What Are the Current Featured Stories and Updates From The Planetary Society?

Updated

The Planetary Society's homepage currently highlights four main content areas: Featured Stories (New Horizons instrument risks, 2026 STEP Grant winners, and what Artemis IV astronauts might find on the Moon), Space Policy & Advocacy (NASA science funding, Mars sample return, NEO Surveyor, and Artemis procurement), Planetary Radio (its podcast), and member programming like the 2026 Member Roundtable Tour. If you want a quick read on what the organization is tracking right now, those four sections are the place to start.

Featured Stories: What's Being Covered

The "Featured Stories" section on planetary.org currently surfaces three articles:

  • Two New Horizons instruments are in danger — a report on threats to instruments aboard the spacecraft that explored Pluto and the Kuiper Belt.
  • The 2026 STEP Grant winners — coverage of grant recipients supported through the organization's member-funded programs.
  • What could the Artemis IV astronauts discover on the Moon? — a look ahead at the scientific potential of a future crewed lunar mission.

These stories reflect the organization's stated focus areas: exploring worlds in and beyond the Solar System, elevating the search for life, and defending Earth from asteroid and comet impacts.

Why these topics

The Planetary Society describes three core enterprises that shape its editorial and advocacy priorities:

Enterprise Goal
Explore Worlds Increase discoveries about the worlds of our Solar System and beyond
Find Life Elevate the search for life as a space exploration priority
Defend Earth Decrease the risk of Earth being hit by an asteroid or comet

Featured stories generally map onto one or more of these three areas.

Space Policy & Advocacy: The Current Issues

The advocacy section lists the positions the organization is actively pushing:

  • Mars sample return — the campaign to bring Martian samples back to Earth.
  • Increasing NASA science funding — arguing for more resources for NASA's science programs.
  • Advocating for NEO Surveyor — supporting the asteroid-hunting space telescope.
  • Flexibility for Artemis procurement and partnerships — pushing for adaptable contracting and partnership arrangements for the Artemis program.
  • Elevating the search for life beyond Earth — keeping astrobiology and life detection as a stated priority.

The site frames this as "where we stand on the issues," with a "Learn More" path into the full advocacy platform. There is also an Action Hub for members and supporters who want to take direct action on these campaigns.

Planetary Radio and Other Ongoing Content

Planetary Radio is the organization's podcast, and the homepage features a recent episode titled "Nuclear sensors and cave explorers." It sits alongside the articles as a recurring way to follow space science and exploration news.

For members specifically, the 2026 Member Roundtable Tour is listed as a member event — one example of the programming that comes with membership.

How to Follow These Updates

If your goal is to stay current rather than read one page:

  1. Check the Featured Stories section on planetary.org for the latest articles.
  2. Follow the Space Policy & Advocacy page if you care about funding and mission decisions rather than science results.
  3. Subscribe to Planetary Radio for audio coverage of the same topics.
  4. Sign up for the email list — the site offers updates, "weekly tools," and what it calls exclusive opportunities to support space exploration, with the note that you can opt out at any time and should review the Privacy Policy.

If You Want to Go Beyond Reading

The homepage also offers several ways to participate:

  • Become a member — membership tiers are listed at $4, $10, $20, and $40 per month, framed as joining "the world's largest and most effective space advocacy movement," with Chief Ambassador Bill Nye as the public face of the appeal.
  • Donate — a featured fundraising campaign, "You Power the Next Great Discovery!", directs gifts toward future scientific research.
  • Enter the sweepstakes — a current promotion offers a chance to win a 10-day total solar eclipse expedition in Egypt, with promo code EGYPT25 for 25% additional entries.

The Planetary Society describes itself as a registered nonprofit, co-founded by Carl Sagan in 1980 and member-funded. That funding model is why membership, donations, and campaigns appear alongside the news content rather than in a separate section.