Space & Future
Astronomers solve mystery of strange cosmic signals with rare two-star system
Astronomers have solved one of the biggest mysteries in radio astronomy by identifying the source of a strange type of cosmic signal that has...
How heavy can a neutron star get
The physics of neutron stars are almost too fantastic to believe. Something the weight of two Suns compacted to a sphere the size of...
Scientists get their best-ever look at distant planet’s surface
Astronomers have found thousands of worlds in faraway star systems, but one of the questions that’s been hardest to answer is the one that...
Is extracting oxygen from lunar soil the future of space exploration
A new race to the moon is emerging between the United States and China.
Unlike fifty years ago, the goal is no longer just about...
Everything we thought we knew about dark energy could be wrong
For nearly 30 years, scientists have believed that a mysterious force called dark energy is causing the universe to expand faster and faster.
But a...
The Sun is changing and we don’t know why
Put your ear to the ground in the right place and you can hear a train coming from miles away.
Long before it appears on...
How Giant Galaxies Burned Bright and Died Young In the Early Universe
One of the biggest mysteries in astronomy is why some of the largest galaxies in the early universe stopped making stars surprisingly early in...
Red Dwarf Stars Caught Devouring Earth-Like Planets
Astronomers have discovered some of the clearest evidence yet that stars can consume their own planets.
In a new study published in the journal Monthly...
Something just passed between us and a distant star
On the night of 18 December 2019, a star in our satellite galaxy, the Large Magellanic Cloud, briefly got brighter.
Not dramatically nor explosively, just...
Ancient “Cosmic Cities” Were Already Shaping Galaxies Soon After the Big Bang
Astronomers have discovered that galaxies were already being shaped by their surroundings just 1.2 billion years after the Big Bang, much earlier than scientists...
Black Hole “Gold Rush” Reveals Hundreds of Hidden Cosmic Collisions
Astronomers have unveiled the largest collection yet of gravitational wave detections, marking a major leap forward in our understanding of black holes and the...
The Sun just did something nobody expected and it kept going for 19 days
The Sun is not known for being quiet!
It blasts out energy equivalent to 100 billion nuclear bombs every single second, routinely hurls billion tonne...
Deep Space
Why astronomers are excited about CO2 and methane in the atmosphere of an alien...
Are we alone? This question is nearly as old as humanity itself. Today, this question in astronomy focuses on finding life beyond our planet.
Are...
Scientists watch a Martian dust devil swallow another in rare video
NASA’s Perseverance rover recently captured something amazing on the surface of Mars—a big dust devil swallowing a smaller one.
This rare event was recorded in...
Astronomers discover mysterious filaments near Milky Way’s center
Astronomers have made an exciting discovery near the center of our Milky Way galaxy—long, thin "space tornadoes" made of swirling gas.
These strange structures were...
Scientists discover new tardigrade fossil in 16-million-year-old amber
Tardigrades, also known as water bears, are a diverse group of charismatic microscopic invertebrates that are best known for their ability to survive extreme...
Bacteria could make rocket fuel on Mars, shows study
There are many types of rocket fuel.
Some are more useful on a particular planet. And some can be created by bacteria.
A team from Georgia...