Get the latest news in earth science, heliophysics, astrophysics and planetary science from NASA's Science Mission Directorate.

Why did it take nearly three decades for scientists to create the first global portraits of Earth from NASA's Landsat missions?

Astrobiology Magazine's climate blog, The Hot Zone, recently discussed how receding glaciers could have catastrophic consequences for Earth's climate. Increasing loss of glacial ice will lead to increasing water levels in the oceans. Ultimately, these changes could profoundly affect the biosphere.

Cassini is flying by Saturn's moon Enceladus this weekend for a last peek at the intriguing "tiger stripes" before winter darkness blankets the area for several years.

Sometimes you really can believe your eyes. That's what NASA's STEREO is telling researchers about a controversial phenomenon on the sun known as the solar tsunami.

You don't always have to have a rocket to do rocket science. Sometimes a mere airplane will do – that is, a mere Boeing 747 toting a 17-ton, 9-foot wide telescope named SOFIA.

A proposed space mission that aims to measure dark energy could also detect planets that current surveys are unable to find.

The Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer, or WISE, NASA's newest spacecraft is scheduled to roll to the pad on Friday, Nov. 20, its last stop before launching into space to survey the entire sky in infrared light.

The preliminary results from the first extrication drive for Spirit on Sol 2088 (Nov. 17, 2009) indicate the rover stopped less than 1 second after it began, sensing more vehicle lateral tilt than permitted.

How intense will the next solar cycle be? Can we predict when a violent solar storm will blast Earth with energetic particles? Could a prolonged period of inactivity on the sun plunge Earth into a prolonged winter?