photo of Ashley Yeager

Ashley Yeager

Associate News Editor

Ashley Yeager is the associate news editor at Science News. Previously, she worked at The Scientist, where she was an associate editor for nearly three years. She has also worked as a freelance editor and writer, and as a writer at the Simons Foundation, Duke University and the W.M. Keck Observatory. She was the web producer for Science News from 2013 to 2015, and was an intern at the magazine in the summer of 2008. She holds a bachelor’s degree in journalism from the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, and a master’s degree in science writing from MIT. Her book, Bright Galaxies, Dark Matter and Beyond, on the life of astronomer Vera Rubin, will be published by MIT Press in August.

All Stories by Ashley Yeager

  1. Planetary Science

    Extreme gas loss dried out Mars, MAVEN data suggest

    Over the planet’s history, the Martian atmosphere has lost 66 percent of its argon and a majority of its carbon dioxide, according to data from NASA’s MAVEN spacecraft.

  2. Astronomy

    Supermassive black hole gets kicked to the galactic curb

    Gravitational waves may have given a supermassive black hole a big kick, with enough energy to send it flying toward the edges of its host galaxy.

  3. Planetary Science

    It’s time to redefine what qualifies as a planet, scientists propose

    Astronomers can have their definition of a planet, but some planetary scientists plan to stick to the long-held meaning of the word.

  4. Planetary Science

    How Pluto’s haze could explain its red spots

    Pluto’s collapsing atmosphere may explain the dwarf planet’s seemingly random ruddy spots.

  5. Astronomy

    Close pass by sun didn’t radically alter comet 67P’s landscape

    Landslides on comet 67P shot plumes of dust into space, but changes like these might not radically alter the landscape of the comet.

  6. Astronomy

    Distant galaxies lack dark matter, study suggests

    Slower-than-expected velocities of stars in distant galaxies, if confirmed, could reshape astronomers’ ideas of galaxy formation and evolution.

  7. Astronomy

    Astronomers detect oldest known stardust in distant galaxy

    The first stardust ever generated in the universe may have been spotted in a distant galaxy, seen as it was 600 million years after the Big Bang.

  8. Astronomy

    Magnetism helps black holes blow off gas

    The turbulent winds that swirl around black holes are probably driven by magnetic fields, scientists say.

  9. Astronomy

    Hydrogen volcanoes might boost planets’ potential for life

    Volcanoes that spew hydrogen could increase the number of potentially habitable planets in the universe.

  10. Astronomy

    Black hole enjoys fantastically long stellar feast

    A supermassive black hole about 1.8 billion light-years away has been gorging on the same star for a record-breaking decade.

  11. Astronomy

    Seven Earth-sized planets orbit nearby supercool star

    A planetary system called TRAPPIST-1 has seven Earth-sized planets, three in the habitable zone, researchers report.

  12. Microbes

    Microbes survived inside giant cave crystals for up to 50,000 years

    Microbes trapped in crystals in Mexico's Naica mine may represent some of the most distinct life-forms found in Earth so far.