Great Barrier Island: a remote gulf paradise we associate with lush forests, deserted white sand beaches and - this weekend - aliens.

Nasa launches first ever mission to take samples from an asteroid in the hope of preventing the space rock colliding with Earth later this century.

The Pope's astronomer, Brother Guy Consolmagno, is visiting Great Barrier Island today. He talks to science reporter Jamie Morton about faith, science and little green men.

Greg Bruce goes to university to learn how ideas are made.

COMMENT: Don't blame the on-ramp lights for traffic delays, blame the still-increasing amount of drivers on the road network.

Scientists have discovered something strange deep in the jungle of Madagascar: the "ghost snake".

A reef offshore from Patea is not being explored in order to find life forms that seabed mining could endanger - but that may be one

By comparing global maps from the present day and the early 1990s, researchers have concluded that a 10th of all the world's wilderness has been lost in just 20 years.

How climate change will affect cherished species like tuatara and takahe - and countless others around the world - urgently needs to be assessed, scientists say.

A new innovation that looks like something between a tent and a spacecraft could save the lives of marine species if the country is faced with another major oil spill.

Scientists believe they have found all asteroids near Earth the same size as that which killed the dinosaurs, but many other smaller ones remain undetected.

The Storr Lochs Monster was first discovered in 1966, but scientists couldn't study the fossil until now.

Life on Earth has its challenges but what about life on Mars? Can humans ever survive on our neighbouring red planet?

Strange radio activity picked up from the outer reaches of the universe proved the latest false alarm of finding extra-terrestrial life.

Scientists are to create an underwater "earthquake observatory" near the North Island's East Coast that will give detailed information about off-shore quakes like the 7.1 which shook the North Island last week.

They're one of the most fearsome natural phenomena known to man - and now Kiwi scientists have revealed the mechanics of volcanic pyroclastic flows.

COMMENT: Have you ever been sat on a flight with a crying baby, wondering more and more with each successive wail how much longer you can stand the sound?

A ground-breaking strategy from America is teaching isolated children how to make friends. Tanith Carey finds out how.

COMMENT: The medical use of microbeads has led to many advances but their cosmetic applications can cause havoc to the marine food chain.

The first drug to combat Alzheimer's disease is on the horizon.

Women who drink a large glass of wine each night may harm their chance of having a baby, a study suggests.

If confirmed, this would push the established fossil record more than 200 million years deeper into the Earth's early history.

A scientific breakthrough could replenish vast expanses of our countryside with lush native forest - and offer a lucrative new forestry industry for New Zealand.

Initial trial of aducanumab shows reduction of amyloid and slowing of cognitive decline.

NASA has released video captured from the cameras onboard the International Space Station showing 3 hurricanes churning in the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans.

WATCH: Scientists have successfully used drones to capture detailed images of Southern right whales.

Spring arrives tomorrow and with it, generous bundles of warmth and sunshine. But the new season won't be a welcome joy for everyone.

Did we get a message from aliens on HD 164595b? Hold on to your tinfoil hats.

As campaigners hail a High Court ruling allowing regional councils to decide whether GMOs can be banned in their areas, an organisation representing bio-scientists calls for a legislation overhaul.

NZ Cancer Society medical director Dr Christopher Jackson discusses urgent worries around New Zealand's systems for reviewing and funding ground-breaking new cancer drugs.