Space

  1. Astronomy

    Taking the Crab’s pulse

    Simultaneous recordings of a pulsar's radio emissions and its visible beam shed new light on the seemingly chaotic variations in the intensities of those emissions.

    By Ben Harder
  2. Astronomy

    Sky Prospecting: Surveying the universe’s middle-aged galaxies

    With a new sky survey, astronomers can tell the story of what happened during the universe’s middle years—about 7 billion years ago.

    By Sorcha McDonagh
  3. Astronomy

    Storms from the Sun

    Interested in space weather and the effect of solar storms on Earth? The National Academies Press Web site offers the full text of the fascinating book Storms from the Sun: The Emerging Science of Space Weather, written by Michael J. Carlowicz and Ramon E. Lopez. Learn more about bizarre events on Earth caused by solar […]

    By Science News
  4. Astronomy

    Dusty times on Mars

    On July 1, a dust cloud emerged from Mars' Hellas Basin, and 3 days later it had become 1,800 kilometers wide, roughly one-fourth the Red Planet’s diameter.

    By Ron Cowen
  5. Astronomy

    A new receiver for alien broadcasts

    A $12.5 million grant will help build the world's largest telescope designed to search for radio broadcasts from alien civilizations.

    By Ron Cowen
  6. Astronomy

    Taking a census of brown dwarfs

    Researchers have completed the most thorough census to date of brown dwarfs in stellar clusters and have confirmed earlier findings about these failed stars.

    By Ron Cowen
  7. Astronomy

    Revved-up antics of a pulsar jet

    Flailing like an out-of-control fire hose, a mammoth jet of charged particles gushing from a collapsed star is varying its shape and brightness more rapidly than any other jet known in the heavens.

    By Ron Cowen
  8. Astronomy

    Supernova Spectacular

    Studying starburst galaxies, relatively nearby galaxies that are undergoing a tremendous rate of star formation, may reveal how elliptical galaxies arose and black holes grew in the early universe.

    By Ron Cowen
  9. Astronomy

    Record Breaker: A planet from the early universe

    Astronomers have found the oldest and most distant planet known in the universe.

    By Ron Cowen
  10. Astronomy

    Strange Matter

    What’s materials science? This engaging Web site for kids of all ages introduces “the study of stuff.” It describes how materials fit into different categories and provides accounts of what materials scientists do. Games and activities require a browser with a Flash plug-in. Go to: http://www.strangematterexhibit.com/

    By Science News
  11. Astronomy

    Timing a Moonrise: Van Gogh painting put on the calendar

    Astronomical detectives suggest that van Gogh painted the picture now known as "Moonrise" in 1889, capturing the rising moon as it appeared at 9:08 p.m. local mean time on July 13.

    By Ron Cowen
  12. Astronomy

    Telescope unveils a stellar deception

    A heavenly masquerade may shed light on the nature of astrophysical jets—the beams of material spewed by a wide variety of celestial objects.

    By Ron Cowen