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Supermassive black holes at the cores of galaxies blast radiation and ultra-fast winds outward, as illustrated in this artist’s conception. Image credit: NASA / JPL-Caltech.

Milky Way’s Supermassive Black Hole is Spinning Slowly, Astronomers Say

Oct 28, 2020 by News Staff

Supermassive black holes are characterized by just two numbers: mass and spin, but have a critical influence on the formation and evolution of galaxies....

An artist’s impression of a dusty, rotating distant galaxy in the early Universe: red color represents gas, and blue/brown represents dust as seen in radio waves with ALMA; many other galaxies are visible in the background, based on optical data from ESO’s Very Large Telescope and NAOJ’s Subaru Telescope. Image credit: B. Saxton / NRAO / AUI / NSF / ESO / NASA / STScI / NAOJ / Subaru.

Massive Galaxies in Early Universe were More Mature than Previously Thought

Oct 27, 2020 by News Staff

When the Universe was only 10% of its current age, most of the early galaxies experienced a so-called ‘growth spur.’ During this time, the galaxies...

Hubble Detects Iron and Iron Oxide on Asteroid Psyche

Oct 27, 2020 by News Staff

Astronomers using the Space Telescope Imaging Spectrograph on the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope have observed the main-belt asteroid (16) Psyche, the...

An artist’s impression of the LTT 9779 system. Image credit: Ethen Schmidt, Kansas University.

Astronomers Analyze Atmosphere of Ultrahot Neptune

Oct 27, 2020 by News Staff

Using data collected by the InfraRed Array Camera aboard NASA’s Spitzer Space Telescope and NASA’s Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS), astronomers...

This ALMA image shows young planet-forming dust rings around IRS 63. Image credit: D. Segura-Cox, Max Planck Institute for Extraterrestrial Physics.

Ring-Like Structures Spotted around Protostar IRS 63

Oct 27, 2020 by News Staff

Astronomers using the Atacama Large Millimeter/sub-millimetre Array (ALMA) have observed the emission from dust grains in the protoplanetary disk around...

This illustration highlights Clavius Crater on the Moon with an illustration depicting water trapped in the lunar soil there, along with an image of SOFIA. Image credit: NASA.

SOFIA Detects Molecular Water on Sunlit Surface of Moon

Oct 26, 2020 by News Staff

Using data gathered by the Faint Object infraRed CAmera for the SOFIA Telescope (FORCAST) onboard the NASA/DLR Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy...

This Hubble image shows NGC 34, a spiral galaxy located 271 million light-years away in the constellation of Cetus. Image credit: NASA / ESA / Hubble / A. Adamo et al.

Hubble Space Telescope Looks at NGC 34

Oct 26, 2020 by Enrico de Lazaro

The NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope has taken a beautiful picture of the unusual spiral galaxy NGC 34. This Hubble image shows NGC 34, a spiral galaxy...

An artist’s impression of Barnard’s star b. Image credit: Sci-News.com.

Astronomers Identify Closest Stars that Could See Earth as Transiting Exoplanet

Oct 23, 2020 by News Staff

Using data gathered by NASA’s Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS) and ESA’s Gaia satellite, a team of U.S. astronomers has identified 1,004...

Composite image showing Io in radio (ALMA) and optical light (Voyager 1 and Galileo); the ALMA images show plumes of sulfur dioxide (in yellow); Jupiter is visible in the background (Hubble). Image credit: ALMA / ESO / NAOJ / NRAO / I. de Pater et al. / NRAO / AUI / NSF / S. Dagnello / NASA / ESA.

ALMA Spots Volcanic Plumes on Jupiter’s Moon Io

Oct 22, 2020 by News Staff

Astronomers using the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) have spotted airborne plumes of sulfur dioxide (SO2), sulfur monoxide (SO), and...

Anomalies in nuclear physics experiments may show signs of a new force. Image credit: Jw210913.

Physicists Propose New Theory on Origin of Dark Matter

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...

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...