60-second Space

Significant amounts of water exist on Mars, sequestered within hydrated minerals and stored in the planet's crust. John Matson reports

John Carter is the latest in a string of movies set on the Red Planet that have all wound up in the red, financially. John Matson reports

A new study explains why the odds favored the man-in-the-moon side to always face Earth. John Matson reports

Dark matter doesn't usually collide much with itself or with ordinary matter, but it appears to be uncharacteristically clumping in the galaxy cluster A520. John Matson reports

Rockfalls visible in orbiter images of Mars indicate that geologic activity occurred just a few million years ago and may be ongoing. John Matson reports

On February 20, 1962, John Glenn went to space, becoming the first American in orbit, and a national icon. John Matson reports

The black hole at the center of Milky Way could be steadily feeding on a cloud of asteroids, producing frequent, small x-ray flares. John Matson reports

The Flame Extinguishment Experiment, or FLEX, on board the ISS allows researchers to study zero-gravity fire--and ways to fight it. John Matson reports

The Kepler spacecraft has found 26 previously unknown exoplanets orbiting 11 stars. John Matson reports

The 2012 Astronomy Photographer of the Year competition is now accepting entries. John Matson reports

NASA's Kepler spacecraft has found two binary star systems that each host a planet, implying that millions exist. John Matson reports

The twin GRAIL craft will map lunar gravity and could find evidence for the remains within the moon of a former second satellite. John Matson reports

This month the International Telecommunication Union will consider a proposal to abolish leap seconds. John Matson reports

Irregular natural satellites, captured from the population of near-Earth asteroids, orbit Earth for a few months and move on. John Matson reports

Microsoft billionaire Paul Allen, via his new venture, Stratolaunch Systems, hopes to launch spacecraft from massive airplanes. John Matson reports

Galaxies NGC 3842 and NGC 4889 host black holes, each of which about 2,500 times the mass of the one at the center of the Milky Way. John Matson reports

NASA's Kepler telescope has discovered its first exoplanet that could be at temperatures allowing liquid water, a big hurdle for life. John Matson reports

The newest Mars rover, Curiosity, dwarfs NASA's previous rovers in size and scientific prowess. John Matson reports

A class of wandering stars called OB runaways may have been thrown from home by competing binary star systems that got too close. John Matson reports

New telescopes could spot aliens on planets around distant stars, if they like their cities really brightly lit. John Matson reports