Many animals synchronise their behaviour to the phases of the Moon.
Analog missions, like those conducted at NASA’s CHAPEA facility at the Johnson Space Center, help scientists study human spaceflight without leaving Earth.
Ronaldo Schemidt/AFP via Getty Images
A planetary scientist who has participated in analog missions describes their value for planning space exploration – and learning about extreme environments on Earth.
From 1980s sci-fi films to today’s blockbusters, filmmakers have wrestled with questions about what happens when humans rely on intelligent machines.
God creates the Moon and Sun in Guyart des Moulins’s Bible historiale (c.1420). British Library, Additional 18856, f. 5v.
British Library Catalogue of Illuminated Manuscripts
If you try to launch or land a spacecraft anywhere close to another object on the lunar surface, that object will get sandblasted with rocks, dust and sand.
The stark landscape of the Moon as viewed by the Apollo 12 astronauts on their return to Earth.
NASA/The Planetary Society
Nuclear reactors in space may sound like something out of science fiction, but they are likely to prove important for powering long-term space missions.
At the South Pole, which way is up?
Abigail Bishop
Wearing the wrong shoe on Earth can lead to injury. Researchers still need to figure out the physical consequences of spending a long time walking around on the Moon.