Skywatchers captured stunning images of the supermoon, Pluto may have a hidden ocean, and crowdfunding aids the search for life in Earth's stellar neighborhood. Here are our favorite space stories of the week.
Spectacular supermoon photos
Skywatchers around the world snapped amazing photographs of Monday's supermoon (a full moon that takes place at the natural satellite's closest point to Earth in the lunar orbit). This is the closest full moon until 2034. [Full Story: 'Supermoon' Photos: The Closest Full Moon Until 2034 in Pictures]
Saturn's strange storm
A stunning new photograph from NASA's Cassini probe fully displays the strange, hexagonal-shaped vortex that swirls around Saturn's northern hemisphere. [Full Story: Bizarre Hexagon on Saturn Shines in Spectacular NASA Photo]
Is E.T. a robot?
In the new movie "Arrival," an alien species makes first contact with humans, and like many science fiction stories, the movie features aliens that are biological creatures. But experts we talked to said it's more likely that aliens advanced enough to accomplish interstellar travel will have shed their biological bodies in favor of robotic ones. (We also asked some scientists whether humans are ready for contact with an intelligent alien civilization.) [Full Story: Electronic E.T.: Intelligent Aliens Are Likely Machines]
Rocket engine burns blue
The RL10 rocket engine that will power NASA's Space Launch System (SLS) rocket is undergoing testing, and a photo released by NASA captures the brilliant blue flame erupting out of the engine during a test. [Full Story: Awesome NASA Megarocket Engine Test Burns Blue (Photo)]
Avoiding asteroid Armageddon
A group of planetary scientists and space experts is pushing for the European Space Agency (ESA) and NASA to pursue a program that could save Earth from a major asteroid impact. ESA is set to decide in the near future whether to invest in a program to build a spacecraft that could nudge a threatening asteroid off course. [Full Story: Space Scientists Rally Support for 2020 Asteroid-Deflection Mission]
Looking for life nearby
Project Blue is an initiative that aims to look for habitable planets around the star system nearest to Earth's sun. Leaders of the initiative launched a crowdfunding campaign this week to lay the groundwork for the space-based telescope they hope to launch in 2019. [Full Story: 'Project Blue' Space Telescope Launches Crowdfunding Campaign]
Pluto's underground ocean
Pluto's "heart" — a large, smooth section of the dwarf planet's surface — may have moved relative to Pluto's axis. That shift indicates there may be an ocean sloshing around beneath the dwarf planet's icy surface. [Full Story: Pluto's Wandering Heart Hints at Subsurface Ocean]
A space-waste challenge
NASA has put out a call for innovators to submit designs for a spacesuit with built-in waste-disposal systems that would allow astronauts to remain in their suits for hours at a time. Right now, astronauts wear diapers during spacewalks or while traveling to and from space. [Full Story: Space Poop Challenge: NASA Calls for Better Spacesuit Potty Systems]
Chinese astronauts back on Earth
Two Chinese astronauts returned safety to Earth on Friday (Nov. 18) after spending a month in space. Their trip into orbit set a new record for the Chinese human spaceflight program, and set the stage for the country's plans to build its own large space station. [Full Story: China's Shenzhou 11 Crew Lands on Earth After Month-Long Space Lab Mission]
New map of the Milky Way
The European Gaia space observatory released a brand-new virtual map of the Milky Way galaxy. The spacecraft was launched in 2010 to map the location of the stars in the Milky Way at unprecedented precision. [Full Story: See a Virtual Milky Way Map from Europe's Gaia Spacecraft]
Documenting a death-defying dive
A new documentary "14 Minutes from Earth" tells the story of Alan Eustace's record-breaking, death-defying sky dive from an altitude of more than 25 miles (40 kilometers) above the surface of the Earth. [Full Story: '14 Minutes from Earth' Highlights Perils of Death-Defying Skydive]
NASA brings Mars to the Super Bowl
Houston will host the 2017 Super Bowl, and NASA is getting in on the action. The space agency, along with various spaceflight companies, will host a Mars-themed exhibit in Houston leading up to the game. The attraction will feature, among other things, a drop tower that takes riders on a virtual trip to Mars. [Full Story: NASA-Inspired 'Future Flight' Ride to 'Drop' Super Bowl Fans on Trip to Mars]
Follow Calla Cofield @callacofield.Follow us @Spacedotcom, Facebook and Google+. Original article on Space.com.


Supermoon and Pluto's Secretive Heart: Week's Top Space Stories


































