Universe
Super Fast Cosmic Clouds Could Unearth a Slew of Hidden Black Holes
You don't hear that happening every day.<p>Clouds move at a snail’s pace in Earth’s atmosphere, but in outer space, they’re capable of zooming through …
Milky Way GalaxyThe Milky Way's light energy has been mapped for the first time
The research could help to explain how stars form in spiral galaxies like ours<p>Astrophysicists have mapped the distribution of all the Milky Way's …
Half Our Body's Atoms Could Have Come From Outside The Galaxy
We are all made of stars.<p>New research suggests up to half the matter in the Milky Way – including the atoms that make up all of us – could have come …
Milky Way GalaxyPossible first sighting of an exomoon
(Phys.org)—A team led by David Kipping of Columbia University has spotted what might be the first evidence of an exomoon. They have written a paper …
PhysicsChina creates biggest virtual universe, beating European record
Chinese scientists have created the largest virtual universe on Sunway TaihuLight, the world’s fastest computer, according to a lead researcher on …
ChinaEveryone's favorite nebula harbors a surprising secret
The European Southern Observatory has spoilt us again with the release of an incredibly detailed 220-megapixel view of the famous Orion Nebula, one …
AstronomyNew bunch of galaxy clusters may be farthest yet - Futurity
A catalog of about 200 galaxy clusters may be contain the most distant ever found—it could also help solve some of the universe's biggest mysteries.
Space ScienceScientists unveil new 3-D view of galaxies
For many years astronomers have struggled to get good-quality 3-D data of galaxies. Although this technique is very powerful as it allows researchers …
AstronomyWatch a massive star die a fiery, explosive death
Of the many awe-inspiring sights in space, watching a star explode has to be one of the most impressive. When a large star meets the end of its life …
University of Maryland55 Cancri e: Super-Hot Super-Earth
55 Cancri e is a super-Earth — about twice our planet's size — that zooms around its star in 18 days. It has a surface temperature of nearly 4,900 …
ExoplanetsWe’re all made of stardust…from a galaxy far, far away, scientists find
The idea of finding extraterrestrial life on another planet, in a distant solar system or in a far away galaxy has long captured the imagination of humans.<p>But now scientists have discovered that we are all actually part-alien.<p>According to US astrophysicists up to half of all matter in our Milky Way …
Milky Way GalaxyHow do you work out if a signal from space is a message from aliens?
Are extraterrestrials trying to contact us? Figuring that out can be tricky, say scientists<p>This article was originally published on The Conversation.<p>Astronomers working at the Arecibo radio telescope in Puerto Rico have detected a weird radio signal, spotted when pointing their telescope at the …
AliensAdvanced Civilizations Could Build a Galactic Internet With Planetary Transits
Search for Extra-Terrestrial Intelligence<p>Decades after Enrico Fermi’s uttered his famous words – “Where is everybody?” – the Paradox that bears his …
The FutureA Dying Star's Explosive ‘Fireball' Blast Aimed a Beam of Gamma Rays at Earth
On June 25, 2016, something went boom in deep space, about nine billion light-years away. Thanks to the quick reflexes of a new generation of …
AstrophysicsGalactic David and Goliath
The gravitational dance between two galaxies in our local neighbourhood has led to intriguing visual features in both as witnessed in this new …
AstronomyBillions of rogue planets wander the universe without a home
Artist’s rendition of a Jupiter-sized rogue planet, floating freely through interstellar space without a parent star. Photo by NASA/JPL-Caltech<p>Not …
EarthBooze in Space: How the Universe is Absolutely Drowning in the Hard Stuff
<i>This article was originally published at The Conversation. The publication contributed the article to Space.com's Expert Voices: Op-Ed & Insights.</i><p>A …
NebulasALMA Captures Star Formation in Action - Sky & Telescope
<b>New ALMA observations reveal a forming star as it launches a wind from the edge of the disk that feeds it.</b><p>Visible light shows the Barnard 59 region …
Space ScienceAre Astronomers on the Verge of Finding an Exomoon?
For years I have been fascinated by the search for exomoons—that is, moons orbiting planets in other star systems. These worlds are exciting for a …
ExoplanetsSimulation of JWST performance
Billions and billions! A simulation of JWST's field of view shows galaxies with unprecedented clarity.<p><b>Credit:</b><p>About the …
James Webb Space TelescopeAstronomy Photographer of the Year 2017 shortlist - in pictures
The Milky Way, the Northern Lights and hurtling asteroids feature in the shortlist for the Insight Astronomy Photographer of the Year award. The winners will be announced on 14 September, and an exhibition of the winning images will be displayed in a free exhibition at the Royal Observatory …
Milky Way GalaxyThere are 7 times more large comets in our solar system than scientists previously thought
New research shows that the outskirts of our solar system are littered with many more large comets than has been previously estimated.<p>These massive icy wanderers can take hundreds or thousands of years to circle our Sun, so it's no wonder that we're still learning more about them. And now …
AstronomyUsing powerful Dark Energy Camera, scientists reach the cosmic dawn
ASU astronomers find young galaxies that appeared soon after the Big Bang<p>Arizona State University astronomers Sangeeta Malhotra and James Rhoads, …
Dark EnergyRogue Planets May Be Even Lonelier Than We Thought
Rogue planets sound adventurous, like pirates of the final frontier minus the scurvy. The reality is much more depressing: these bodies are …
Space ScienceScientists inch closer to understanding dark matter.
Cold Or Fuzzy?<p>Dark matter is the unseen, mostly unknown material that comprises the bulk of our Universe. However, exactly what dark matter is has …
Dark MatterGiant Radio Telescope Scaled Back to Contain Costs
Designs for the world’s largest radio telescope have been scaled back to save money—a decision that astronomers say could affect its ability to peer …
Milky Way Galaxy100 billion brown dwarfs lurk in the galaxy
I recently wrote about citizen scientists (people enthusiastic about science but who may not have professional scientific training) combing through …
Scientists Have Created a Virtual Universe to Practice Mapping the Real One
It took a computer 80 hours to generate 25 billion galaxies.<p>Today, we understand that the universe is expanding, but back in the 1920s, even Albert …
Space ScienceStarstruck
The best space photos of 2017<p>Each year, photographers around the world take photos of distant cosmic objects and events.<p>A dark sky is like a window into the galaxy, allowing us to see a view of the universe unavailable in the daytime or under the glow of artificial lights.<p>An annual competition …
Milky Way GalaxyFamed Indian scientist and academic Yash Pal dies at 90; made significant contributions to study of cosmic rays and astrophysics
Renowned Indian scientist Yash Pal passed away at the age of 90 at his Noida house late on Monday night, according to media reports.<p>Scientist and …
India