Ancient Light From the Big Bang Illuminates Matter That Fuels Galaxy Formation
Using light from the Big Bang, an international team led by Cornell and the U.S. Department of Energy’s Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory has begun to…
Astronomy
A Monumentally Powerful Particle Accelerator Discovered in the Cygnus Cocoon
At the heart of Cygnus, one of the most beautiful constellations of the summer sky, beats a source of high-energy cosmic ray particles: the Cygnus…
Event Horizon Telescope Images Magnetic Fields at the Edge of M87’s Supermassive Black Hole
The Event Horizon Telescope (EHT) collaboration, which produced the first-ever image of a black hole, has today revealed a new view of the massive object…
Complex Carbon-Based Molecules Found in Space – “A Major Leap Forward in Astrochemistry”
Discovery may offer clues to carbon’s role in planet and star formation. Much of the carbon in space is believed to exist in the form…
Saturn’s Spring Witnessed Up Close by an Emissary From Earth
Spring doesn’t just happen on Earth. Spring also happens on some of our neighboring planets in the solar system. Of the countless equinoxes Saturn has…
Record-Breaking Jet of Particles Spied From a Supermassive Black Hole in the Early Universe
Astronomers have discovered evidence for an extraordinarily long jet of particles from a supermassive black hole in the early Universe, using NASA’s Chandra X-ray Observatory….
Piercing Through a Galaxy’s Dusty Core to Uncover the Secrets of an Active Supermassive Black Hole
Researchers using NASA’s upcoming James Webb Space Telescope will map and model the core of nearby galaxy Centaurus A. As technology has improved over the…
In First, Scientists Trace Dangerous Solar Energetic Particles to Their Roots on the Sun
Zipping through space at close to the speed of light, Solar Energetic Particles, or SEPs, are one of the main challenges for the future of…
Hubble Spots a Peculiar Sight: Unusual Spiral Galaxy With a Heavy Arm
This week’s Hubble/ESA Picture of the Week features NGC 7678 — a galaxy located approximately 164 million light-years away in the constellation of Pegasus (The…
Simulating the Complicated History of Eta Carinae – Extraordinary Star Has Fascinated Mankind for Decades
‘Eta Carinae’ is an extraordinary star that has fascinated mankind for decades. It’s surrounded by an expanding ‘Homunculus nebula’, shaped like an hourglass. This nebula…
Astronomers Puzzled After Hubble View of Torrential Outflows From Infant Stars Blows Hole in Current Theories
Study Finds That Cavities Sculpted by Stellar Outflows Did Not Expand Over Time Stars aren’t shy about announcing their births. As they are born from…
Whispers From the Dark Side: What Gravitational Waves Can Reveal About Dark Matter
Scientists of the PRISMA+ Cluster of Excellence analyze data from the gravitational wave observatory NANOGrav. The NANOGrav Collaboration recently captured the first signs of very…
Worlds With Underground Oceans – Like Europa, Titan, and Enceladus – May Be More Conducive to Supporting Life Than Earth
Layers of ice and rock obviate the need for “habitable zone” and shield life against threats. SwRI researcher theorizes worlds with underground oceans may be…
Cosmic Lens Reveals Faint Radio Galaxy More Than 8 Billion Light-Years From Earth
Radio telescopes are the world’s most sensitive radio receivers, capable of finding extremely faint wisps of radio emission coming from objects at the farthest reaches…
Stunning Hubble Images Capture Changing Seasons in Saturn’s Vast and Turbulent Atmosphere
NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope is giving astronomers a view of changes in Saturn’s vast and turbulent atmosphere as the planet’s northern hemisphere summer transitions to…
Black Hole in Cygnus X-1 Is So Massive That It Challenges Current Stellar Evolution Models
Weighing in at roughly 21 solar masses, the black hole in the X-ray binary system Cygnus X-1 is so massive that it challenges current stellar…
Hubble Shows Us the Future: A Galactic Collision
Sometime in the far distant future, about 4 billion years from now, our Milky Way galaxy will collide with the neighboring Andromeda galaxy, as illustrated…
NASA Spacecraft Unmask High-Energy Blast That Swept Through the Solar System – Magnetar Eruption in Nearby Galaxy
On April 15, 2020, a brief burst of high-energy light swept through the solar system, triggering instruments on several NASA and European spacecraft. Now, multiple…