It doesn’t take much to get tilted planets
Chinese and Indian astronomers were the first to measure Earth’s axial tilt accurately, and they did it about 3,000 years ago.
Their measurements were remarkably...
Why don’t we see robotic civilizations rapidly expanding across the universe
In 1950, while sitting down to lunch with colleagues at the Los Alamos Laboratory, famed physicist and nuclear scientist Enrico Fermi asked his famous...
Astronomers find ‘tilted’ planets even in pristine solar systems
Scientists have long puzzled over why all of the planets in Earth’s solar system have slightly slanted orbits around the sun.
But a new, Yale-led...
Vampire stars get help from a third star to feed
Some stars are stuck in bad binary relationships.
A massive primary star feeds on its smaller companion, sucking gas from the companion and adding it...
Where are all the double planets?
A recent study published in the Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society examines formation mechanisms for how binary planets—two large planetary bodies orbiting...
Vera Rubin will find binary supermassive black holes. here’s how.
When galaxies merge, we expect them to produce binary black holes (BBHs.)
BBHs orbit one another closely, and when they merge, they produce gravitational waves...
What would happen to earth if a rogue star came too close
Stars are gravitationally fastened to their galaxies and move in concert with their surroundings. But sometimes, something breaks the bond.
If a star gets too...
Adolescent galaxies are incandescent and contain unexpected elements
If the Universe has adolescent galaxies, they’re the ones that formed about 2 to 3 billion years after the Big Bang.
New research based on...
How magnetars illuminate the mystery of fast radio bursts
In the vastness of space, there are some truly astonishing phenomena, and one of them is the magnetar.
A team of international scientists, led by...
NASA’s new challenge: Protecting astronauts’ sexual health in space
Space travel might seem exciting, but it comes with its own set of challenges, especially for astronauts' health.
A recent study has raised concerns about...