Radiation sickness. Brittle bones. Alzheimers. None of these will deter explorers in their quest to establish a foothold on Mars, says Apollo 11 hero Buzz Aldrin.

The countdown has begun in earnest for a Kiwi dad who wants to boldly go where no man has gone before - Mars.

On Monday the largest supermoon in almost 70 years will light up the night sky ... but Tuesday night might bring the most spectacular New Zealand moonrise.

Tuesday's supermoon is generating much excitement - and conspiracy theories.

COMMENT: Associate Professor Johan Potgieter reckons New Zealand's future as a space nation looks bright.

Fears that aliens were taking over Northland have been allayed by weather experts who say a cloud - not an alien mother ship - was

A study of 12 million Facebook users suggests that using Facebook is associated with living longer - when it serves to maintain and enhance your real-world social ties.

Kiwis are set to be treated with the most spectacular "supermoon" since 1948 - if bad weather doesn't hide it from us.

This man wanted his wife-to-be to have a truly unique engagement ring, so he carved her one by hand out of a meteorite rock.

A PhD student at the University of Auckland is frustrated at having to fight to find an appropriate space to breastfeed her child.

An asteroid is buzzing by today. But we had advance warning of the 25m chunk of rock and ice thanks to a new NASA 'intruder alert' system.

Kiwi scientists have helped reveal the universe in glorious technicolour, with incredible new images reflecting on one of the widest-ever radio-wave surveys of space yet.

Two astronomers have spotted strange flashes from a set of stars. They say it's an alien civilisation. Others say it's just a glitch.

A New Zealand-based researcher is investigating "moonquakes" - a curious lunar phenomenon first discovered by Nasa's Apollo missions.

Astronomers say they are close to confirming the presence of a mysterious unseen planet 10 times the size of Earth.

The finding offers more evidence that the hypothetical giant planet does lurk at the outer edge of our solar system.

Source: YouTube: European Space Agency

Tomorrow morning a mission to Mars will touch down.

Outgoing US President Barack Obama has revived calls to send humans to Mars by 2030s - but even if astronauts get there, would they remember much of it?

Best of Business: The most powerful machine to fly from this country will be headed for orbit in a matter of months.

The planet is twice as distant as Pluto and takes more than 1000 years to orbit the sun.

The rise of the commercial space industry may end up being the president's true legacy.

Here's why President Obama may have selected the wrong planet for an expedition.

Boeing CEO has vowed to beat billionaire Elon Musk and SpaceX in the race to send humans to Mars.

The idea of aliens having already visited Earth is "improbable, impossible, mind boggling" for many. That's why these guys stick together.

COMMENT: Before we start colonising Mars there's five key questions we have to answer.

A police helicopter filmed something mysterious in the sky over the Bristol Channel.

The much-anticipated speech comes a few weeks after one of SpaceX's rockets blew up, leaving questions about the the future of the company.

SpaceX's plan for a mission to Mars. / SpaceX

Astronomers have made a startling observation on Jupiter's moon Europa, one that could boost the chance of finding other life in our solar system.