Welcome

This month All About Space takes a look into the distant future of our very own Solar System. It's a time where Mars loses a moon and gains a ring, our Sun swells into an allencompassing red giant – eventually evolving into a black dwarf – Earth's surface reaches blisteringly hot temperatures and there's a bit of a stellar jig as a selection of stars in the universe swing closer to our solar neighbourhood. The Solar System is the model of stability but, as you'll discover this issue, that's all evidently about to change.

Keeping in with the theme of the Solar System, we head to Mars this month as – at the time of writing – NASA prepares to send its new rover, Perseverance, to the surface of the Red Planet. Scheduled for launch on 17 July, the spacecraft will land on 18 February next year to begin hunting for signs of life, additionally collecting rock and soil samples with the aim of returning them to Earth for further investigation.

Also this month, we take you on a tour of the night sky, so get ready to feast your eyes on a gaggle of galaxies, sizzling summer nebulae, planets and, of course, our Moon. You might have noticed that All

About Space has been missing from the newsstand for a number of issues due to the coronavirus pandemic. However, I am pleased to confirm that the magazine will be available in supermarkets and newsagents again from, and including, issue 106.