Astronomy
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AstronomyA musician composes a solar soundtrack
Robert Alexander combines life long passions of both music and astronomy to uncover solar secrets.
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Planetary ScienceComet Siding Spring makes close pass by Mars
Mars appears to have survived its close encounter with comet Siding Spring mostly unscathed.
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AstronomySecond stop planned for mission to Pluto
Scientists identify three possible targets for the New Horizons probe after it visits the former planet.
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AstronomyComet-crazed, and for good reason
Coming to the edge of knowledge, especially about what’s out in space, fires the imagination.
By Eva Emerson -
AstronomyRosetta readies for its close rendezvous with a comet
The Rosetta spacecraft and its lander Philae are ready to make history in a risky rendezvous with comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko.
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AstronomyCosmic jets re-created in a lab
Physicists have recreated in a lab the plasma jets that erupt from young stars and black holes.
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AstronomyNearby galaxy might explain what tore apart universe’s hydrogen
A local galaxy is leaking enough ultraviolet light to ionize surrounding hydrogen, which could explain how the earliest galaxies transformed the universe.
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AstronomyHigh-energy radiation from stellar explosions explained
The dance of a stellar duo might explain why some novas emit gamma rays.
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Planetary ScienceSun may make most of the water on moon’s surface
A constant stream of particles from the sun bombarding the moon's surface may be the source of most lunar water.
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Planetary ScienceAsteroid impact did not form the moon’s largest plain
The moon's vast flatland — called Oceanus Procellarum — may have been formed through tectonic-like activity billions of years ago, scientists say.
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ChemistryInterstellar chemical resembles building blocks of life
A molecule detected in the space between stars resembles amino acids, suggesting those building blocks of life share a similar origin.
By Beth Mole -
AstronomyWater found on Neptune-sized world
Just four times as wide as Earth, HAT-P-11b is the smallest exoplanet known to store water in its atmosphere.