Space & Future
Scientists discover a hidden black hole monster from the early universe
Astronomers using NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) have uncovered a surprising cosmic impostor lurking in the early universe.
The object, a distant galaxy nicknamed...
A real-life Tatooine: Astronomers spot a rare planet orbiting two suns up close
Astronomers have captured a rare and cinematic sight: a distant planet orbiting not one, but two suns, much like the fictional world of Tatooine...
Scientists draw the first detailed map of the Sun’s “point of no return”
Astronomers have created the first continuous, two-dimensional maps of the outer edge of the Sun’s atmosphere, revealing a dynamic and changing boundary where solar...
Earth may be slowly feeding the moon with water and nitrogen, study finds
The Moon is often seen as a dry, lifeless world covered in dust.
But new research suggests its surface may hold more useful material than...
Scientists capture a rare cosmic dance caused by a rapidly rotating black hole
Astronomers have made an extraordinary discovery that brings one of Einstein’s lesser-known predictions to life.
For the first time, scientists have observed a swirling distortion...
Uranus and Neptune could be “rock giants,” not just ice worlds
For decades, scientists have believed that Uranus and Neptune are “ice giants,” planets made mostly of icy materials like water, ammonia and methane.
But a...
How Mars controls Earth’s climate
Earth's climate has swung between ice ages and warmer periods for millions of years, driven by subtle changes in our planet's orbit and axial...
Most normal matter in the universe isn’t found in planets, stars or galaxies –where...
If you look across space with a telescope, you’ll see countless galaxies, most of which host large central black holes, billions of stars and...
Scientists map the largest structures in the universe
clusters of galaxies.
These gigantic structures, which contain hundreds or even thousands of galaxies bound together by gravity, offer important clues about how the universe...
Astronomers discover a surprisingly mature spiral galaxy from the early universe
Astronomers have discovered a beautiful, well-formed spiral galaxy from a time when the universe was still very young—only 1.5 billion years after the Big...
Astronomers discover giant spinning thread of galaxies 140 million light-years away
Astronomers have discovered one of the largest rotating structures ever seen in the universe: a razor-thin line of galaxies inside a massive, spinning cosmic...
Scientists capture the first high-detail “real-time” images of stars exploding
Astronomers have captured the most detailed close-up images ever taken of stars exploding, known as novae.
These pictures were taken within days of the eruptions...
Deep Space
How stars form in the smallest galaxies
The question of how small, dwarf galaxies have sustained the formation of new stars over the course of the Universe has long confounded the...
Astronomers risk misinterpreting planetary signals in James Webb data
NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) is revealing the universe with spectacular, unprecedented clarity.
The observatory’s ultrasharp infrared vision has cut through the cosmic dust...
How NASA’s Webb telescope will continue Spitzer’s legacy
As one window to the universe closes, another will open with an even better view.
Some of the same planets, stars and galaxies we first...
NASA’s Hubble sees a random collection of galaxies, perfectly lined up
This new image from the Hubble Space Telescope looks like a series of smaller spiral galaxies are falling out of a larger and brighter...
Spending time in space can harm the human body − but scientists are working...
When 17 people were in orbit around the Earth all at the same time on May 30, 2023, it set a record.
With NASA and...