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. Learn more about the latest in space research and science at CU Boulder.
 

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.

Graphic showing pulsar light traveling to Earth amid a sea of gravitational waves.

‘Galaxy-sized’ observatory sees potential hints of gravitational waves

Jan. 11, 2021

Scientists believe that planets like Earth bob in a sea of gravitational waves that spread throughout the universe. Now, an international team has gotten closer than ever before to detecting those cosmic ripples.

Student plays a musical instrument with a mask and a face shield on.

10 research discoveries from 2020 you won’t want to miss

Dec. 17, 2020

From diving Neanderthals to saliva-based COVID-19 tests, we remember the year in research at CU Boulder.

Parker Solar Probe circles in front of the sun in this artist rendering.

Researchers get a look at the sun's dusty environment

Dec. 9, 2020

Scientists say that the way that dust moves and transforms around the sun may give them new insights to how Earth and its neighboring planets formed more than 4.5 billion years ago.

Flare erupts from the surface of the sun

Researchers reveal new clues on what makes the sun’s atmosphere so hot

Dec. 7, 2020

Why is the sun's atmosphere millions of degrees hotter than its surface? New research provides tantalizing hints.

Images of "circumstellar" disks circling young stars produced by the Atacama Large Millimeter Array (ALMA)

New project to explore how planets get their atmospheres

Nov. 16, 2020

A new NASA-funded effort will explore the processes that make planets habitable—or turn them into barren wastelands.

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