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NASA

Mar 2, 2020 | Patty Wetli
Pollution density over China in January 2020 (left) and dramatically less in February. (NASA Earth Observatory)

Satellites show a dramatic drop in pollution over China, which scientists say can be partially attributed to quarantines and an economic slowdown due to the coronavirus outbreak. 

Feb 10, 2020 | Patty Wetli
An artist’s impression of Solar Orbiter. (Credit: ESA/ATG medialab)

It may not seem like it lately, but the sun does indeed still exist. And NASA is sending a spacecraft to our friendly neighborhood star to get some answers.

Dec 11, 2019 | Paul Caine
Prior to its August 2018 launch, NASA’s Parker Solar Probe is packed safely inside the United Launch Alliance Delta IV Heavy rocket payload fairing. (Credit: NASA / Bill Ingalls)

An update on the mission and findings of NASA’s Parker Solar Probe, named after pioneering University of Chicago astrophysicist Eugene Parker, who first proposed the existence of the solar wind in 1958.

Sep 10, 2019 | Nick Blumberg
A unique view of Earth from the vantage point of NASA’s Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) in orbit around the moon. (Credit: NASA / Goddard / Arizona State University)

Adler Planetarium astronomer Mark Hammergren explains how a space-based sentry can help detect asteroids that will pass near Earth.

Jul 23, 2019 | Paul Caine
An artist’s concept of an O’Neill cylinder. (Courtesy Blue Origin)

Could Jeff Bezos’ vision of giant rotating habitats one day support millions of people in space? We speak with two experts about humankind’s future in space. 

Jul 22, 2019 | Associated Press
In this July 20, 1969 photo made available by NASA, astronaut Buzz Aldrin, lunar module pilot, walks on the surface of the moon during the Apollo 11 extravehicular activity. (Neil Armstrong / NASA via AP)

A moonstruck nation celebrated the 50th anniversary of Apollo 11’s “giant leap” by Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin at parties, races, ball games and concerts Saturday, toasting with Tang and gobbling MoonPies.

Jul 15, 2019 | Associated Press
This July 21, 1969 photo made available by NASA shows the U.S. flag planted at Tranquility Base on the surface of the moon, and a silhouette of a thruster at right, seen from a window in the Lunar Module. (NASA via AP)

Fifty years after Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin walked on the moon, some people insist it never happened and was all a big hoax by the U.S. government. Here’s a look at some of the most common claims and how they're explained away.

Jul 9, 2019 | Paul Caine
(Credit: Noa Vigny Billick)

Meet Dr. Mika Tosca, a scientist who traded a job at NASA’s renowned Jet Propulsion Lab to teach climate science to art and design students in Chicago.

Apr 26, 2019 | Associated Press
This image made from a composite of September 2003 - January 2004 photos captured by the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope shows nearly 10,000 galaxies in the deepest visible-light image of the cosmos, cutting across billions of light-years. (NASA, ESA, S. Beckwith (STScI), HUDF Team via AP)

In research released on Friday, Nobel winning astronomer Adam Riess calculates the cosmos is between 12.5 and 13.0 billion years old - about 1 billion years younger than previous estimates.

Apr 11, 2019 | Alex Ruppenthal
Identical twin brothers retired astronaut Mark Kelly, left, and Scott Kelly (Robert Markowitz / NASA)

A groundbreaking study concludes that human health can be “mostly sustained” for a year in space, a key finding that figures to help NASA with its mission of sending humans to Mars within two decades.

Feb 12, 2019 | Paul Caine
NASA has sent a group of laboratory mice into orbit to study the physiological effects of living in space. (Courtesy NASA)

An ongoing NASA study aided by Northwestern researchers sent mice into orbit with the goal of learning more about the physiological effects of living in space. 

Jan 2, 2019 | Eddie Arruza

Ultima Thule, the relatively tiny object in the outer solar system, is now the farthest cosmic body to be reached by humans. We hear from the lead scientist behind the farthest flyby ever.

Jul 31, 2018 | Amanda Vinicky
Retired University of Chicago astrophysicist Eugene Parker speaks with Chicago Tonight on Tuesday, July 31, 2018.

Next week, the retired University of Chicago astrophysicist, 91, will watch as a probe named in his honor is launched from the Kennedy Space Center and catapulted to the sun’s corona.

Jul 20, 2018 | Alex Ruppenthal
The Northwestern-built Micro-X rocket will carry a high-powered X-ray device to capture unprecedented images of astronomical objects. (Northwestern University / Instagram)

Scientists are preparing to launch a rocket in New Mexico that’s equipped with a new high-powered device that will capture unprecedented images of astronomical objects. 

Jun 21, 2018 | Alex Ruppenthal
The patch designed by NASA for a Northwestern-led mission to study how space affects the physiology and metabolism of mice. (NASA / Northwestern University)

Nearly two dozen laboratory mice will be launched into orbit next week as part of a Northwestern-led research mission to learn more about the physiological effects of living in space. 

Jun 20, 2018 | Paul Caine
NASA’s Curiosity rover has discovered ancient organic molecules on Mars, embedded within sedimentary rocks that are billions of years old. (Credit: NASA / GSFC)

A tantalizing discovery suggests that life could once have existed on Mars – and may still exist today. We get the latest on the red planet with Adler Planetarium astronomer Mark Hammergren.

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