr model towards an electron 'cloud,' a probability area where an electron is likely to...

ESA’s Solar Orbiter has discovered a unique chemical fingerprint in the Sun’s corona, revealing how its magnetic boundary transforms into solar wind. The heliospheric current sheet (HCS), a vast magnetic structure rippling through our solar system, is...

Newly found object 660 million years post‑Big Bang could explain the rapid growth of the universe’s earliest supermassive black holes. A team of astronomers has reported what may represent the earliest example of a “black‑hole star,” a compact system...

A retired NASA spacecraft that once explored Earth’s hazardous radiation belts has fallen back to Earth years earlier than expected, after heightened solar activity gradually pulled it out of orbit. Space missions rarely end with a dramatic finale....

determine whether these grains merely survive near the Sun or actively shape one of the most energetic environments in the solar system.

lie the ghostly remnants of a world that vanished billions of years ago. A new study suggests that during the dawn of the solar system, the young Sun may have engulfed a rocky super-Earth, leaving behind a chemical signature that continues to influence...

New simulations suggest the solar system’s giant planets could descend into orbital chaos far sooner after the Sun’s death than previously predicted. The long-term future of our solar system is likely to be far more volatile than previously imagined. A...

Brief flashes of millimeter-wave light seen by the South Pole Telescope reveal magnetic activity in compact white dwarf systems close to the Galactic center, showing that these small stars can release energy in unexpected ways. The center of the Milky...

a rare window to investigate where the solar wind yields to interstellar space. Researchers Hone Predictions of the Solar System’s Edge Pinpointing the exact terminus of our solar system is far more intricate than drawing a fixed line in the cosmos. The...

High-resolution images show swirling magnetic structures covering much of the Sun’s surface, suggesting pervasive solar magnetism. A team of solar researchers has identified a previously unseen layer of activity on the Sun, documenting extensive...

equilibrium—meaning its own gravity has pulled it into a roughly spherical shape—it could officially join the ranks of the solar system’s dwarf planets. Currently, the International Astronomical Union (IAU) recognizes only five such bodies: Pluto,...

the potential for future occultation campaigns to reveal hidden, shifting structures on other minor bodies throughout the solar system.

we would try to deflect it. A solid rock might require a different kinetic impact than a rubble pile. The History of the Solar System: The spin of an asteroid is often increased by the “YORP effect,” where sunlight hitting the surface acts like a tiny...

origins of these enigmatic celestial bodies. Japan is gearing up for a groundbreaking mission to unlock one of the solar system’s most persistent enigmas: the true origin of Mars’ two moons, Phobos and Deimos. Through the Martian Moons eXploration (MMX)...

New Hubble observations uncover the hidden structure and violent origins of a mysterious dust tail orbiting a star 63 light-years away from Earth. A sprawling, dark ribbon of dust encircling Beta Pictoris, a young star located 63 light-years from...

NASA’s Juno mission has discovered that Jupiter utilizes a complex system of plasma waves to shield itself from the intense pressure of solar wind. Data transmitted by NASA’s Juno spacecraft has revealed that Jupiter employs a sophisticated,...

change in the orbit of a natural object moving around the Sun. It is a small shift. But in the vast mechanics of the Solar System, even the smallest push can change the future path of a world. The research was published in Science Advances on March 06,...