This image shows NASA's Voyager 1 spacecraft exploring a new region in our solar system called the "magnetic highway." Image credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech When NASA launched its Voyager 1 and 2 spacecraft 33 years ago, the probes' primary mission was to explore Jupiter and Saturn. But the two satellites have performed above and beyond their original duty: As of March 2012, Voyager 2 was 14.7 billion kilometers away from Earth, in the heliosheath—the outermost layer of the heliosphere where the solar wind... READ ON

Along with Mercury in retrograde, the full moon is a pretty popular scapegoat for bad luck and bizarre behavior. Encounter someone acting strangely? Blame it on the lunar phases! It’s said that crime rates increase and emergency rooms are much busier during the full moon. (Plus, there’s that whole werewolf thing!) Why would this be? The reasoning is that the Moon, which affects the ocean’s tides, probably exerts a similar effect on us, because the human body is made mostly of... READ ON

A longstanding urban legend goes like this: During the space race of the 1960s, NASA spent millions developing a fancy "space pen" that could be used in zero gravity ... but the Soviets just used a pencil. This story resonates with us because NASA did actually spend piles of money on writing utensils in space—in 1965 they paid $128 per mechanical pencil, according to NASA historians (for the record, the pencils had high-strength outer casings, but the writing guts were just regular mechanical pencils).... READ ON

Neil deGrasse Tyson is America's preeminent badass astrophysicist. He's a passionate advocate for science, NASA, and education. He's also well-known for a little incident involving Pluto. The man holds at least seventeen honorary doctorates in addition to his real one; we're dealing with a badass over here. Now, eleven of our favorite NDT quotes.1. On science: "The good thing about science is that it's true whether or not you believe in it." From Real Time with Bill Maher.2. On NASA... READ ON