All Stories by Christopher Crockett
- Space
As NASA’s Spitzer telescope’s mission ends, here’s a look back at its discoveries
For more than 16 years, the Spitzer Space Telescope has witnessed the births and deaths of stars, charted the Milky Way, found faraway worlds and more.
- Planetary Science
For the first time, an asteroid has been found nearer to the sun than Venus
A space rock dubbed 2020 AV2, found in close orbit around the sun, probably got there after a series of close encounters with rocky planets.
- Space
A second planet may orbit Proxima Centauri
The star closest to the sun may harbor another planet, this one much more massive and colder than Earth.
- Space
A giant wave of gas lurks near our solar system
The Earth and sun are relatively near a newfound, wavy rope of star-forming gas, named the Radcliffe Wave.
- Space
Young stars have been found in an old part of our galaxy
A newly discovered star cluster in the Milky Way’s halo seems to have been deposited there by gas torn off of two satellite galaxies.
- Space
Bubble-blowing galaxies could help solve a cosmic mystery
Three galaxies ionizing hydrogen 680 million years after the Big Bang show a potential step in the ionization of nearly all hydrogen in the cosmos.
- Astronomy
LIGO detects its second neutron star collision, but gains few clues
Gravitational waves have once again heralded a smashup between neutron stars, but this time with no flash of light to help guide understanding.
- Space
The first glimpses of a pulsar’s surface hint at complex magnetism
Maps of a rapidly spinning neutron star could eventually help researchers figure out how matter behaves at extraordinarily high densities.
- Space
A new map reveals radio waves from tens of thousands of galaxies
Radio waves from about 17,000 galaxies show that the peak of star formation, about 10 billion years ago, might have been more productive than predicted.
- Space
A new mission to investigate exoplanets has rocketed into space
The European Space Agency’s CHEOPS satellite has launched on a mission to gather intel on previously discovered planets outside of the solar system.
- Space
NASA’s MAVEN probe shows how wind circulates in Mars’ upper atmosphere
By using the MAVEN spacecraft to track winds in the Martian thermosphere, researchers hope to better understand how the atmosphere leaks into space.
- Space
NASA’s Parker probe reveals the sun’s rogue plasma waves and magnetic islands
Scientists have analyzed the Parker probe’s first data, giving a peek at what’s to come as the craft moves closer to the sun over the next few years.
