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We summarize the week's scientific breakthroughs every Thursday.
- Astronomy
Kepler’s surprise: Planet hunter also found supernovas
NASA's now-defunct Kepler space telescope captured five stellar explosions as they happened.
By Andrew Grant - Science & Society
Tracking fireballs for science
Watching a meteor race across the night sky is a romantic experience. And now it can be a scientific one as well.
- Astronomy
Galaxies’ missing mass may hide in gas clouds
Vast reservoirs of previously undetected gas could account for much of galaxies’ matter, solving a cosmic mystery.
- Cosmology
From Dust to Life
In about 300 pages, this book sums up the history of all that matters — or at least everything made of matter — from the Big Bang to life on Earth.
By Janet Raloff -
- Astronomy
“Black holes” in space
Science News Letter was the first publication to use the term in print in 1964.
- Astronomy
Enormous cosmic lens magnifies supernova
Galaxy warps light of distant exploding star, greatly increasing its brightness.
By Andrew Grant - Earth
The long and winding Colorado
The history of the West’s iconic river is written in the dramatic landscapes it has shaped. How to interpret that chronicle has become a contentious issue among geologists.
- Astronomy
Earth-mass planet resembles a mini-Neptune
KOI-314c, an exoplanet 200 light-years away, is about 60 percent larger than Earth but made mostly of gas.
By Andrew Grant - Astronomy
Supernova is a dust factory
Grains of matter spewed by stellar explosion offer clues to early star formation.
By Andrew Grant - Astronomy
Unusual three-star system promises new test of gravity
A unique stellar threesome could help astronomers test the leading theory of gravity to unprecedented precision.
- Astronomy
Relic of early universe found nearby
A galaxy little changed since the dawn of the universe shows up in our celestial neighborhood.