March 17, 2026 Asteroid Bennu's rugged surface baffled NASA. We finally know why In one of the biggest surprises of the OSIRIS-REx mission, its target asteroid, Bennu, turned out to be a jagged, rugged world covered in large boulders.
Jan. 29, 2026 Kissing the sun: U of A researchers unravel mysteries of the solar wind A University of Arizona-led research team has measured the dynamics and ever-changing "shell" of hot gas from where the solar wind originates.
Nov. 25, 2025 OSIRIS-APEX spacecraft takes selfie with Earth during flyby The spacecraft of the U of A-led OSIRIS-APEX mission performed a "slingshot" maneuver around Earth as part of its journey to catch up with its mission target, asteroid Apophis.
Oct. 8, 2025 The moon's biggest impact crater made a radioactive splash New analyses of the largest impact crater on the moon reveal unexpected insights into its tumultuous past. They also suggest that once astronauts return to the moon, they will have access to a veritable gold mine of scientific clues.
Aug. 22, 2025 Asteroid Bennu is a time capsule of materials bearing witness to its origin and transformation over billions of years Three new papers reveal yet more secrets from samples collected by the University of Arizona-led OSIRIS-REx mission from asteroid Bennu.
May 20, 2025 NASA selects rocket for U of A-led Aspera mission NASA has selected Rocket Lab USA Inc. to launch the agency's Aspera mission early next year. Led and managed by the U of A, Aspera will study galaxy evolution through observation of ultraviolet light.
March 18, 2025 Combination of cosmic processes shapes the size and location of sub-Neptunes A combination of cosmic processes shapes the formation of one of the most common types of planets outside of our solar system, a new study involving U of A researchers finds.
March 12, 2025 NASA's SPHEREx mission will use software from the Arizona Cosmology Lab to answer questions about the first moments after the Big Bang NASA's newly launched SPHEREx mission will use software developed at the Arizona Cosmology Lab to analyze data and help astronomers understand what happened in the first trillionth of a second after the Big Bang.
Feb. 14, 2025 U of A astronomer Erika Hamden named to Arizona Space Commission Gov. Katie Hobbs appointed Hamden, a renowned expert on ultraviolet telescopes, to the commission to help shape Arizona's role in aerospace and space sciences.
Jan. 29, 2025 Asteroid Bennu comes from a long-lost salty world with ingredients for life Two research publications by the OSIRIS-REx sample analysis team suggest that conditions for the emergence of life were widespread across the early solar system.
