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Astronauts have nerves of steel. They ride controlled explosions, strapped to giant tanks of rocket fuel. And every now and then, things go wrong. Last Thursday, two space explorers didn’t quite make it to space – but they lived to tell the tale!

Have you ever wanted to experiment with the orbits of moons and planets? Time to make a gravity simulator!

Sometimes space missions can seem a bit faddish. Four spacecraft are currently orbiting Mars, and at least three missions are looking for new planets outside our solar system. But the new hotness, it seems, is asteroids.

We’re counting on you this Double Helix quiz, or perhaps you’re the one counting! Can you calculate what’s needed to get 100% this week? If you’re after more fun science for kids, subscribe to Double Helix magazine!  

Get serious about science with the Double Helix quiz. We put you to the test with rocket science and radiation, as well as plants and petrology! If you’re after more fun science for kids, subscribe to Double Helix magazine!  

If you think the weather here on Earth is bad, be glad you don’t live on Mars. Storms currently cover much of the planet, with wind speeds of around 100 kilometres per hour. So spare a thought for the intrepid Mars rovers currently bearing the brunt of the storm.

It’s time for another round of science trivia. This week, we’ve got ancient questions about what happened before the Jurassic, and a puzzler about what meteoroids are.

Time to test your scientific mettle. This week we’re asking questions about everything from tiny butterfly legs to huge continents. Good luck!

Sputnik Planitia is a gigantic, ice-covered area, one thousand kilometres across. This large, pale basin makes up one half of the famous ‘heart’ shape on Pluto’s surface. Despite its size, the Sputnik Planitia was discovered recently, and it only got its name this year!

If humans return to the Moon, they will need good maps. Luckily, one plucky little spacecraft has been making them. For the past seven years, the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) has been painstakingly photographing almost all of the Moon’s surface. But the mission has not always gone to plan.