Space & Future
After 50 years, Jupiter’s true size is finally revealed
For more than half a century, scientists believed they had a solid grasp of Jupiter’s size and shape.
As the largest planet in the solar...
Webb Telescope spots rare five-galaxy merger just 800 million years after the big bang
Astronomers have spotted an unexpected and dramatic event in the early universe: a tightly packed collision involving at least five galaxies just 800 million...
Why planets with two suns almost never survive
Planets with two suns, like the famous desert world Tatooine from Star Wars, capture our imagination.
Yet in real life, these so-called circumbinary planets—planets that...
The universe’s first matter really was a soup—and scientists can now see it slosh
In the very first moments after the Big Bang, the universe looked nothing like it does today.
Instead of stars, atoms, or even protons, everything...
NASA rover finds 3.5-billion-year-old Martian shoreline in Jezero crater
Scientists exploring Mars have uncovered strong new evidence that the Red Planet once had wave-washed beaches and long-lasting water activity, making it an even...
For the first time, scientists detect molecule critical to life in interstellar space
The chemical is known as thiepine, or 2,5-cyclohexadiene-1-thione (C₆H₆S), a ring-shaped sulfur-bearing hydrocarbon produced in biochemical reactions.
When examining the molecular cloud G+0.693–0.027, a star-forming...
A new cosmic map reveals how dark matter built the universe we live in
Scientists have created the most detailed map yet of dark matter—the mysterious substance that makes up most of the universe and quietly shapes everything...
A hidden dark matter sheet may be steering our cosmic neighborhood
Astronomers may have solved a long-standing mystery about how galaxies near the Milky Way move through space.
New computer simulations suggest that our galaxy is...
Perseverance Rover discovers an ancient Martian beach, complete with waves
When the rover now named Perseverance landed in Jezero crater in early 2021, scientists already knew they had picked an interesting place to scope...
Scientists discover the largest sulfur molecule ever found in space
Astronomers have discovered the largest sulfur-containing molecule ever seen in space, offering new clues about how the chemical ingredients of life may form long...
How baby black holes became giants in the early universe
One of astronomy’s biggest mysteries has long puzzled scientists: how did black holes grow so enormous so quickly after the universe was born?
New research...
A star went dark for 9 months—scientists now know why
Astronomers have discovered a vast cloud filled with vaporized metals and powerful winds orbiting a mysterious object far from its host star.
The finding offers...
Deep Space
Most giant stars in the early universe were born as pairs, study finds
A new study from Tel Aviv University (TAU) has revealed that most massive stars in the early universe were likely born in pairs —...
Stars need a partner to spin Universe’s brightest explosions
When it comes to the biggest and brightest explosions seen in the Universe, University of Warwick astronomers have found that it takes two stars...
Astronomers calculate which exoplanets are most likely to have water
Astronomers know of about 60 rocky exoplanets orbiting in the habitable zones of their stars.
When they try to determine how habitable these planets might...
Uranus’ moon Ariel may have once hidden a 100-mile-deep ocean
Uranus’ moon Ariel may look like a frozen, airless world today, but new research suggests that beneath its icy crust, it may once have...
The holographic secret of black holes
As weird as it might sound, black holes appear to be holograms.
In the 1980’s physicist Jacob Bekenstein was able to calculate exactly how much...