Missions

The latest news from the spacecraft helping us explore the cosmos, and the historical missions that paved the way.

An artist's depiction of the Juno spacecraft in orbit above Jupiter's Great Red Spot. Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech

The Juno mission at Jupiter: a planetary scientist’s perspective

An artist's impression of Venus Express in orbit at Venus. Credit: ESA–C. Carreau

What did the Venus Express mission discover at Venus?

Lift off! Credit: Matt Crookes

Go for launch: attending a rocket lift-off at Kennedy Space Center

Buzz Aldrin sporting a t-shirt promoting exploration of Mars, 12 November 2015 in Geneva. Credit: FABRICE COFFRINI/AFP via Getty Images

Buzz Aldrin at 90: an interview with the Apollo 11 astronaut

Friends stargazing. Credit: EvgeniyShkolenko / Getty

Radio Astronomy Podcast Biggest stories of 2019 and top tips for stargazing beginners

An artist's concept showing NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope in front of an infrared image of the Milky Way. Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech

NASA’s Spitzer Space Telescope: the legacy of a Universe in infrared

Willy Benz, Principal Investigator of the CHEOPS spacecraft. Credit: SPACE/UNIBE/Alessandro Della Bella

Interview How ESA's CHEOPS mission will study exoplanets

An artist’s impression of the CHEOPS spacecraft observing a transiting exoplanet. Credit: ESA/ATG medialab

ESA’s CHEOPS exoplanet-hunting mission set for launch

Prof Andrew Coates pictured with the ExoMars 2020 PanCam instrument. Credit: ESA

Interview How the ExoMars 2020 rover will search for signs of life on the Red Planet

An artist's impression of NASA's Mars 2020 rover exploring Mars. Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech

The big space missions to look out for in 2020

Comet 67P captured by Rosetta's NAVCAM on 21 May 2015. Credit: ESA/Rosetta/NAVCAM – CC BY-SA IGO 3.0

Tale of a comet: looking back on the Rosetta mission at 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko

An artist's impression of ESA's Solar Orbiter. Credit: ESA

Radio Astronomy Podcast 2020 space missions and the latest from the Giant Magellan Telescope

An artist's concept showing ARIEL in orbit. Credit: ESA/STFC RAL Space/UCL/Europlanet-Science Office

NASA’s CASE instrument added to ESA’s ARIEL exoplanet mission

An artist's impression of ESA's Solar Orbiter spacecraft. Copyright: ESA/ATG medialab

Interview How ESA's Solar orbiter will study the surface of the Sun

Pete Conrad next to the Surveyor 3 lander, with the lunar module on the crater rim just 182m away. Credit: NASA

Apollo 12: the story of the second manned mission to the Moon