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Computer model of the Antikythera Mechanism’s display: in the center, the dome of the Earth, the phase of the Moon and its position in the Zodiac -- then rings for Mercury, Venus, true Sun, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn and Date, with ‘little sphere’ markers and smaller markers for oppositions. Scale marks and index letters for the synodic cycles of the planets are inscribed on the planet rings. Surrounding these, the Zodiac and the Egyptian Calendar. The true Sun ring has a ‘little golden sphere’ with ‘pointer.’ When the Moon and Sun pointers coincide, the Moon sphere shows black for New Moon; when the pointers are on opposite sides, the Moon sphere shows white for Full Moon. The Head of the Dragon Hand shows the ascending lunar node; the Tail the descending node. Small triangles on the true Sun ring, near the pointer, show wider and narrower eclipse limits. Eclipses are possible if the Dragon Hand is within these limits. When the Moon pointer is before the Head of the Dragon, the Moon is South of the node; after, it is North of the node -- conversely for the descending node. A Date pointer is attached to a narrow date ring, showing the date in the Egyptian Calendar. Image credit: Freeth et al., doi: 10.1038/s41598-021-84310-w.

Scientists Step Closer to Understanding Full Capabilities of Antikythera Mechanism

Mar 15, 2021 by News Staff

A team of researchers from University College London and the Cyprus Institute’s Science and Technology in Archaeology and Culture Research Center has...

This composite image by Hubble and Pan-STARRS1 telescopes shows Abell 78, a planetary nebula located 5,000 light-years away in the constellation of Cygnus. Image credit: NASA / ESA / Hubble / M. Guerrero / Judy Schmidt, www.geckzilla.com.

Planetary Nebula Abell 78 Revealed in Amazing New Photo

Mar 15, 2021 by Enrico de Lazaro

Astronomers using the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope and the 1.8-m Pan-STARRS1 telescope have captured a detailed image of the unusual planetary nebula...

This image shows the Sb-type spiral galaxy SDSS J043703.67+245606.8. Image credit: Sloan Digital Sky Survey.

Wandering Supermassive Black Hole Detected in Distant Spiral Galaxy

Mar 12, 2021 by News Staff

Using the Arecibo and Gemini observatories, astronomers have detected a mobile supermassive black hole in a galaxy called SDSS J043703.67+245606.8 (hereafter...

This is an artist's impression of a rocky and water-rich asteroid being torn apart by the strong gravity of the white dwarf star GD 61. Image credit: Mark A. Garlick, Space-art.co.uk / University of Warwick / University of Cambridge.

Relatively Large Near-Earth Asteroid to Fly Safely Past Our Planet on March 21

Mar 12, 2021 by News Staff

2001 FO32, a near-Earth asteroid discovered two decades ago, will fly safely past Earth on March 21, 2021, at a distance of about 2 million (1.25 million...

An artist’s impression of Gliese 1132b. Image credit: NASA / ESA / R. Hurt, IPAC & Caltech.

Volcanic Activity Changed Atmosphere of Earth-Sized Planet Gliese 1132b: Study

Mar 11, 2021 by News Staff

Using the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope, astronomers have found evidence of volcanic activity reforming the atmosphere of Gliese 1132b, a rocky exoplanet...

A visualization of the Glashow resonance event detected by IceCube. Image credit: IceCube Collaboration.

High-Energy Antineutrino Detection Supports 60-Year-Old Theory

Mar 11, 2021 by News Staff

On December 6, 2016, a high-energy particle called an electron antineutrino hurtled to Earth from outer space at close to the speed of light carrying 6.3...

An artist’s illustration of a close-up view of a quasar and its jet, like the one in PJ352-52. Image credit: NASA / CXC / M. Weiss.

Chandra Spots Extremely Long Cosmic Jet in Early Universe

Mar 10, 2021 by News Staff

The source of the 160,000-light-year-long jet of particles is PSO J352.4034-15.3373 (PJ352-15 for short), a rapidly growing supermassive black hole, or...

This photo shows the zodiacal light as it appeared on March 1, 2021, in Skull Valley, Utah, the United States; the Pleiades star cluster is visible near the top of the light column; Mars is just below that. Image credit: Bill Dunford / NASA.

Martian Storms May Be Responsible for Interplanetary Dust behind Zodiacal Light

Mar 10, 2021 by News Staff

The zodiacal light is sunlight reflected by interplanetary dust in the inner Solar System. Variations in the zodiacal light with ecliptic latitude reveal...

Astronomers Discover Sixth Planet in K2-138 Planetary System

Mar 9, 2021 by Natali Anderson

Five sub-Neptunes and one super-Earth exoplanet orbit a moderately bright K-type star called K2-138. An artist’s impression of the six-planet system...

Massive Exoplanet Candidate Spotted around Vega

Mar 9, 2021 by News Staff

Astronomers have discovered evidence for a giant planet orbiting Vega, a young star located 25 light-years away in the constellation of Lyra. An artist’s...

This artist’s impression shows how the distant quasar PSO J172.3556+18.7734 and its radio jets may have looked. Image credit: M. Kornmesser / ESO.

Astronomers Discover Most Distant Known Cosmic Jet

Mar 8, 2021 by News Staff

Astronomers using several ground-based telescopes have spotted the most distant cosmic jet discovered so far. Its source is PSO J172.3556+18.7734, a radio-loud...

This Hubble image shows AFGL 5180, a stellar nursery located in the constellation of Gemini. Image credit: NASA / ESA / Hubble / J.C. Tan, Chalmers University & University of Virginia / R. Fedriani, Chalmers University / Judy Schmidt, www.geckzilla.com.

Hubble Space Telescope Spots Beautiful Stellar Nursery

Mar 8, 2021 by Enrico de Lazaro

The NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope has captured a striking new photo of the star-forming region AFGL 5180. This Hubble image shows AFGL 5180, a stellar...

This image from the SRG/eROSITA all-sky survey shows SNR Hoinga (marked); the large bright source in the lower quadrant of the image is from SNR Vela; the image colors are correlated with the energies of the detected X-ray photons; red represents the 0.3-0.6 keV energy range, green 0.6-1.0 keV and blue 1.0-2.3 keV. Image credit: SRG / eROSITA / Becker et al., doi: 10.1051/0004-6361/202040156.

eROSITA X-Ray Telescope Spots Enormous Supernova Remnant

Mar 5, 2021 by News Staff

Astronomers using data from the eROSITA X-ray telescope aboard the Spektrum-Roentgen-Gamma (SRG) observatory have detected the largest supernova remnant...

This Hubble image shows the huge nebula of material cast off by VY Canis Majoris. Image credit: NASA / ESA / Hubble / R. Humphreys, University of Minnesota / J. Olmsted, STScI.

VY Canis Majoris is Enshrouded in Giant Dust Clouds, Astronomers Say

Mar 5, 2021 by News Staff

Astronomers using the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope have discovered the reason for the dimming of a red hypergiant star called VY Canis Majoris. This...

Hot Super-Earth Discovered 26 Light-Years Away

Mar 5, 2021 by News Staff

Astronomers from the CARMENES (Calar Alto high-Resolution search for M dwarfs with Exoearths with Near-infrared and optical Échelle Spectrographs) consortium...

Nightside of Hot Super-Earth LHS 3844b is Tectonically Active: Study

Mar 4, 2021 by News Staff

LHS 3844b’s hemispheric tectonics is the direct consequence of a significant temperature contrast between its day- and nightside and is absent in the...

This artist’s impression shows the evolution of the Universe beginning with the Big Bang on the left followed by the appearance of the Cosmic Microwave Background. The formation of the first stars ends the cosmic dark ages, followed by the formation of galaxies. Image credit: M. Weiss / Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics.

Physicists Suggest Existence of New Type of Dark Energy

Mar 3, 2021 by News Staff

Recent measurements of the expansion rate of the Universe have plunged the standard model of cosmology, the ΛCDM model, into a crisis. In a new paper...

This Hubble image shows NGC 2336, a barred spiral galaxy located 109 million light-years away in the constellation of Camelopardalis. The color image was made from separate exposures taken in the visible and near-infrared regions of the spectrum with 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 / V. Antoniou / Judy Schmidt.

Hubble Snaps Breathtaking New Image of NGC 2336

Mar 1, 2021 by Enrico de Lazaro

The NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope has produced this beautiful image of the barred spiral galaxy NGC 2336. This Hubble image shows NGC 2336, a barred...

SN 1987A: the panel on the left contains a 3D computer simulation, based on Chandra data, of the supernova debris from SN 1987A crashing into a surrounding ring of material; the artist’s illustration (right panel) depicts a so-called pulsar wind nebula, a web of particles and energy blown away from a pulsar, which is a rotating, highly magnetized neutron star. Image credit: NASA / Chandra / CXC / University di Palermo / E. Greco / INAF-Osservatorio Astronomico di Palermo / Salvatore Orlando.

Astronomers Finally Find Neutron Star in Famous Supernova Remnant

Feb 26, 2021 by News Staff

Supernova 1987A (SN 1987A) was first observed on February 23, 1987 in a nearby dwarf galaxy, the Large Magellanic Cloud, some 164,000 light-years away....