Gaia Observatory

Part of the Milky Way Is Much Older Than Previously Believed

The Milky Way is older than astronomers thought, or part of it is. A newly-published study shows that part of…

2 years ago

Astronomers Find 70 Planets Without Stars Floating Free in the Milky Way

A international team of astronomers, using observatories all over the world (and one in space), discovered 70 new rogue planets…

2 years ago

A Detailed Scan of the Milky Way Finds Possible “Fossil” Spiral Arms

New research has revealed previously unknown wispy structures in the Milky Way disk that could offer clues about the history…

2 years ago

In 1.3 Million Years, a Star Will Come Within 24 Light-Days of the Sun

Using data from the Gaia Observatory, a team of Russian scientists have concluded that a star will make a close…

3 years ago

Gaia Finds 12 Examples of Einstein Crosses; Galaxies Being Gravitationally Lensed so we see Them Repeated 4 Times

After examining data from the Gaia Observatory, a team of researchers found 12 more examples of the rare phenomenon known…

3 years ago

You Can Actually See the Milky Way’s Wave When You Map Its Stars

Spiral galaxies are one of the most commonly known types of galaxy.  Most people think of them as large round…

3 years ago

Astronomers Discover Hundreds of High-Velocity Stars, Many on Their Way Out of the Milky Way

Combining data from two of the largest databases in the world, an international team of astronomers was able to doubledthe…

3 years ago

This is Not a Photo of the Milky Way. It’s the Map of 1.8 Billion Stars From Gaia’s Major New Data Release

Thanks to the latest data release from the ESA's Gaia mission, researchers are making all kinds of discoveries about the…

3 years ago

Based on Kepler Data, There’s a 95% Chance of an Earth-Like Planet Within 20 Light-Years

Combining data from the retired Kepler mission with the Gaia Observatory, a team of scientists have produced new estimates for…

3 years ago

The Disk of the Milky Way is Warped Because it Already Collided With Another Galaxy

Using data from the second Gaia data release, a team of astronomers has demonstrated that the "warp" in our galaxy…

4 years ago