Astronomy
- Physics
Neutron stars shed neutrinos to cool down quickly
Scientists find the first clear evidence of rapid cooling of a neutron star by neutrino emission.
- Astronomy
The latest star map from the Gaia spacecraft plots 1.7 billion stars
The Gaia spacecraft’s latest data release brings the number of stars with precisely measured motions up from 2 million to more than 1.3 billion.
- Astronomy
Young galaxies are flat, but old ones are more blobby
A survey of hundreds of star systems precisely links the shape of a galaxy to the ages of its stars.
- Astronomy
Celebrity names now mark places on Pluto’s moon Charon
Pluto’s largest moon, Charon, now has 12 new names for its topological features.
- Astronomy
NASA’s TESS spacecraft launches to begin its exoplanet search
After reaching its orbit in about two months, the telescope will start scanning nearby stars telltale dips in light that signal a passing planet.
- Astronomy
Delayed launch of NASA’s next exoplanet hunter is now set for tonight
NASA’s next exoplanet hunter, TESS, launches today to seek planets in 85 percent of the sky.
- Astronomy
With the launch of TESS, NASA will boost its search for exoplanets
The Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite will set the stage for the next chapter of exoplanet exploration.
- Physics
Einstein’s general relativity reveals new quirk of Mercury’s orbit
A tiny effect of general relativity on Mercury’s orbit has been calculated for the first time.
- Astronomy
Dark matter isn’t interacting with itself after all
Hints that a distant galactic collision knocked dark matter askew fizzled with new observations.
- Astronomy
A dozen new black holes found in Milky Way’s center
Twelve small black holes spotted in the Milky Way’s center suggest thousands more in the galaxy’s inner region.
- Cosmology
Why the Nobel Prize might need a makeover
In Losing the Nobel Prize, astrophysicist Brian Keating discusses the downsides of science’s top honor.
- Astronomy
A Chinese space station will fall to Earth this weekend
The Chinese space agency’s first space station is coming back to Earth this weekend. It probably won’t cause damage, but it will cause fireworks.
