NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope — the largest and most powerful space science observatory ever built — is fueled for its Dec. 22 launch. Webb is an international program led by NASA with its partners, the European Space Agency and the Canadian Space Agency.

science

---

The newly released Astro2020 decadal survey has ranked the projects the astronomer community wants to prioritize for the next 10 years. The 614-page NASA-sponsored report highlights the search for extraterrestrial life, as well as stressing the need for greater diversity among astronomy’s ranks.

Physical Sciences & Engineering

science

---

Cornell University scientists are playing key roles in the launch of NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope.

Physical Sciences & Engineering

---

Jonathan Lunine, an astrophysicist who studies the origin of life in exotic environments in space, comments on the discovery of the chemical compound phosphine in the atmosphere of Venus.

Physical Sciences & Engineering

Arts and Sciences

---

Jonathan Lunine, professor of physics and chair of the astronomy department, comments on the impact of the coronavirus on scientific conferences.

Arts and Sciences

---

COVID-19 presents challenges not only to public health but also to the way our societies function. Social distancing, remote work and businesses closures are changing the way we communicate with each other and posing important questions about how to protect under served populations and overall mental health. 

---

Jonathan Lunine, professor in the Physical Sciences at Cornell University, comments on the upcoming launch of the BepiColombo probes, a European-Japanese mission to Mercury. 

Arts and Sciences

---

Jonathan Lunine says the discovery of preserved organics on the Red Planet is a call for new tests directly targeting biosignatures on the Martian surface.

Arts and Sciences

---

Jonathan Lunine, director of the Center for Astrophysics and Planetary Science at Cornell University, comments on newly discovered evidence of a liquid water lake below the surface of Mars.

Physical Sciences & Engineering

Arts and Sciences

---

Jonathan Lunine, director of the Center for Astrophysics and Planetary Science at Cornell University, comments on NASA’s first mission to fly directly into our sun’s atmosphere.

Physical Sciences & Engineering

Arts and Sciences

---