Space: The New Frontier

The sky above is studded with stars and countless galaxies. In them, we can read not only our origin, but also our final destination. Technology is on the brink of taking us to places we have only dreamed of.

The moon is our closest celestial companion. It lights our night sky and gently tugs at our shores. Few have walked on her surface, but her allure remains strong.

They orbit between our planet and our star. Mercury and Venus make up half of our terrestrial planets, but we still know very little about them. As we take a closer look at our companions, we find more questions than answers.

Mars has fired our imagination for thousands of years. The tantalizing possibility of life has made it the most inviting planet in our solar system. It is the only other place that man may one day call home.

From the beginnings of our solar system 4.5 billions years ago, there remain many clues to reveal its evolution. Remnant debris, asteroids, and comets are what's left of the building blocks to our celestial neighborhood.

In the cold, dark expanse of our solar system, beyond the asteroid belt, lie the giant planets. Some can be seen with the naked eye, others have been visited by our camera. What secrets do they hold?

There are many more worlds in our solar system than just the planets. The mysterious moons of the gas giants may hold much more than we ever imagined. Each one is unique, and each one deserves a scrutinous eye.

The sun bathes our planet in warmth and light. It powers the machinery of nature, our weather, and it encourages and sustains life on land and at sea. We study it closely, and it can reveal the secrets of all other stars.

As scientists and astronomers peer more closely and with evermore fidelity at nearby stars, they are discovering countless exo planets. How many Earth-like planets are out there? Could one of them hold life not so different from our own?

The night sky is a time machine. The further we look out into the universe, the further back in time we reach. Most of what we see is actually dark matter and dark energy, but its nature eludes us... for the moment.