Universe Today (Page 117)

A 6-Year Search of the Outer Solar System Turns up 461 new Objects (but no Planet 9)

By Matthew Williams - September 15, 2021 12:06 PM UTC | Solar Astronomy

After six years of observing the cosmos, the Dark Energy Survey has announced that it is also responsible for discovering hundreds of Trans-Neptunian Objects (TNOs)

Why is James Webb Traveling to the Launch Site by Boat and not an Airplane?

By Evan Gough - September 14, 2021 06:37 PM UTC | Missions

Cosmic Dawn Holds the Answers to Many of Astronomy's Greatest Questions

By Matthew Williams - September 14, 2021 05:18 PM UTC | Cosmology

A new study takes a look at what astronomers will be able to see when the Cosmic Dawn becomes observable in the near future.

Here's What it Would Be Like to Fly Low Over Jupiter's Cloudtops

By Nancy Atkinson - September 14, 2021 03:59 PM UTC | Planetary Science

We Knew Black Holes Have a Temperature. It Turns out They Also Have a Pressure

By Brian Koberlein - September 14, 2021 03:03 PM UTC | Black Holes

Black holes have a pressure as well as a temperature, thanks to the thermodynamics of quantum gravity.

Here's Our Best View Yet of Asteroid Kleopatra

By David Dickinson - September 14, 2021 12:38 PM UTC | Planetary Science

The European Southern Observatory returns stunning views of an enigmatic asteroid.

A New Way to Search for Exomoons

By Evan Gough - September 13, 2021 05:31 PM UTC | Exoplanets

There's Now a Gas Station... In Space!

By Matthew Williams - September 13, 2021 04:39 PM UTC | Space Exploration

A new startup has created the world's first gas station in Low Earth Orbit (LEO), which will extend the lives of all of the satellites that will be going to space very soon!

The Milky Way Hasn't Been Evenly Mixed

By Paul Sutter - September 13, 2021 12:09 PM UTC | Milky Way

Researchers Create the Most Powerful Magnet Ever Made on Earth: 20 Teslas

By sjohnston - September 12, 2021 09:42 PM UTC | Physics

Researchers Generate an Entire Virtual Universe and Make it Available for Download (if you Have 100 Terabytes of Free Hard Drive Space)

By Brian Koberlein - September 12, 2021 10:17 AM UTC | Cosmology

You could fit an entire simulated universe in your pocket, if you have $40,000 to spare.

In Addition to Gravitational Waves, is There any way to Detect Merging Black Holes

By Paul Sutter - September 12, 2021 06:08 AM UTC | Black Holes

ALMA's new Receivers Will let it see Longer Wavelengths, Peering Closer to the Beginning of the Universe

By Paul Sutter - September 11, 2021 06:06 PM UTC | Cosmology

Why are Rubble Pile Asteroids Shaped Like Diamonds?

By Evan Gough - September 10, 2021 07:22 PM UTC | Planetary Science

There Should be More Material Left Over From Bombardment Eras. Maybe the Sun Blew it all Away?

By Paul Sutter - September 10, 2021 11:47 AM UTC | Solar Astronomy

Astronomers Create 3D Printed Nebulae

By Andy Tomaswick - September 10, 2021 09:13 AM UTC | Observing

Perseverance Drills Another Hole, and This Time the Sample is Intact

By Matthew Williams - September 09, 2021 08:26 PM UTC | Planetary Science

After failing in its first try, the Perseverance rover just successfully obtained a rock sample from the Martian surface that will someday be brought back to Earth.

White Dwarfs can Continue Burning Hydrogen, Even After They're Dead

By Paul Sutter - September 09, 2021 05:49 PM UTC | Stars

Protoplanetary Disks Throw Out More Material Than Gets Turned Into Planets

By Evan Gough - September 09, 2021 04:58 PM UTC | Exoplanets

Space Continues to be Hard. Firefly's Alpha Rocket Detonates Shortly After Launch

By Andy Tomaswick - September 08, 2021 11:38 PM UTC | Space Exploration

Ground-Based Observatories Could use Starshades to see Planets too

By Paul Sutter - September 08, 2021 05:49 PM UTC | Exoplanets

This is a 3D-Printed Steel Floor Prototype for a Lunar Habitat

By Matthew Williams - September 08, 2021 04:43 PM UTC | Space Exploration

The ESA's has unveiled a key piece of their proposed lunar habitat, a 3D-printed steel floor frame.

NASA has too Many Spacecraft to Communicate With. Time to Build More Dishes

By Andy Tomaswick - September 08, 2021 03:09 PM UTC | Missions

Pencil December 18th (tentatively) into your calendar. That's when James Webb probably launches

By Nancy Atkinson - September 08, 2021 01:57 PM UTC | Missions

What Formed the Strange Troughs on Vesta?

By Paul Sutter - September 08, 2021 10:32 AM UTC | Planetary Science

A Flurry of Fall Binocular Comets

By David Dickinson - September 08, 2021 08:55 AM UTC | Solar Astronomy

Fall 2021 offers up an all-night parade of challenging telescopic comets.

There are Natural Features on Mars That Could Serve as Radiation Shelters

By Evan Gough - September 07, 2021 07:23 PM UTC | Planetary Science

A Black Hole or Neutron Star Fell Into Another Star and Triggered a Supernova

By Paul Sutter - September 07, 2021 06:14 PM UTC | Black Holes

Here's Lake Mead's Record Low Water Levels Seen From Space

By Nancy Atkinson - September 07, 2021 03:07 PM UTC | Planetary Science

Many Sunlike Stars Gobbled up Some of Their Planets

By Paul Sutter - September 07, 2021 09:53 AM UTC | Stars

NASA is Testing out a new air Taxi Prototype

By Andy Tomaswick - September 06, 2021 12:01 AM UTC | Space Exploration

Inspiration 4 Crew Gets a Sneak Peak out of Crew Dragon's Cupola

By Matthew Williams - September 05, 2021 06:11 PM UTC | Space Exploration

The crew of the upcoming Inspiration4 mission (the first all-civilian spaceflight) took a moment to get their pictures taken inside the glass dome that will let them to see Earth from orbit.

Ocean Worlds With Hydrogen-Rich Atmospheres Could be the Perfect Spots for Life

By Matthew Williams - September 04, 2021 06:13 PM UTC | Astrobiology

A new study has identified another class of exoplanet that could drastically increase the odds of finding life beyond the Solar System.

Heavier Stars Might not Explode as Supernovae, Just Quietly Implode Into Black Holes

By Brian Koberlein - September 04, 2021 03:41 PM UTC | Black Holes

Above a certain mass, large stars don't become supernovae. That limit might be lower than we thought.

The Galactic Beauty of Star Formation

By mcimone - September 03, 2021 07:26 PM UTC | Milky Way

A Powerful new Laser Will Enhance Adaptive Optics

By Andy Tomaswick - September 03, 2021 02:53 PM UTC | Telescopes

In some applications, bigger lasers mean better lasers. That is the case in astronomy, where lasers are used for everything from telescope calibration to satellite communication. The European Southern Observatory ([ESO](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/European_Southern_Observatory)) and some of its commercial partners have developed a laser 3 times more powerful than the existing industry standard. With that increased power level, the new system has the potential to dramatically improve the way telescopes deal with one of the most fundamental problems in ground-based astronomy - atmospheric turbulence.

It's Time to Send a Lander to Mercury

By Andy Tomaswick - September 03, 2021 01:29 PM UTC | Planetary Science

Review: Unistellar's New eQuinox Telescope

By David Dickinson - September 03, 2021 07:36 AM UTC | Telescopes

A leader in the 'smartscope' industry releases its exciting new eQuinox telescope.

A Human Mission to Mars Should Last a Maximum of 4 Years

By Matthew Williams - September 02, 2021 04:00 PM UTC | Space Exploration

According to a new study by an international team of researchers, a mission to Mars would have to be less than four years to mitigate the threat posed by radiation.