For 75 years, CU Boulder has been a leader in space exploration and innovation. We travel to space to monitor sea level rise, melting ice, weather patterns and more. Our researchers explore how to track and remove dangerous debris in space. We research the health of humans in space to inform medical applications for people on Earth.ÌýLearn more about the latest in space research and science at CU Boulder.
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Illustration of a space craft reentering the atmosphere

CU Boulder to lead new NASA Space Tech Research Institute

April 6, 2021

Researchers at CU Boulder are leading a new $15 million, multi-partner institute with NASA over the next five years to improve entry, descent and landing technologies for exploring other planets.

Engineers work on the EMM spacecraft in a cleanroom

How years of international collaboration led to Hope circling Mars

April 1, 2021

Beginning in 2015, dozens of researchers and engineers from the United Arab Emirates traveled to the foot of the Rocky Mountains to work toward an ambitious goal—to launch the first mission to Mars from an Arab nation.

Image of the black hole M87*

Scientists dig deeper into subject of first-ever image of a black hole

March 24, 2021

Black holes are impossible to observe directly. But researchers like Jason Dexter are probing the hot and violent regions of space that circle these mysterious objects.

Mars' upper atmosphere seen at different wavelengths of ultraviolet light

New Hope Probe images show the glow of Mars' upper atmosphere

March 9, 2021

“Moments like these, when the first science data comes back from an instrument you’ve been working on for years, are always special," said LASP scientist Mike Chaffin.

Image of the star Vega

A giant, scorching-hot planet may be orbiting the star Vega

March 8, 2021

Vega, one of the brightest stars in the night sky, may play host to a giant planet with average surface temperatures of 5,390 degrees Fahrenheit.

Panorama of Martian mountain

Decades of Mars research laying groundwork for human astronauts

March 4, 2021

Mars is a dangerous place for vulnerable humans—but robotic space missions can probe the planet's radiation, dust storms and other threats safely and for a fraction of the cost of crewed missions.

Artist's depiction of astronaut standing on the surface of Mars

Help is a long way away: The challenges of sending humans to Mars

March 2, 2021

One day, Earth will send human astronauts to Mars. A team of aerospace engineers is studying how we can get them there—and back—safely.

Artist's depiction of a robot laying out an antenna on the lunar surface.

NASA-funded project to explore one-of-a-kind lunar observatory

March 1, 2021

Scientists will probe whether the far side of the moon can become an unprecedented laboratory to study the early history of the universe.

A rendering of the Hope spacecraft in orbit around Mars

Emirates Mars Mission to reach Martian orbit on Feb. 9

Feb. 5, 2021

The mission, launched in July 2020 and aided by researchers from the Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics, will orbit Mars to gather crucial scientific data on its atmosphere.

Artist's depiction of NASA's X-43A aircraft in flight

Hypersonics research paving way for Mars exploration, space tourism

Feb. 2, 2021

In this Q&A, aerospace engineer Iain Boyd talks about what happens to vehicles when they hit speeds of 4,000 miles per hour or more and how those conditions might affect efforts to land humans on Mars.

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