Space snowballs can trick the experts.

A NASA-led study revealed that a near-Earth object long mistaken for an asteroid—1998 SH2—is actually a hidden comet—a discovery that could prove vital for predicting future threats to Earth.

A seemingly ordinary asteroid has revealed its icy true identity — and new clues for spotting hidden hazards near Earth.

A NASA study has reclassified a celestial body previously thought to be an asteroid. This object, known as 1998 SH2, is now ...

Learn about an object in space that has emerged as a dark comet, displaying a much fainter glow than most comets.

Ever wonder where that shooting star came from, or how it got to be in your sky?

Typically, astronomers identify comets by their distinct atmospheres, or comae, and their tails, which are created as the sun ...

A strange class of comet could explain the enigmatic behavior of ‘Oumuamua, the first known interstellar object—and even shed ...

Two SETI Institute planetary scientists now have asteroids bearing their names, an honor! The International Astronomical ...

Asteroids, on the other hand, are leftovers from the early solar system that formed closer to the Sun. They are dry and rocky, and do not have the same ices that give comets their characteristic tails ...

Observations with the instrument SPHERE at ESO's Very Large Telescope have produced an unprecedented gallery of "debris disks" in exoplanetary systems. Gaël Chauvin (Max Planck Institute for Astronomy ...

Across the Earth, every night, thousands of automated stargazers are waiting to take pictures of shooting stars. I am one of the scientists who study these meteors. Most movies and news alerts focus ...