Planets
Explore Planets
Latest about Planets
![This image of Uranus from NIRCam (Near-Infrared Camera) on NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope shows the planet and its rings in new clarity.](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/XTosDBpvF2oWbgkLsGTDv5-320-80.jpg)
Space photo of the week: Uranus 'rings' in the New Year in stunning James Webb telescope image
By Jamie Carter published
The James Webb Space Telescope reveals a stunning new portrait of ice giant Uranus, featuring its frigid rings and 14 of 27 moons.
![An illustration of NASA's Cassini orbiter soaring through a giant vapor jet over the moon Enceladus](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/nqifkMdf4bcF8tgpuQRuhj-320-80.jpg)
NASA finds key ingredient for life gushing out of Saturn's icy moon Enceladus
By Joanna Thompson published
Scientists have discovered complex molecules in the gas and vapor plumes escaping from Enceladus's icy core — and one of them, hydrogen cyanide, is a precursor for life.
![An artist's illustration of Proxima Centauri b, one of the watery exoplanet candidates.](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/uvMPbh63JYNvhY8PAp8FhR-320-80.jpg)
NASA identifies 17 planets with possible subsurface oceans, and they could be fit for life
By Conor Feehly published
A new NASA survey identified 17 exoplanets that may have the right conditions for liquid water oceans hidden beneath icy shells. The planets could be good candidates in the search for alien life.
![An illusration of solar wind from the sun hitting Mars](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/mUUcA77M8MRaTigjgWg9f7-320-80.jpg)
'Almost unbelievable': Rare void from the sun briefly blew up Mars' atmosphere last year, and it could happen to Earth too
By Harry Baker published
On Dec. 26, 2022, NASA's MAVEN Orbiter witnessed Mars' magnetic shield and atmosphere drastically "balloon" outward by thousands of miles. The sudden expansion was triggered by a rare gap in solar wind.
![This artistic rendering shows ice plumes being ejected from Enceladus at major speeds.](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/UCAkyYPPV6TfnKR3sA9AJB-320-80.jpg)
Signs of life shooting from Saturn's moon could be collected with spacecraft, scientists say
By Rahul Rao published
Possible amino acids spewing from Enceladus' subsurface ocean can survive impact with a spacecraft, lab experiments show.
![An illustration of the solar system and the planet's orbits around the sun](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/FKSKQ5QRi4V7QGZX2gpeVW-320-80.jpg)
How many times has Earth orbited the sun?
By Harry Baker published
We worked out how many trips each of the solar system's eight planets has taken around the sun over the past 4.6 billion years.
![Measurements from NASA's MESSENGER spacecraft mapped the topography of Mercury's northern hemisphere in great detail.](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/UMhLF64NvzQbnXHdLne9K-320-80.jpg)
Mercury may have a 'potentially habitable' region below its surface, salty glaciers suggest
By Briley Lewis published
Salty glaciers discovered in craters near Mercury's north pole may have the right conditions for extreme forms of life, new research suggests.
![Artistic rendering of the possible view from LHS 3154b towards its low mass host star. Given its large mass, LHS 3154b probably has a Neptune-like composition.](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/7hnfBDvQiEnGoHhrhCRgX8-320-80.jpg)
Enormous planet discovered around tiny star could break our understanding of solar system formation
By Joanna Thompson published
The massive planet LHS 3154b orbits a star much smaller than Earth's sun, and its discovery could upend everything we think we know about how solar systems form.
Sign up for the Live Science daily newsletter now
Get the world’s most fascinating discoveries delivered straight to your inbox.