LPL Spotlight Stories

Scientists Ewen Whitaker, Gerard Kuiper and Ray Heacock in front of a Ranger model and lunar hemisphere which is now located at Flandrau Science Center and Planetarium. / UArizona Lunar and Planetary Lab photo.

Masters of Space

Research from UArizona scientists has shaped our understanding of our solar system and universe - beginning with the Apollo 11 mission more than 50 years ago.

A Celestial Detective Makes Her Way From the UK to Investigate Space Rocks at Arizona

Jessica Barnes calls herself a cosmic detective. Her career path began to take shape when she discovered geosciences as an undergraduate at the University of St. Andrews in Scotland.
Christopher Hamilton launches a drone during flight tests in the Holuhraun, Iceland lava flow field. RAVEN builds upon recent developments in drone technology – such as NASA’s Ingenuity Mars Helicopter, accompanying the Mars 2020 rover “Perseverance.”

Iceland: The Wildcat Testing Ground

UArizona’s Lunar and Planetary Laboratory programs are influenced by early Apollo missions and Gerard Kuiper’s approach to teaching. He took his students on field trips to places on Earth that he felt were representative of what students might see on the moon or in the solar system.

 The Nightingale sample site after the TAG event. The red "X" indicates the approximate location where OSIRIS-REx contacted the asteroid's surface. The red circle shows the same boulder that was circled in the before image. NASA/Goddard/University of Arizona

New Images: OSIRIS-REx Leaves its Mark on Bennu

New images of Bennu's surface captured during the final flyover reveal dramatic changes to the sample site.

NASA’s OSIRIS-REx Completes Final Tour of Asteroid Bennu

Mission scientists will compare the final shots of the asteroid Bennu with images taken before the touch-and-go maneuver, which kicked up dust and rocks. Images are expected in about a week and will help scientists understand the asteroid's composition.

 This artist's concept shows the planned flight path of NASA's OSIRIS-REx spacecraft during its final flyby of asteroid Bennu, which is scheduled for April 7. NASA/Goddard/University of Arizona

A Final Look At Bennu Before OSIRIS-REx Heads Home

The OSIRIS-REx mission is on the brink of discovering the extent of the mess it made on asteroid Bennu's surface during last fall's sample collection event.
This illustration captures an exoplanet as it is about to cross in front of – or transit – its star. By analyzing light from the star through the planet's atmosphere, scientists can gather clues about its composition. NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center

Probing Alien Worlds: NASA's Pandora Mission Builds on UArizona Research

Tools and methods developed at the University of Arizona will help scientists study the atmosphere of exoplanets as part of NASA's Pandora mission concept.

Io Volcano Observer: Following the Heat and Hunting Clues to Planet Evolution

A proposed mission called Io Volcano Observer (IVO) would visit Jupiter’s moon Io, which is a true volcanic wonderland with hundreds of erupting volcanoes gushing tons of molten lava and sulfurous gases at any moment. https://www.lpl.arizona.edu/faculty/mcewen

How Microbes in Iceland Can Teach Us About Possible Life on Mars

Dr Solange Duhamel and Dr Christopher Hamilton, based at the University of Arizona, have brought together their respective expertise in environmental microbiology and planetary science to investigate how life could survive on Mars. Fascinatingly, this has been done by exploring an area in Iceland that resembles the red planet.

 The descent stage holding NASA's Perseverance rover can be seen falling through the Martian atmosphere, its parachute trailing behind, in this image taken on Feb. 18, 2021, by the High Resolution Imaging Experiment (HiRISE) camera aboard the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter.

UArizona-Led HiRISE Camera Helped Guide Mars Rover to the Perfect Spot

The camera also captured the descent of NASA's Mars 2020 Perseverance rover.