The shrinking ice cap around Earth’s North Pole may be hedging in on Santa’s territory, but there are plenty of other frigid territories in the solar system where he could set up shop. NorthPole - Solar System - Earth - Solar - Renewable

Mysterious old stars that look oddly young found the fountain of youth via two means, new research finds. Some rely on vampirism to suck the life out of a companion star, while others are rejuvenated in cosmic collisions. Binary star - Fountain of Youth - Star - Astronomy - People

Three new spacefliers arrived at the International Space Station Tuesday wearing Christmas hats and bearing holiday cheer. International Space Station - Space - Technology - Missions - Manned

Even though NASA's Mars rover Spirit has been trapped in the sand for months, the robot has still managed to report new facts about the red planet — all by just spinning its wheels. Mars - NASA - Mars rover - Spirit rover - Space

Science editor Alan Boyle's Weblog: The highest highlight of 2009 was the revival of the Hubble Space Telescope. Or was it? Weigh in on the top stories of the past year and 2010's top trends. Hubble Space Telescope - Astronomy - Alan Boyle - Observatories - Institutions