LPL Spotlight Stories

In 2135, asteroid Bennu will make a close flyby of Earth. Our planet's gravity will tweak Bennu's path, making it a challenge to calculate its future trajectory. During the flyby, Bennu has an extremely small chance of passing through a gravitational keyhole that would set it on a path to impact Earth late in the 22nd century. NASA/Goddard

OSIRIS-REx Improves Understanding of Potentially Hazardous Asteroids

NASA and UArizona scientists were able to significantly reduce uncertainties about asteroid Bennu's orbit and determine the likelihood of the asteroid impacting Earth between now and the year 2300.

Mars Lake Hypothesis on Ice After Study Offers Different Explanation

Scientists have long debated what's under the surface of Mars' south pole. A new study points to clays being more likely than a subsurface lake.
Artist’s illustration of the early solar system, at a time when no planets had formed yet. A swirling cloud of gas and dust surrounded the young sun. The cutaway through this so-called protoplanetary disk shows its three-dimensional structure.

Researchers Trace Dust Grain's Journey Through Newborn Solar System

Combining atomic-scale sample analysis and models simulating likely conditions in the nascent solar system, a new study reveals clues about the origin of crystals that formed more than 4.5 billion years ago.
An artist’s concept of asteroid 16 Psyche. Maxar/ASU/P.Rubin/NASA/JPL-Caltech

Asteroid 16 Psyche Might Not Be What Scientists Expected

New UArizona research finds that the target asteroid of NASA's Psyche mission may not be as metallic or dense as previously predicted.
The OSIRIS-REx spacecraft, depicted in an artist rendering, uses its Touch-And-Go Sample Acquisition Mechanism to touch the surface of the asteroid Bennu to collect a sample. A new gift will help the OSIRIS-REx team purchase a tool to examine the sample when it returns to Earth in 2023.

$2M Gift Advances UArizona Space Science Initiatives

The gift will enable the purchase of a nanoscale secondary ion mass spectrometer, an instrument the analysis team will use to help find answers to fundamental questions about the origins of the solar system.

 Zoe Zeszut painted mythological birds perched on the Bennu features that carry their names.

Bennu in the Sky, on the Canvas and (Soon) in Zoe Zeszut's Hands

Zoe Zeszut painted mythological birds perched on the Bennu features that carry their names.
This image, the last one taken by the spacecraft, shows crescent Bennu with its night side melting with the complete black of space as the spacecraft pushed away from Bennu. The photo was taken with NavCam, one of three camera instruments designed and built by Malin Space Systems. NASA/Goddard/University of Arizona/Lockheed Martin

OSIRIS-REx Spacecraft is Headed Home with Asteroid Sample

After nearly five years in space, the OSIRIS-REx spacecraft is on its way back to Earth with an abundance of rocks and dust from near-Earth asteroid Bennu.

 Recent explosive volcanic deposit around a fissure of the Cerberus Fossae system. NASA/JPL/MSSS/The Murray Lab

Volcanoes on Mars Could be Active, Raising Possibility that the Planet was Recently Habitable

New observations reveal that Mars could still be volcanically active, raising the possibility for habitable conditions below the surface of Mars in recent history.
Photo of Carina Bennett by Chris Richards

Behind the Scenes with Carina Bennett

In 2019, the University of Arizona rolled out a new brand, Wonder, rooted in the university’s purpose and values and designed to capture the spirit of curiosity that powers Wildcat creativity and ingenuity.

Beyond Ordinary

Mapping Bennu: UArizona alumna’s wonder moment begins with the OSIRIS-REx mission and a pinpoint of light.