-
What Happens When Light Goes Boom? Part 1: The Scientist Who Stared at a Glow
I want you to imagine a scene. It’s the red carpet. It’s the night of the Oscars, or the Emmys, or the participation trophy ceremony for your kid’s soccer team. That’s not the essential part of the metaphor. What matters is who is there: Brad Bradington’s adoring fans, curious onlookers, and of course the paparazzi,
-
Where’s the Dividing Line Between A Star and A Planet? Ask the JWST.
Some of the most scientifically important astronomical objects are the ones that push the boundaries of definitions. These objects can exist in the grey areas between competing definitions. They motivate astronomers to develop a deeper and more comprehensive understanding of Nature. One of these important dividing lines places planets on one side and stars on
-
JWST Sees Smoking Gun for Black Hole Mergers in the Virgo Cluster
A pair of dwarf galaxies in the giant Virgo Cluster show what can happen when these stellar cities interact. Scientists at the University of Michigan focused the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) onto the galaxies NGC 4486B and UCD736 and found each of them sporting “overmassive” black holes at or near their hearts. Those supermassive
-
The World Welcomes the Crew of Artemis II Home!
On Friday, April 10, 2026 at 5:07 p.m. PDT (02:07 p.m. EDT), the first astronauts to travel to the Moon in more than fifty years made it back to Earth when their Orion capsule (Integrity) splashed down in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of San Diego. In addition to being a historic accomplishment and
-
Planetary Exploration With Four-Legged Rovers Carrying Only Two Instruments
Mars rovers have spearheaded the exploration of the planet over the last 20 years. MSL Curiosity and Perseverance are awe-inspiring machines, and Spirit and Opportunity were similarly impressive. Collectively, they’ve greatly improved our understanding of Mars and its ancient climate and shed light on its potential ancient habitability. But according to new research, the next
-
Catching the 2026 April Lyrid Meteor Shower
Keep an eye out this coming week for the venerable Lyrid meteor shower. April flowers mean one thing to springtime sky-watchers: it’s time for the Lyrid meteor shower. The Lyrids are always a good bet, and always make the top ten list for annual meteor showers. And to top it off, 2026 is a favorable
-
Stardust in the Clouds of Venus.
Venus is often called Earth’s twin, but spend any time with it and the comparison falls apart quickly. Its surface is hot enough to melt lead, its atmosphere is a crushing blanket of carbon dioxide, and its clouds are made of concentrated sulphuric acid. Somewhere beneath those acid clouds, between the surface and the main
-
A New Eye Opens at the Top of the World.
When I built my first telescope, a 15cm reflector, it was in my back garden! Location was the least of my problems but imagine trying to do the same thing with a somewhat larger telescope at an altitude of 18,400 feet above sea level! The summit of Cerro Chajnantor in Chile’s Atacama Desert is higher
-
The Sharpest Eyes on the Sun The Sharpest Eyes on the Sun.
The Sun’s outer atmosphere is trying to kill us, not literally of course but the corona, that wispy halo of superheated gas extending millions of kilometres into space, is the birthplace of solar flares and the violent particle storms that follow. Understanding exactly how those eruptions work requires watching them in X-rays, and watching them
-
Magnetism Frozen in Time. – Universe Today
Stars are not the serene, unchanging beacons they appear to be. Over billions of years they swell, convulse, shed their outer layers and collapse into dense remnants. Throughout all of that drama, something appears to be surviving, something invisible, threaded through the stellar interior from the very beginning. A new study suggests that magnetic fields
Search
Archive
Recent Posts
- Used Waymo robotaxi batteries become backup storage for power grids
- Beans use an immune receptor to call in airstrikes on caterpillars
- Why cats prefer silver vine to catnip and other May highlights
- An OpenAI model solved a famous math problem that stumped humans for 80 years
- They call it stupid hot for a reason: Heat muddles animal brains
Gallery
