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Space: Record-breaking cosmic discovery challenges long-standing physics
Astronomers have smashed the record for the largest-known cloud of energetic particles discovered surrounding a galactic cluster—and the find could shake up established physics. The cluster in question, which has the catchy name of “PLCK G287.0+32.9,” lies some 5 billion light-years from Earth. The cloud around it is nearly a whopping 20 million light-years across—about…
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NASA raises the odds that an asteroid could hit the moon in 2032
Asteroid 2024 YR4, once considered the highest impact risk to Earth ever recorded, is back in the spotlight — this time due to a slight increase in the chance that it could impact the moon in 2032. Although now too distant to observe from Earth, the asteroid briefly came into view in May for the…
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Starlink satellites are leaking radio signals that may ruin astronomy
A batch of Starlink satellites launched on a Falcon 9 rocket SpaceX SpaceX’s Starlink satellites are leaking radio waves to such an extent that it could threaten our ability to study and understand the early universe, say astronomers. Interference from the thousands of Starlink satellites in orbit, where they provide a global internet service, has…
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Astronomers discover 15 new giant radio galaxies — the largest single objects in the universe
Astronomers have discovered a staggering clutch of 15 new Giant Radio Galaxies within the “Sculptor Field” view of Australia’s Square Kilometer Array Pathfinder (ASKAP) telescope. This is a big deal because Giant Radio Galaxies are the largest single objects in the known universe, each wider than 2.3 million light-years across. These new examples range in…
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Space photo of the week: James Webb telescope peeks under the brim of a ‘peculiar’ Sombrero
The James Webb Space Telescope’s new image of the Sombrero galaxy, captured using its Near-Infrared Camera. (Image credit: NASA, ESA, CSA, STScI) Sequels are never as good as the originals, right? That certainly doesn’t apply to the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST), whose latest image adds a new dimension of data to its spectacular 2024…
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Astronomers spot biggest explosion in the universe since the Big Bang
An unlucky massive star approaches a supermassive black hole. Credit: University of Hawaiʻi. Astronomers have seen a rare, extremely energetic explosion when stars at least 3 times bigger than the Sun wandered too close to a supermassive black hole. The result was an unprecedented cosmic explosion. This type of event has been observed for the…
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Japan’s ispace suffers second lunar landing failure
Lunar loss: ispace’s Hakuto-R Mission 2 – dubbed Resilience – has failed to land on the Moon (courtesy: ispace) The Japanese firm ispace has suffered another setback after its second attempt to land on the Moon ended in failure yesterday. The Hakuto-R Mission 2, also known as Resilience, failed to touch down near the centre…
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A hidden ‘super-Earth’ exoplanet is dipping in and out of its habitable zone
A huge “super-Earth” with an extreme climate that results in it being habitable for only part of its orbit has been discovered orbiting a star 2,472 light years away. And the most remarkable thing is, it was discovered without even being directly detected. The discovery of the exoplanet, a super-Earth called Kepler-735c, is all down…
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Peeking Through Space Dust to See How the Ancient Universe Formed
When astronomers look at distant objects—far away in both space and time—all too often, dust gets in their eyes. Well, not eyes, exactly—in their telescopes’ line of vision. It’s hard to take a close look at a galaxy formed, say, some five billion years ago, because there’s a lot of particulate matter floating in the…
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James Webb Space Telescope reveals largest-ever panorama of the early universe
Astronomers using the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) have unveiled the largest map of the early universe to date, a sweeping cosmic panorama that offers seasoned scientists and curious stargazers alike a front-row seat to the ancient cosmos. The images come from COSMOS-Web, the largest observing program the James Webb Space Telescope undertook in its…