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.ĚýLearn more about the latest in space research and science at CU Boulder.
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Artist's depiction of a magnetar with magnetic field lines emerging from its surface.

Astrophysicist probes cosmic 'dark matter detector'

Sept. 29, 2020

CU Boulder's Jeremy Darling believes that a distant and powerful collapsed star could help scientists to unlock the secrets of dark matter.

Artist's depiction of the twin Janus spacecraft flying in formation through space.

Where no spacecraft has gone before: A close encounter with binary asteroids

Sept. 10, 2020

In a moment for twos, the Janus mission will launch two identical spacecraft to rendezvous with two asteroid pairs millions of miles from Earth.

Image of the asteroid Bennu with small bits of material jumping off into space.

How small particles could reshape Bennu and other asteroids

Sept. 9, 2020

NASA's OSIRIS-REx spacecraft observed tiny bits of material jumping off the surface of the asteroid Bennu. A new study tracks where those particles went.

An image of aurora borealis from the ISS

CIRES scientists awarded $5.3M for space weather research

Sept. 2, 2020

NASA and the National Science Foundation have awarded two CU Boulder space weather scientists more than $5M to lay the groundwork for faster and more robust space weather forecasts.

Dust sticks to the boots of Apollo 14 astronaut Edgar Mitchell in 1971.

Researchers develop dustbuster for the moon

Aug. 31, 2020

Future moon astronauts may one day be able to step into an electric-beam shower to clean sticky dust off of their spacesuits and equipment.

Artist's depiction of the Hubble Space Telescope passing in front of the moon during a total lunar eclipse.

Researchers take the ultimate Earth selfie

Aug. 6, 2020

In a new study, scientists led by astrophysicist Allison Youngblood set out to view Earth's atmosphere, but with a twist—they wanted to capture what the planet might look like as a far-away world.

An abnormally bright spot in the nightglow just above Mars' equator.

A new look at Mars’ eerie, ultraviolet nighttime glow

Aug. 6, 2020

See the announcement from NASA Every night on Mars, when the sun sets and temperatures fall to minus 80 degrees Fahrenheit and below, an eerie phenomenon spreads across much of the planet’s sky: a soft glow created by chemical reactions occurring tens of miles above the surface. An astronaut standing...

The assembled Hope spacecraft sitting in a clean room.

Emirates Mars Mission to begin journey to the red planet

July 15, 2020

Researchers from the Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics (LASP) worked side-by-side with teams from the United Arab Emirates to help them make this history-making mission a reality.

A graphic showing the orbits of dark, icy bodies that tilt out of the plane of the solar system

The collective power of the solar system’s dark, icy bodies

July 7, 2020

Two new studies by researchers at CU Boulder may help to solve one of space’s biggest mysteries: why the solar system’s “detached objects” don’t circle the sun the way they should.

A computer-generated image representing space debris as could be seen from high Earth orbit. (Image provided by NASA)

Solving the space junk problem

May 26, 2020

Aging satellites and space debris crowd low-Earth orbit, and launching new satellites adds to collision risks. The most effective way to solve the space junk problem involves an international agreement to charge operators orbital-use fees.

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