Space & Future
Utah’s “soda pop” geysers may hold clues to life on distant ocean worlds
In the dry desert of eastern Utah, strange geysers shoot cold, fizzy water into the air.
Instead of boiling like the famous hot geysers in...
If aliens already called, why didn’t we hear?
For more than 60 years, scientists have been scanning the skies for signs of intelligent life beyond Earth.
Using powerful telescopes, they have searched for...
Scientists make a game-changing find in the Bennu asteroid
In 2023, NASA's OSIRIS-REx mission delivered samples of the 4.6-billion-year-old asteroid Bennu to Earth.
Upon examining them, scientists discovered that the asteroid - which existed...
James Webb Telescope detects rotten-egg gas on alien worlds for the first time
Astronomers have detected a smelly gas best known for the odor of rotten eggs—hydrogen sulfide—in the atmospheres of four giant planets far beyond our...
How a rare element could fuel the next generation of space missions
Scientists at the U.S. Department of Energy’s Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) are taking a fresh look at neptunium, a rare radioactive metal that...
Scientists finally solve the mystery of how the most common planets form
Astronomers have finally figured out how the most common types of planets in our galaxy are formed—by watching a set of baby planets grow...
Astronomers spot one of the earliest galaxy clusters ever discovered
Astronomers using two of NASA’s most powerful space telescopes have discovered a massive cluster of galaxies forming much earlier in the universe than scientists...
Did two moons crash to create Titan? New study uncovers dramatic origin story
Saturn’s giant moon Titan and the planet’s famous rings may share a dramatic origin story.
A new study suggests that Titan could have formed when...
Astronomers find new way to detect supermassive black hole pairs
Scientists believe that when galaxies collide and merge, the supermassive black holes at their centers should eventually pair up and orbit each other.
These enormous...
Living in space can change where your brain sits in your skull
Going to space is harsh on the human body, and as a new study from our research team finds, the brain shifts upward and...
Mars’ “young” volcanoes tell a story of long, hidden activity
Volcanoes may look like simple mountains that erupted once and then fell silent, but in reality they are often the surface expression of complex...
Astronomers watch a giant star quietly collapse into a black hole
Astronomers have captured one of the clearest views ever of a massive star dying—not in a dramatic supernova explosion, but by quietly collapsing into...
Deep Space
Uranus’ moon Miranda may have a hidden ocean, study finds
A recent study suggests that Uranus' small moon Miranda may have a hidden ocean beneath its icy surface, challenging what scientists once thought about...
Iron snow could explain the magnetic fields at worlds like Jupiter’s largest moon, Ganymede
Jupiter’s largest moon, Ganymede, features a surprisingly strong magnetic field for its size.
Tidal effects from Jupiter continually stretch and squeeze the moon, keeping its...
What will happen if there is a black hole inside the sun?
In a striking blend of astronomy and theoretical physics, scientists have explored a mind-bending scenario: what if black holes existed inside stars?
This concept, stemming...
Scientists unlock more secrets as to how and why stars die
Any Neapolitan ice cream lover knows three flavors are better than one.
New research from Northwestern University has found that by studying all three “flavors”...
Scientists may have discovered first planet to orbit 3 stars
In a distant star system — a mere 1,300 light years away from Earth — UNLV researchers and colleagues may have identified the first...