Astronomy News

Physicists Propose New Theory on Origin of Dark Matter

Anomalies in nuclear physics experiments may show signs of a new force. Image credit: Jw210913.
Oct 21, 2020 by News Staff

In a paper published this month in the journal Physical Review Letters, an international team of physicists described a new mechanism of dark matter production. Baker et al. described a new mechanism of dark matter production: if dark matter particles acquire mass during a first order phase transition, it is energetically unfavorable for them to enter the expanding bubbles; instead, most of them are reflected and quickly annihilate away; the bubbles...

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Stars identified by Donlon II et al. have formed shell structures in the aftermath of a radial merger occurring 3 billion years ago. Image credit: Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute.

Astronomers Find Shell Structures in Milky Way Galaxy for First Time

Oct 20, 2020 by News Staff

A team of astronomers from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, the University of Pennsylvania, Flatiron Institute, and Queen’s University has spotted two...

Our Milky Way Galaxy is surrounded by an enormous halo of plasma (seen in blue in this artists’ rendition). Image credit: NASA / CXC / M.Weiss / Ohio State / A. Gupta et al.

Milky Way’s Halo is Disk-Like and Clumpy, Study Shows

Oct 20, 2020 by News Staff

Using X-ray data from NASA’s HaloSat minisatellite, astronomers have found that our Milky Way Galaxy is surrounded by a clumpy halo of hot gases that...

This Hubble image shows interacting galaxies NGC 2798 (right) and NGC 2799 (left). The color image includes optical and near-infrared observations from Hubble’s Advanced Camera for Surveys (ACS). Three filters were used to sample various wavelengths. The color results from assigning different hues to each monochromatic image associated with an individual filter. Image credit: NASA / ESA / Hubble / SDSS / J. Dalcanton / Judy Schmidt, www.geckzilla.com.

Hubble Space Telescope Spots Colliding Galaxy Pair

Oct 19, 2020 by Enrico de Lazaro

Astronomers using the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope have captured a spectacular image of two interacting spiral galaxies: NGC 2798 and NGC 2799. This...

This image from ALMA shows the M2 spectral-type supergiant star Betelgeuse. Image credit: ALMA / ESO / NAOJ / NRAO / E. O’Gorman / P. Kervella.

Betelgeuse is Smaller and Closer to Earth than Previously Thought

Oct 16, 2020 by News Staff

Using new observational data from the space-based Solar Mass Ejection Imager and three different modeling techniques, astronomers have found that Betelgeuse,...

The globular cluster RBC EXT8. Image credit: ESASky / CFHT.

Astronomers Find Extremely Metal-Deficient Globular Cluster in Andromeda Galaxy

Oct 16, 2020 by News Staff

Astronomers using the High-Resolution Echelle Spectrometer (HIRES) on the Keck I telescope at W. M. Keck Observatory and the Canada-France-Hawaii Telescope...

This X-ray image, taken by NASA’s Chandra X-ray Observatory, shows GW170817. The central panel shows the stacked image of the field, with total exposure of 783 ks. The position of GW170817 is marked. In addition, several X-ray point sources as well as extended diffuse X-ray emissions are visible. The image stamps are centered on the location of GW170817, showing the main phases of its evolution. Image credit: Troja et al., doi: 10.1093/mnras/staa2626.

Astronomers Detect Prolonged X-Ray Emission from Neutron-Star Merger

Oct 14, 2020 by News Staff

In 2017, astronomers detected a gravitational-wave signal, designated GW170817, from the merger of two neutron stars. And since the detection, they have...

Astronomers Monitor Flare from Nearby, Fast-Evolving Tidal Disruption Event

Oct 13, 2020 by News Staff

Using ESO’s Very Large Telescope (VLT) and New Technology Telescope (NTT), the Las Cumbres Observatory global telescope network, and NASA’s Neil Gehrel...

This Hubble image shows the free-floating evaporating gaseous globule J025157.5+600606. The color image is made up of observations from Hubble’s Advanced Camera for Surveys (ACS) in the near-infrared and optical parts of the spectrum. Three filters were used to sample various wavelengths. The color results from assigning different hues to each monochromatic image associated with an individual filter. Image credit: NASA / ESA / Hubble / R. Sahai.

Hubble Space Telescope Spots Free-Floating EGG

Oct 13, 2020 by Enrico de Lazaro

Astronomers using the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope have snapped a remarkable image of J025157.5+600606, a free-floating evaporating gaseous globule...

This Hubble image shows a spectacular part of the reflection nebula NGC 7023. The color image was made from separate exposures taken in the visible and near-infrared regions of the spectrum with Hubble’s Near Infrared Camera and Multi-Object Spectrometer. Image credit: NASA / ESA / Hubble.

Hubble Zooms in on Beautiful Reflection Nebula: NGC 7023

Oct 12, 2020 by Enrico de Lazaro

The NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope has unveiled in stunning detail a part of the bright reflection nebula NGC 7023. This Hubble image shows a spectacular...

The top of WASP-121b’s atmosphere is heated to a blazing 4,600 degrees Fahrenheit. Image credit: NASA / ESA / G. Bacon, STSci.

Astronomers Detect Vaporized Metals in Atmosphere of Hot Jupiter

Oct 9, 2020 by Enrico de Lazaro

Astronomers using the HARPS (High Accuracy Radial velocity Planet Searcher) spectrograph at ESO’s La Silla Observatory in Chile have detected gaseous...

This image shows Beta Pictoris b and c embedded in the dusty disk around Beta Pictoris. Image credit: Axel Quetz / MPIA Graphics Department.

Astronomers Directly Image Gas-Giant Exoplanet Beta Pictoris c

Oct 7, 2020 by Natali Anderson

Astronomers using ESO’s Very Large Telescope Interferometer have captured the first direct images of the recently-discovered giant planet Beta Pictoris...

An artist’s impression of the hot rocky exoplanet TOI-540b and its parent star. Image credit: Sci-News.com.

Hot Exoplanet Smaller than Earth Found Orbiting Nearby Red Dwarf

Oct 6, 2020 by Natali Anderson

An international team of astronomers has discovered a hot terrestrial planet orbiting the rapidly-rotating low-mass star TOI-540. An artist’s impression...

This mosaic of the northern sky incorporates 208 images taken by TESS during its second year of science operations, completed in July 2020. The mission split the northern sky into 13 sectors, each of which was imaged for nearly a month by the spacecraft’s four cameras. Among the many notable celestial objects visible: the glowing arc and obscuring dust clouds of the Milky Way (left); the Andromeda Galaxy (oval, center left), our nearest large galactic neighbor located 2.5 million light-years away; and the North America Nebula (lower left), part of a stellar factory complex 1,700 light-years away. The prominent dark lines are gaps between the detectors in TESS’ camera system. Image credit: NASA / MIT / TESS / Ethan Kruse, USRA.

TESS Captures Beautiful Panorama of Northern Sky

Oct 6, 2020 by News Staff

Assembled from 208 images captured by NASA’s Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS) during its second year of science operations, this striking...

A 5-light-year-long section of the western wall in the Carina Nebula, as observed with adaptive optics on the Gemini South telescope. This mountainous section of the nebula reveals a number of unusual structures including a long series of parallel ridges that could be produced by a magnetic field, a remarkable almost perfectly smooth wave, and fragments that appear to be in the process of being sheared off the cloud by a strong wind. There is also evidence for a jet of material ejected from a newly-formed star. The exquisite detail seen in the image is in part due to a technology known as adaptive optics, which resulted in a ten-fold improvement in the resolution of the research team’s observations. Image credit: International Gemini Observatory / NOIRLab / NSF / AURA / Patrick Hartigan, Rice University / Travis Rector, University of Alaska Anchorage / Mahdi Zamani / Davide de Martin.

Astronomers Capture Best Ever Image of Carina Nebula’s Western Wall

Oct 6, 2020 by News Staff

Astronomers using twin 8.1-m telescopes at Gemini Observatory in Chile have captured the most detailed near-infrared image yet of the Carina Nebula’s...

An artist’s conception of the HR 858 planetary system. Image credit: Sci-News.com.

Scientists Identify 24 Potentially ‘Superhabitable’ Exoplanets

Oct 5, 2020 by News Staff

A team of geobiologists and astronomers from the United States and Germany has identified 24 extrasolar planets that may have conditions more suitable...

This Hubble image shows NGC 1365, a double-barred spiral galaxy 55.4 million light-years away in the constellation of Fornax. The color image is made up of observations from Hubble’s Wide Field Camera 3 (WFC3) in the ultraviolet, near-infrared, and optical parts of the spectrum. The image was made through five filters. The color results from assigning different hues to each monochromatic image associated with an individual filter. Image credit: NASA / ESA / Hubble / J. Lee / PHANGS-HST Team / Judy Schmidt, www.geckzilla.com.

Hubble Space Telescope Takes Close Look at NGC 1365

Oct 5, 2020 by Enrico de Lazaro

Astronomers using the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope have snapped an incredibly detailed image of the large double-barred spiral galaxy NGC 1365. This...

Visualization of the new gauge developed to test the predictions of modified gravity theories against the measurement of the size of M87*’s shadow. Image credit: D. Psaltis, University of Arizona / EHT Collaboration.

Shadow of Messier 87’s Supermassive Black Hole Puts General Relativity to Test

Oct 2, 2020 by News Staff

The 2017 observations from the Event Horizon Telescope (EHT) of M87*, a 6.5-billion-solar-mass black hole in the center of the giant elliptical galaxy...

This artist’s impression shows a supermassive black hole in the center of SDSS J1030+0524 and six galaxies -- four Lyman-break galaxies and two Lyman-alpha emitting galaxies -- trapped in its gas web. The large web-like structure extends over 300 times the size of the Milky Way. Image credit: L. Calçada / ESO.

Web of the Giant: Astronomers Spot Six Galaxies around Monster Quasar

Oct 2, 2020 by News Staff

Using the MUSE and FORS2 instruments on ESO’s Very Large Telescope (VLT), astronomers have spotted a group of six galaxies around SDSS J1030+0524, a...

This Chandra/ACIS-S image shows XRSs (colored points) in Messier 51; M51-ULS-1 is the orange source in the center of the blue box; diffuse emission is from hot gas. Image credit: Di Stefano et al., arXiv: 2009.08987.

Chandra Spots Possible Extragalactic Planet in Messier 51

Oct 2, 2020 by Natali Anderson

Astronomers using NASA’s Chandra X-ray Observatory have detected an extragalactic candidate planet circling a binary system in Messier 51 (also known...

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