Astronomy and Astrophysics
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in SpaceNew Twists Add More Mystery to the Fast Radio Burst Enigma
If there’s something that the Universe is really good at, it’s its ability to pull the rug from under our feet when we think we have grasped the basics of a cosmic process. One such prominent example that lately caught everyone’s attention is the otherwise inconspicuous star KIC 8462852 with its weird and utterly anomalous […] More
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in SpaceThe Next Big Thing: NASA Officially Gives the Go-Ahead for WFIRST Telescope—An Interview With Dr. Neil Gehrels
With construction of the James Webb Space Telescope rapidly moving forward at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md., for its upcoming launch in October 2018, excitement is steadily mounting among astronomers and space enthusiasts alike for what will undoubtedly be the launch of the decade in regards to astrophysics and cosmology—one that is […] More
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in Space, astronomy, astrophysicsRecord-Shattering, Ultra-Luminous Hypernova Explosion Stuns Astronomers, Poses New Cosmic Mystery
A means to portray the differences between the properties of two objects in our everyday speech is the use of comparative adjectives, and their superlative counterparts have become a staple of astronomical nomenclature, with newly discovered cosmic objects often described as the “largest,” “brightest,” or “most energetic” ever seen. A new discovery of a gargantuan […] More
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James Webb Telescope ‘Pathfinder’ Replica Completes First Cryogenic Optics Test
If there is one mantra that drives the development of space mission projects, it’s ‘test, test, test’. Before every successful manned or robotic mission has ever flown to space countless man-hours were devoted for extensive and rigorous testing on the ground in order to ensure that every piece of flight hardware will operate as planned in […] More
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in Space, Science, Hubble Space Telescope, Spitzer Space Telescope, astronomy, Research, Universe, astrophysics
Astronomers Probe Light From Very Early Universe, Discover Most Distant Galaxy to Date
The history of observational cosmology is one of studying ever-receding horizons, with scientists striving to look ever deeper into the most distant parts of the observable Universe. With all the advances being made in powerful new instruments and novel observing techniques in recent years, we’re now used to astronomers announcing new discoveries on a constant […] More
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in NASA, Space, Science, Hubble Space Telescope, Chandra, astronomy, Research, Universe, astrophysics, Wolf-Rayet star
Astronomers Get Rare Glimpse of the ‘Nasty’ Lifestyles of Massive Stars
Biological diversity is a key defining characteristic of life on Earth, which determines the wide variety of all the closely intertwined and interconnected living organisms and ecosystems on our planet. A similar diversity of the stellar variety exists in the Universe as well, with many different stellar species populating the cosmic zoo, which are closely […] More
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in NASA, Space, Science, Kepler, astronomy, Universe, cosmology, astrophysics, dark energy
Astronomers Determine Progenitors of Supernova Explosions More Varied Than Thought
Type Ia supernova explosions can be considered as some of the Universe’s most spectacular and inviting attractions, signifying the death of very massive stars. With peak luminosities that can briefly outshine an entire galaxy, these cataclysmic events expel most of the progenitor stars’ mass violently into space and play a crucial role in the recycling […] More
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in NASA, Space, Science, Hubble Space Telescope, Kepler, astronomy, Exploration, Exoplanets, Astrobiology, Solar System, Research, habitability, astrophysics
New Study Reassesses Habitability of Exoplanets Around Multiple Star Systems
One defining scientific revolution of our generation is the discovery of thousands of exoplanets around other stars, which has transformed our view of the Solar System from being the only one in existence in a vast and immense Universe, to being just one between millions or even billions in our home galaxy alone. This plurality […] More
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in NASA, Space, Science, Hubble Space Telescope, Kepler, Spitzer Space Telescope, astronomy, Exoplanets, astrophysics
Cloudy With a Chance of Sunshine: Astronomers Study Weather on Distant Exoplanets
Daily weather forecasts are an integral part of modern life in every part of the world. Besides informing us for upcoming short-term weather conditions, these forecasts provide an essential understanding of the Earth’s overall climate over longer timescales. But what about the weather on extrasolar worlds? Out of the more than a thousand exoplanets that […] More
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in Space, Science, astronomy, Universe, cosmology, astrophysics, Milky Way galaxy, dark matter, Cepheid variable stars, European Southern Observatory (ESO), modified Newtonian dynamics (MOND), dark energy
New Studies Give More Boost to Search for Dark Matter in Milky Way
“A cosmic mystery of immense proportions, once seemingly on the verge of solution, has deepened and left astronomers and astrophysicists more baffled than ever. The crux of the riddle is that the vast majority of the mass of the Universe seems to be missing.” — William J. Broad, “If Theory is Right, Most of Universe is […] More
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in NASA, Space, Science, ESA, Hubble Space Telescope, Spitzer Space Telescope, astronomy, Herschel Space Observatory, Galaxies
Of Warm Gas and Galaxy Mergers: Collisions Between Galaxies Can Halt Star Formation, According to New Study
Galaxy collisions can be described as the cosmic equivalents of train wrecks, often changing the shapes and morphologies of the galaxies that are involved in these violent cosmic events, in spectacular fashion. Yet, contrary to train accidents which often result in significant destruction of rail transportation systems and their associated infrastructure, the stars inside colliding […] More
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Bizarre Universe: Massive Black Hole In Tiny Galaxy and Exoplanet That Makes Its Star Act Older Than It Is
The universe is a wild and weird place, and two recent findings from orbiting space telescopes illustrate just how bewildering it can be: a monster-sized black hole in one of the tiniest galaxies known and a huge exoplanet that is making its star appear deceptively older than it is. More