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While Pluto has not been an official planet since 2006, it will be stealing the spotlight when a NASA spacecraft makes the closest-ever encounter with it on Tuesday, July 14.

The Spark Museum of Electrical Invention will be hosting Pluto Revealed, a free event from 5-7 p.m. Tuesday to…

Melissa Rice’s career revolves around answering a question that continues to entice the human imagination: Can life evolve elsewhere in the universe?

Rice, an assistant professor at Western Washington University, thinks the answer may be found on Mars.

On Friday, Feb. 6, at the China Harbor Restaurant, the Northwest Asian Weekly Foundation hosted a luncheon to honor female professionals who are making a difference by working in male-dominated careers. This occasion marked the
20th anniversary of the organization.

Melissa Rice is an Assistant Professor of Planetary Science at Western Washington University, where she teaches in the Geology Department and the Physics & Astronomy Department. Her research focuses on the sedimentology, stratigraphy and mineralogy of planetary surfaces; the current aim…

As the sun rises and 8 a.m. gleams on her clock, Melissa Rice prepares for the next eight hours of her day. Rice’s agenda for the day includes conference calls with scientists from around the world, as well as planning for the future of the Mars rover: Curiosity.
Rice is not only an…

These are exciting days for the earthbound scientists who study Mars. Data from a NASA rover creeping across the red planet’s surface is rewriting our understanding of Mars’ geological history and offering tantalizing clues to the possibility that the planet once harbored life — or, possibly,…