Outer Space - Pacific Standard

Outer Space

A digital illustration, released on September 15th, 2011, by NASA, of the newly discovered gaseous planet Kepler-16b orbiting its two stars.

If human civilization begins to expand into space, will colonists feel loyalty to their country, their planet, or Elon Musk?

By Kate Wheeling

A long exposure picture of a Perseid meteor crossing the night sky and stars trails.

Social Justice

The International Astronomical Union has established a committee to finalize a list of official star names. Some companies offer unofficial naming rights for purchase. But the voices of certain communities are often left behind.

By Ben Rowen

Visitors look at vegetables growing under artificial light on a vertical farm, in the IKEA: Gardening Will Save the World garden, in London on May 20th, 2019.

Social Justice

It will be years until NASA is ready for a journey to the red planet, but if Earth continues to suffer from climate change, Mars could come to us.

By Emily Moon

During training, Neil Armstrong practices attaching a Hasselblad camera to a mount on his suit. Buzz Aldrin helps him see what he's doing by raising his visor.

The Week in Photos

This week marks the 50th anniversary of the first spaceflight to put humans on the moon. We went into the NASA archives of the Apollo 11 mission to remember the uncertainty and wonder of that week in 1969.