VLT
New Instrument is Searching for Planets Around Alpha Centauri
Alpha Centauri is the closest star system to us, at 4.37 light-years (about 25 trillion miles) away. In 2016, astronomers…
A double asteroid came uncomfortably close this weekend. Here’s what astronomers saw
Using the Very Large Telescope, a team of ESO scientists took some stunningly clear images of a double asteroid that…
Do You See the “Cosmic Bat” in NGC 1788?
2,000 light years away, in the Orion constellation, lurks an eerie looking creature, made of glowing gas lit up by…
The Saturn Nebula Kind of Looks Like the Planet in a Small Telescope, But in One of the Most Powerful Telescopes on Earth, it Looks Like This
Saturn is an icon. There's nothing else like it in the Solar System, and it's something even children recognize. But…
Massive Triple Star System Creates this Bizarre Swirling Pinwheel of Dust. And it Could be the Site of a Gamma Ray Burst
An international team of astronomers recently located a triple star system in our galaxy that will someday unleash a massive…
This Beautiful Photo of Galaxy NGC 3981 was Taken by the Most Powerful Telescope in the World for no Scientific Reason at all. Just Because it’s Pretty
When the ESO's Very Large Telescope can't pursue its science objectives, it spends its time capturing stunning image of fascinating…
Einstein Was Right… Again! Successful Test of General Relativity Near a Supermassive Black Hole
For the first time in history, Einstein's theory of General Relativity was confirmed by observing a star orbiting the supermassive…
Stunning First Ever Photograph of a Newly Forming Planet
A team of international astronomers recently captured the first image of a newly-formed planet, which will allow astronomers to test…
Look at This Fascinating Variety of Planet-Forming Disks Around Other Stars
New images from the European Southern Observatory show the stunning variety of discs of gas and dust that surround young…
Stars Orbiting Supermassive Black Hole Show Einstein was Right Again!
A team of European astronomers accurately measured the orbit of a star around the supermassive black hole at the center…