[Thursday, November 4, 2010] NASA's EPOXI mission successfully flew by comet Hartley 2 at about 7 a.m. PDT (10 a.m. EDT) today, and the spacecraft has begun returning images. Hartley 2 is the fifth comet nucleus visited by a spacecraft.

[Sunday, November 7, 2010] This week astronomers from twelve countries on six continents will mark the fiftieth anniversary of the search for extraterrestrial intelligence (SETI) by beginning a coordinated series of observations of several nearby stars -- including two stars that w

[Thursday, November 18, 2010] The EPOXI mission's recent encounter with comet Hartley 2 provided the first images clear enough for scientists to link jets of dust and gas with specific surface features. NASA and other scientists have begun to analyze the images.

[Saturday, November 20, 2010] A planet with a minimum mass 1.25 times that of Jupiter has been discovered orbiting a star of extragalactic origin, even though the star now finds itself within our own galaxy.

[Saturday, November 20, 2010] The first study to ever explore biological activity in the deepest layer of ocean crust has found bacteria with a remarkable range of capabilities, including eating hydrocarbons and natural gas, and "fixing" or storing carbon.

[Sunday, November 28, 2010] Binghamton University researchers recently revived ancient bacteria trapped for thousands of years in water droplets embedded in salt crystals.

[Sunday, November 28, 2010] An international research team led by the Planetary Science Institute has found evidence for reservoirs of liquid water on Mars at shallow crustal depths of as little as tens of meters.

[Monday, November 29, 2010] NASA will hold a news conference at 2 p.m. EST on Thursday, Dec. 2, to discuss an astrobiology finding that will impact the search for evidence of extraterrestrial life.

[Tuesday, November 30, 2010] As has happened before, NASA puts out advance notice of a provocative major discovery, media advisory and speculation goes into overdrive. Calm down folks.