Aeolian landforms are widespread in our solar system. Understanding the exact nature and process of formation of these features are challenging tasks implying a strong collaboration between scientists with different skills and scientific backgrounds. This paper describes the special issue for the 5^th International Planetary Dunes Workshop which includes 16 research papers and one commentary. Among the 16 papers included in this collection, 14 cover Martian aeolian science and two Titan aeolian science. The papers presented focus on bedform morphology and dynamics via remote sensing data, modelling, analogues studies and laboratory experiments. Here we put the main results of the papers in their appropriate scientific context and discuss potential future lines of research.