compiled by Arlene & David Kaplan

Dunes on Pluto -BBC

Methane ice dunes found on Pluto by Nasa spacecraft
Scientists say they have found evidence of dunes of frozen methane on Pluto. Pluto’s atmosphere was believed to be too thin to create the features familiar in deserts on Earth…more

The Curiosity rover -BBC

Curiosity rover sees seasonal Mars methane swing
It may only be a very small part of Mars’ atmosphere but methane waxes and wanes with the seasons, scientists say. The discovery made by the Curiosity rover is important because it helps narrow the likely sources of the gas…more

Credit:NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS

Life on Mars? Rover’s Latest Discovery Puts It ‘On the Table’
The identification of organic molecules in rocks on the red planet does not necessarily point to life there, past or present, but does indicate that some of the building blocks were present…more

Engineers had to find a way to stop the laser damaging its own optics

Aeolus: Wind satellite weathers technical storm
They say there is no gain without pain, but when the European Space Agency (Esa) set out in 2002 to develop its Aeolus satellite, no-one could have imagined the grief the project would bring…more

The Giant Magellan Telescope, Chile -NYT

Extremely Large, Extremely Expensive: The Race for the Next Giant Telescopes
Even as astronomers await a verdict on construction of a huge telescope on Mauna Kea, they are still trying to figure out how to pay for the next stargazing Goliaths…more

Touching an Asteroid -NYT

Hayabusa2 Arrives at Asteroid Ryugu
Japan’s Hayabusa2 spacecraft has arrived at Ryugu, an asteroid thought to contain water ice and other materials from the early solar system. If Hayabusa2 is successful, it will study Ryugu in detail…more

Mars’s growing dust storm

A Huge Dust Storm on Mars Is Threatening NASA’s Opportunity Rover
A vast dust storm blanketing about a quarter of the surface of Mars has threatened NASA’s Opportunity rover, plunging the solar-powered vehicle into what the space agency has described as a “dark, perpetual night.”…more

Young star PDS 70 & baby PDS 70b

Newborn planet pictured for first time
Astronomers have captured this image of a planet that’s still forming in the disk of gas and dust around its star.
Researchers have long been on the hunt for a baby planet, and this is the first confirmed discovery of its kind…more

-EPA

Israeli space probe to land on Moon in 2019
An Israeli non-profit organisation has announced plans to send the first privately-funded pilotless spacecraft to the Moon.
Israel Aerospace Industries’ Ofer Doron said the probe “showed the way for the rest of the world”…more

The proposed lake sits beneath ice near the south pole of Mars

Liquid water ‘lake’ revealed on Mars
Researchers have found evidence of an existing body of liquid water on Mars…more