Mars likely had cold and icy past, new study finds
The question of whether Mars ever supported life has captivated the imagination of scientists and the public for decades. Central to the discovery is gaining insight into the past climate of Earth's...
View ArticleDark matter in dwarf galaxy tracked using stellar motions
The qualities and behavior of dark matter, the invisible 'glue' of the universe, continue to be shrouded in mystery. Though galaxies are mostly made of dark matter, understanding how it is distributed...
View ArticleScientific definition of a planet says it must orbit our sun; A new proposal...
The International Astronomical Union defines a planet as a celestial body that orbits the sun, is massive enough that gravity has forced it into a spherical shape, and has cleared away other objects...
View ArticleVivid portrait of interacting galaxies marks Webb's second anniversary
Two for two! A duo of interacting galaxies commemorates the second science anniversary of NASA's James Webb Space Telescope, which takes constant observations, including images and highly detailed data...
View ArticleJWST unveils stunning ejecta and CO structures in Cassiopeia A's young supernova
Researchers announced the latest findings from the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) of the supernova remnant, Cassiopeia A (Cas A). These observations of the youngest known core collapse supernova in...
View ArticleScorching storms on distant worlds revealed
An international study reveals the extreme atmospheric conditions on the celestial objects, which are swathed in swirling clouds of hot sand amid temperatures of 950C. Using NASA's powerful James Webb...
View ArticleNASA's Webb investigates eternal sunrises, sunsets on distant world
Researchers using NASA's James Webb Space Telescope have finally confirmed what models have previously predicted: An exoplanet has differences between its eternal morning and eternal evening...
View ArticleBizarre 'garden sprinkler-like' jet is spotted shooting out of neutron star
A strange 'garden sprinkler-like' jet coming from a neutron star has been pictured for the first time. The S-shaped structure is created as the jet changes direction due to the wobbling of the disc of...
View ArticleNew analysis of Cassini data yields insights into Titan's seas
A new study of radar experiment data from the Cassini-Huygens mission to Saturn has yielded fresh insights related to the makeup and activity of the liquid hydrocarbon seas near the north pole of...
View ArticleFood aroma study may help explain why meals taste bad in space
A new study on common food aromas may help explain why astronauts report that meals taste bland in space and struggle to eat their normal nutritional intake. This research has broader implications for...
View ArticleSun-like stars found orbiting hidden companions
Astronomers have uncovered what appear to be 21 neutron stars in orbit around stars like our Sun. The discovery is surprising because it is not clear how a star that exploded winds up next to a star...
View ArticleHow astronomers are using pulsars to observe evidence of dark matter
Tantalizing evidence of potential dark matter objects has been detected with the help of the Universe's 'timekeepers'. These pulsars -- neutron stars which rotate and emit lighthouse-like beams of...
View ArticleThe magnet trick: New invention makes vibrations disappear
Damping vibrations is crucial for precision experiments, for example in astronomy. A new invention uses a special kind of magnets to achieve this -- electropermanent magnets. They consist of a...
View ArticleAnother intermediate-mass black hole discovered at the center of our galaxy
So far, only about ten intermediate-mass black holes have been discovered in the entire universe. The newly identified black hole causes surrounding stars in a cluster to move in an unexpectedly...
View ArticleExoplanet-hunting telescope to begin search for another Earth in 2026
Europe's next big space mission -- a telescope that will hunt for Earth-like rocky planets outside of our solar system -- is on course to launch at the end of 2026. PLATO, or PLAnetary Transits and...
View ArticleNew dawn for space storm alerts could help shield Earth's tech
Space storms could soon be forecasted with greater accuracy than ever before thanks to a big leap forward in our understanding of exactly when a violent solar eruption may hit Earth. Scientists say it...
View ArticleLife signs could survive near surfaces of Enceladus and Europa
Europa and Enceladus, icy moons of Jupiter and Saturn respectively, have evidence of oceans beneath their crusts. A NASA experiment suggests -- if these oceans support life -- signatures of that life...
View ArticleExpiring medications could pose challenge on long space missions
A new study shows that over half of the medicines stocked in space -- staples such as pain relievers, antibiotics, allergy medicines, and sleep aids -- would expire before astronauts could return to...
View ArticleImages of nearest 'super-Jupiter' open a new window to exoplanet research
Using the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST), astronomers imaged a new exoplanet that orbits a star in the nearby triple system Epsilon Indi. The planet is a cold super-Jupiter exhibiting a temperature...
View ArticleDark matter flies ahead of normal matter in mega galaxy cluster collision
Astronomers have untangled a messy collision between two massive clusters of galaxies in which the clusters' vast clouds of dark matter have decoupled from the so-called normal matter.
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