Astronomy
- Astronomy
Measured distance within the Milky Way gives clues to what our galaxy looks like
Astronomers used an old but challenging technique to directly measure the distance to a star on the opposite side of the galaxy for the first time.
- Astronomy
Oddball dwarf planet Haumea has a ring
The dwarf planet Haumea is now the most distant ringed object spotted in the solar system.
- Astronomy
How to make the cosmic web give up the matter it’s hiding
Half the ordinary matter in the universe is unaccounted for. Astronomers may now have a new way to see it spanning the space between galaxies.
- Astronomy
50 years ago, a spacecraft discovered oxygen in moon rocks
In 1967, scientists dreamed of lunar processing plants to turn moon rocks into oxygen.
- Astronomy
David Kipping seeks new and unexpected worlds
Astronomer David Kipping became “the moon guy” by deciding no idea is too crazy.
- Astronomy
Why it’s good news that Pluto doesn’t have rings
The New Horizons team searched for rings around Pluto, and found nothing. That suggests the spacecraft’s next destination might be ring-free too.
- Physics
Trio wins physics Nobel Prize for gravitational wave detection
Pioneers of LIGO collaboration win for finding spacetime ripples from two spiraling black holes.
- Astronomy
How a meteor shower helped solve the case of the vanishing comet
A missing comet has been linked to a long-lost meteor shower, helping astronomers recover both.
- Astronomy
New questions about Arecibo’s future swirl in the wake of Hurricane Maria
The iconic Arecibo Observatory was damaged in Hurricane Maria, but not as much as originally thought. But its funding is still in doubt.
- Astronomy
Ice in space might flow like honey and bubble like champagne
Zapping simulated space ice with imitation starlight makes the ice act more like a liquid than a solid, meaning similar ices in space might be good places for organic chemistry.
- Physics
Trio of detectors tracks gravitational waves to their home
LIGO and Virgo spot spacetime ripples in their first joint detection.
- Astronomy
Ultrahigh energy cosmic rays come from outside the Milky Way
The biggest cosmic ray haul ever points toward other galaxies as the source of the rays, not our own.
