Galactic collision helped shape our galaxy 11.5 billion years ago
Thanks to some astrophysical sleuthing, researchers have pinpointed an early galactic merger that helped shape the Milky Way.
The merger — a collision, actually —...
Scientists find a ‘cold Neptune’ and two temperate super-Earths
A "cold Neptune" and two potentially habitable worlds are part of a cache of five newly discovered exoplanets and eight exoplanet candidates found orbiting...
Astronomers discover new bizarre objects near our galaxy’s enormous black hole
Astronomers from UCLA's Galactic Center Orbits Initiative have discovered a new class of bizarre objects at the center of our galaxy, not far from...
How the solar system got its ‘Great Divide,’ and why it matters for life...
Scientists, including those from the University of Colorado Boulder, have finally scaled the solar system's equivalent of the Rocky Mountain range.
In a study published...
Scientists find the oldest material on Earth in a meteorite
Stars have life cycles.
They're born when bits of dust and gas floating through space find each other and collapse in on each other and...
Stellar heavy metals can trace history of galaxies
Astronomers have cataloged signs of 9 heavy metals in the infrared light from supergiant and giant stars.
New observations based on this catalog will help...
Shocked meteorites provide clues to Earth’s lower mantle
Deep below the Earth's surface lies a thick rocky layer called the mantle, which makes up the majority of our planet's volume.
While Earth's mantle...
Mars is losing water faster than expected
The small red planet is losing water more quickly than what theory as well as past observations would suggest.
The gradual disappearance of water (H2O)...
New map of Milky Way reveals giant wave of stellar nurseries
Astronomers at Harvard University have discovered a monolithic, wave-shaped gaseous structure - the largest ever seen in our galaxy - made up of interconnected...
Astronomers pinpoint two new ‘Tatooine’ planetary systems
Astronomers announced Monday the first discovery made by NASA's TESS mission of a two-star planetary system.
Led by researchers at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center...