Asteroids

Megachirella, the mother-of-all-lizards (and snakes).

Oldest Lizard Fossil Shows These Reptiles Are The Ultimate Survivors

The 250-million-year-old specimen from the Alps suggests that lizards evolved before Earth's largest mass extinction—and thrived after it

The asteroid didn't just wipe out the dinosaurs—it wiped out the forests. Which meant anything that lived had to learn to live on the ground.

How the Ancestors of Birds Survived the Dino-Killing Asteroid

Forest cover was crucial to avian evolution, a new study on the mass extinction event asserts

Images of 2015 BZ509 captured by the Large Binocular Telescope Observatory.

Is This Backwards-Orbiting Asteroid an Interstellar Visitor?

The space rock could have been captured from another star system during the early days of our solar system

Asteroid 2010 WC9 as it appeared on May 15, 2018, at a distance of 453,600 miles.

An Asteroid Will Hurtle Past Earth Tonight in Close Flyby

While the space rock poses no danger to our planet, such a close pass is uncommon for asteroids of this size

Artist's concept of a near-Earth object.

An Unexpected Asteroid Buzzed by Earth Last Sunday

The space rock is one of the largest ever to come in such close proximity to our planet

70,000 Years Ago, a Passing Star Shook Up Our Solar System

The red dwarf likely came within one light-year of the sun, altering the course of some asteroids and comets

Earth and Moon seen from 3 million miles away on October 2, 2017.

Asteroid-Sampling Spacecraft Captures Haunting View of Earth in Space

OSIRIS-REx tested its cameras by taking a gorgeous photo of its home planet

Artists rendering of ‘Oumuamua

Unusual Interstellar Visitor Could Be Shard of Ice

A new study of ‘Oumuamua suggests it's water ice covered with 20 inches of dry carbon compounds

Geminids streak across the skies above the Alabama Hills. The approaching asteroid is thought to be the parent body of this annual meteor shower.

Three-Mile Wide Asteroid Will Zoom by Earth This December

But it will still be about 6.4 million miles away

Artist's rendering of 'Oumuamua

The First Interstellar Object Seen Buzzing by Earth Is Pretty Weird

Roughly the size of a football field, the object is roughly 10 times longer than it is wide

An artist's rendering of an asteroid striking Earth.

Dinosaurs Might Be Alive Today If the Asteroid Had Hit Another Location

Only a fraction of the Earth’s surface contained the right amount of hydrocarbons to trigger the mass extinction, a new study says

Artist's impression of 288P

Hubble Spots Strange Pair of Space Rocks in the Night Sky

The duo, dubbed 288P, may help scientists better understand asteroid evolution

An illustration envisioning how the satellite OSIRIS-REx will collect rocks from the asteroid Bennu

How a Satellite Just Used Earth Like a Slingshot

On its way to study an asteroid for clues about the origins of life, OSIRIS-REx got a little boost from Earth's gravity

Behind Saturn's icy rings is the moon Tethys, illuminated by the planet's reflected sunlight.

How Scientists Engineered Cassini’s Final Demise

After a rich scientific life, Cassini went out in a blaze, becoming one with the planet it had revolved around for so long

A Near Earth Object

Meet Florence, the Giant Asteroid That Will Buzz by Earth This September

The 2.7-mile-long, near-Earth object will give astronomers a chance to study the asteroid up close

Asteroid 2014 MU69 may be composed of two spheres

New Horizon's Next Target Is an Oddly Shaped Asteroid

New data shows that MU69 is less than 20 miles long and may actually be two asteroids orbiting one another

Geek Out to This Asteroid Day Livestream

For 24 hours a YouTube channel will host discussions on space rocks and their potential impacts on Earth

Jupiter Could Be the Solar System's Oldest Resident

The early former may have set up just the right conditions for Earth to take shape

A composite image of asteroid 2014 JO25 created with data from NASA's Goldstone Solar System Radar.

Watch a Large Asteroid Streak Through the Night Sky

Only a small telescope will be needed

What a ring around Mars may have looked like

Mars May Have Had a Ring in the Past and Could Have One in the Future

The red planet's moon may have broken apart into a ring of debris and reformed several times over the planet's history

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