Moons
Moons are natural satellites that orbit planets. Draw in by the gravity of the planet, there can be many of these celestial bodies orbiting one planet. The Moon is Earth’s only natural satellite, Jupiter has 79 moons, Saturn 62, the largest being Titan. Humans first Moon landing was in 1959 and the first steps were taken on the Moon in 1969. There have been 198 moons observed in the Solar System but this is always increasing, only recently 12 new moons were discovered orbiting Jupiter.
20 of the most amazing moons in the Solar System
There are 174 known moons out there, spinning around the celestial bodies of our Solar System, so we’ve decided to pick out our favourites.
Extraterrestrial life | The weird worlds alien life could potentially survive on
If we are to find alien life on other moons and planets, it would face a very different set of problems in its evolution.
New moons discovered orbiting Saturn takes total to 82
Saturn’s 20 new moons are minuscule, each barely 3 miles in diameter.
NASA to send a drone to explore Saturn's biggest moon
Project Dragonfly is scheduled for launch in 2026.
Searching for life in Europa's oceans
NASA is preparing for a new mission to search for signs of life below the surface of one of Jupiter’s frozen moons
Ganymede, Jupiter’s largest moon, shows signs of past tectonic activity
Galileo spacecraft data suggests fault lines that shear against one another horizontally, like the San Andreas fault found in California.
Could a gas moon exist?
This moon's feeling a little bit gassy...
What is the biggest a moon can be in relation to its mother planet?
The Earth’s moon is 27 per cent of its size, but how far this size ratio can be pushed depends on your very definition of a ‘moon’.
29 beautiful Cassini images (and a few fun facts)
The Cassini spacecraft has opened our eyes to the wonders of Saturn and its moons like Enceladus and Titan with some amazing pictures - here are some of our favourites of the planet, its rings and moons, including the last one ever taken.
How large does an object need to be for something to orbit it?
The Earth currently has over 2,000 man-made satellites in orbit.
Bittersweet feeling before Cassini mission death plunge
One of the most successful space exploration missions of all time still has a lot left to uncover.
Can a moon have a moon?
Astronomers are pretty certain there are no moons orbiting moons in our Solar System, but that doesn't mean it can't happen.
Can moons have moons?
The man on the Moon is left wishing for a sub-moon.
Water plumes from Europa raise hopes of finding microbial life
There's now strong evidence that Jupiter's moon Europa might be a worthwhile place to search for life.
Is there a ninth planet?
Step aside Pluto, is there a new kid on the block?
Why doesn’t Europa have any impact craters?
We can look to Earth for inspiration as to why the surface of the sixth-largest moon in the Solar System is so smooth.
Why does Uranus orbit the Sun on its side?
One of the most interesting facts about Uranus is still puzzling astronomers to this very day.
The Unknown Universe – 10 questions still confounding cosmologists
We still have a long way to go when it comes to untangling the mysteries of the Universe. Stuart Clark takes a look at some of the most perplexing questions yet to be answered by science and how close we are to finding the facts about space.
Are there rainbows on other planets?
The ingredients required to make a rainbow are sunlight and raindrops. Currently, there is no other planet known to have liquid water on its surface or in sufficient quantities in the atmosphere to make rain.