Radar astronomy is a research area that uses active radar techniques to investigate solar system bodies and near-Earth space by transmitting radio waves and analyzing their echoes from planetary surfaces, moons, asteroids, comets, and ring systems. It enables precise measurements of distance, velocity, rotation state, surface roughness, and dielectric properties, often at spatial resolutions unattainable by passive remote sensing. Radar astronomy contributes to orbit determination and impact-risk assessment for near-Earth objects, constrains internal structure and regolith properties, and refines planetary ephemerides and tests of gravitational theory. It commonly employs large ground-based facilities, such as planetary radar systems, operating at microwave frequencies optimized for penetration and scattering analyses.
Typically, astronomers identify comets by their distinct atmospheres, or comae, and their tails, which are created as the sun vaporizes a comet's ice. These features emit a glow when sunlight bounces off dust and water droplets. ...
Imagine a piece of space debris the size of a hockey puck slams into a Starlink satellite at about 10 kilometers per second. The kinetic energy is equivalent to 2 kilograms of TNT, or a fully loaded semitruck traveling at ...
Planetary Sciences
Jul 1, 2026
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Jupiter's moon Europa has become high-value real estate for astrobiologists and the search for life beyond Earth. This is because the small moon, which is slightly smaller than Earth's moon, boasts a massive subsurface ocean ...
Space Exploration
Jun 29, 2026
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A team of scientists has used NASA's Goldstone Solar System Radar and the U.S. National Science Foundation Green Bank Telescope (NSF GBT) to carry out the most extensive radar study to date of Europa, the ocean world orbiting ...
Astronomy
Jun 17, 2026
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The Haystack 37m Telescope has been a landmark in radio astronomy and radar studies of the solar system since its first light in 1964. Over the following four decades, it supported NASA's Apollo landings on the moon, made ...
Astronomy
May 20, 2026
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The lunar south pole looks chaotic from orbit. Craters heaped upon craters, ancient basins, scarps and slopes tumbling in every direction, it is without doubt, one of the most geologically complicated terrains in the inner ...
Planetary Sciences
Apr 15, 2026
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The Vera Rubin Observatory (VRO) has barely begun observations and is already wowing us. Images like its Cosmic Treasure Chest have us anticipating even more cosmic glory. And when the observatory sent out 800,000 alerts ...
Astronomy
Mar 11, 2026
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When we think of ice on Mars, we typically think of the poles, where we can see it visibly through probes and even ground-based telescopes. But the poles are hard to access, and even more so given the restrictions on exploration ...
Planetary Sciences
Feb 22, 2026
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Southwest Research Institute (SwRI) scientists are collaborating with researchers at UT San Antonio to study how space weathering can alter the lunar surface materials to help interpret regional and global far-ultraviolet ...
Planetary Sciences
Dec 10, 2025
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Ancient Mars boasted abundant water, but the cold and dry conditions of today make liquid water on the Red Planet seem far less probable. However, the Mars Advanced Radar for Subsurface and Ionosphere Sounding (MARSIS) detected ...
Planetary Sciences
Nov 21, 2025
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