Christopher Crockett is an Associate News Editor. He was formerly the astronomy writer from 2014 to 2017, and he has a Ph.D. in astronomy from the University of California, Los Angeles.
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All Stories by Christopher Crockett
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Planetary Science
Something’s cooking on Enceladus
A trail of silicon-rich particles in one of the rings of Saturn points to possible hydrothermal activity on Enceladus.
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Planetary Science
Dawn spacecraft arrives at dwarf planet Ceres
The Dawn spacecraft arrives at Ceres to begin a 14-month investigation of the dwarf planet.
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Astronomy
Supernova hurls star out of the galaxy
The fastest-moving star to leave the Milky Way might have been launched by a nearby exploding star.
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Astronomy
Hubble telescope sees quadruple
A galaxy bends light to create four images of the same supernova.
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Planetary Science
Dawn spacecraft on final approach to Ceres
Dawn gets ready to enter the first orbit of its 14-month visit to the dwarf planet Ceres.
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Astronomy
Hundreds of galaxies seen in a new 3-D view of the universe
A new instrument lets astronomers measure the distances to hundreds of galaxies at once, looking back across the age of the universe.
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Astronomy
Planet collisions may have rearranged crowded solar systems
Solar systems discovered by Kepler with just one or two worlds may be remnants of planet families that were once far more crowded.
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Planetary Science
Mysterious bright spot on Ceres has a partner
A new image from the Dawn spacecraft finds two bright patches within a basin, possibly caused by an ice volcano.
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Astronomy
Monster black hole lurks in the early universe
A black hole weighing the same as 12 billion suns is the most massive one known in the early universe.
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Oceans
‘Ocean Worlds’ chronicles the story of water on Earth and across the cosmos
Jan Zalasiewicz and Mark Williams recount the history and predict the future of Earth’s oceans.
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Planetary Science
New Horizons spies two of Pluto’s moons
Nix and Hydra come into view on the 85th anniversary of Pluto’s discovery.
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Planetary Science
Dwarf planet Ceres comes into view
New images from the Dawn spacecraft reveal a landscape of craters and mysterious bright patches on the dwarf planet Ceres.