Search found 68 matches

by Mercury
Thu Mar 25, 2021 3:32 pm
Forum: The Communications Center: Breaking Science News
Topic: Oumuamua May Be a Chip Off a Plutolike Planet
Replies: 3
Views: 2440

Oumuamua May Be a Chip Off a Plutolike Planet

by Maria Temming

Our first interstellar visitor may have been a shard of nitrogen ice from another solar system.

Link: Science News
by Mercury
Thu Mar 25, 2021 3:26 pm
Forum: The Communications Center: Breaking Science News
Topic: Carbon-Ring Molecules Tied to Life Have Been Found in Space
Replies: 2
Views: 2410

Carbon-Ring Molecules Tied to Life Have Been Found in Space

by Lisa Grossman

Discovered in an interstellar cloud, the compounds are more abundant than predicted.

Link: Science News
by Mercury
Thu Mar 25, 2021 3:22 pm
Forum: The Communications Center: Breaking Science News
Topic: New Black Hole Image Reveals Magnetic Fields
Replies: 4
Views: 3744

New Black Hole Image Reveals Magnetic Fields

by Maria Temming

Event Horizon Telescope data show the orientation of light emitted near M87’s black hole.

Link: Science News
by Mercury
Fri Mar 19, 2021 10:55 pm
Forum: The Communications Center: Breaking Science News
Topic: We Don't Know What the Sun is Made of
Replies: 4
Views: 3686

We Don't Know What the Sun is Made of

by Ken Croswell (2020 Jun 25)

For two decades, astronomers have argued over how much carbon, nitrogen, and especially oxygen lie within our closest star — a dispute with implications for the entire universe.

Link: Knowable Magazine
by Mercury
Wed Mar 17, 2021 6:48 pm
Forum: The Communications Center: Breaking Science News
Topic: Gargantuan Supernova Remnant Looks 40 Times Bigger than Moon
Replies: 1
Views: 2680

Gargantuan Supernova Remnant Looks 40 Times Bigger than Moon

by Ken Croswell

New observations confirm that a cloud in the constellation Antlia really is a supernova remnant and the largest ever seen from Earth.

Link (including excellent color picture): Science News
by Mercury
Tue Mar 16, 2021 4:06 pm
Forum: The Communications Center: Breaking Science News
Topic: Most of Mars' Missing Water May Lurk in its Crust
Replies: 1
Views: 1951

Most of Mars' Missing Water May Lurk in its Crust

by Maria Temming

That may explain why so little water is seen escaping into space.

Link: Science News
by Mercury
Fri Mar 05, 2021 10:09 pm
Forum: The Communications Center: Breaking Science News
Topic: Here's What May Happen When Andromeda's and the Milky Way's Black Holes Collide
Replies: 1
Views: 2916

Here's What May Happen When Andromeda's and the Milky Way's Black Holes Collide

by Sid Perkins

The supermassive black holes will merge less than 17 million years after the galaxy merger.

Link: Science News
by Mercury
Fri Feb 19, 2021 12:52 am
Forum: The Communications Center: Breaking Science News
Topic: The First Black Hole Ever Found is More Massive than Once Thought
Replies: 2
Views: 2562

The First Black Hole Ever Found is More Massive than Once Thought

by Maria Temming

Cygnus X-1 is about 21 times as massive as the Sun.

Link: Science News
by Mercury
Fri Feb 12, 2021 3:13 pm
Forum: The Communications Center: Breaking Science News
Topic: Number of Milky Way Nova Explosions per year has been Pinned down
Replies: 1
Views: 3106

Number of Milky Way Nova Explosions per year has been Pinned down

by Ken Croswell

Knowing how frequently these stellar eruptions occur will help determine their contribution to the Galaxy's chemical makeup.

Link: Science News
by Mercury
Fri Feb 05, 2021 4:54 pm
Forum: The Communications Center: Breaking Science News
Topic: Two Exoplanet Families Redefine What Solar Systems Can Look Like
Replies: 1
Views: 3331

Two Exoplanet Families Redefine What Solar Systems Can Look Like

by Lisa Grossman

The planet densities and orbits at TRAPPIST 1 and TOI 178 buck astronomers' expectations.

Link: Science News
by Mercury
Wed Jan 27, 2021 5:11 pm
Forum: The Communications Center: Breaking Science News
Topic: Tracing Gold's Cosmic Origin Story
Replies: 9
Views: 6059

Re: Tracing Gold's Cosmic Origin Story

This story is now on the radio: The John Batchelor Show: The Origin of All the Gold in the Universe
by Mercury
Thu Jan 21, 2021 3:16 am
Forum: The Communications Center: Breaking Science News
Topic: Tracing Gold's Cosmic Origin Story
Replies: 9
Views: 6059

Tracing Gold's Cosmic Origin Story

Tracing Gold's Cosmic Origin Story

Astronomers thought they had finally figured out where the gold, platinum, and other heavy elements in the universe came from. In light of recent results, they’re not so sure.

by Ken Croswell

Link: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
by Mercury
Wed Jan 20, 2021 9:24 pm
Forum: The Communications Center: Breaking Science News
Topic: Astronomers Spot a Rare Galaxy Shutting Down Star Formation
Replies: 2
Views: 2101

Astronomers Spot a Rare Galaxy Shutting Down Star Formation

Astronomers Spot a Rare Galaxy Shutting Down Star Formation

A distant galaxy has been caught in the act of shutting down.

by Lisa Grossman

Link: Science News
by Mercury
Fri Jan 15, 2021 8:07 pm
Forum: The Communications Center: Breaking Science News
Topic: Parker Solar Probe Will Have Company on Its Next Pass
Replies: 3
Views: 3528

Parker Solar Probe Will Have Company on Its Next Pass

Spacecraft will watch the Sun from every angle while a NASA probe swoops in for a closer look

by Lisa Grossman

Link: Science News
by Mercury
Wed Jan 06, 2021 7:31 pm
Forum: The Communications Center: Breaking Science News
Topic: Astronomers have found the edge of the Milky Way at last
Replies: 3
Views: 5288

Re: Astronomers have found the edge of the Milky Way at last

The Mighty Milky Way

Our galaxy is far bigger, brighter, and more massive than most others.

by Ken Croswell

Link: Knowable Magazine: The Mighty Milky Way

The link includes a cool video showing the many satellite galaxies that orbit the Milky Way.
by Mercury
Sun Jan 03, 2021 5:23 pm
Forum: The Communications Center: Breaking Science News
Topic: The Number 1 Most-Read Science News Astronomy Story of 2020 Was . . .
Replies: 1
Views: 1235

The Number 1 Most-Read Science News Astronomy Story of 2020 Was . . .

Astronomers have found the edge of the Milky Way at last Our galaxy spans 1.9 million light-years, a new study finds. by Ken Croswell Our galaxy is a whole lot bigger than it looks. New work finds that the Milky Way stretches nearly 2 million light-years across, more than 15 times wider than its lu...
by Mercury
Tue Dec 22, 2020 11:45 pm
Forum: The Bridge: Discuss an Astronomy Picture of the Day
Topic: APOD: Gemini's Meteors (2020 Dec 17)
Replies: 9
Views: 5403

Re: APOD: Gemini's Meteors (2020 Dec 17)

Actually, the correct speed at which the Geminid meteoroids hit the atmosphere is 35 kilometers per second: Science News : "Most are white or yellow; all are slow and graceful, because the meteoroids orbit the Sun in the same direction as Earth does. They hit the air at only 35 kilometers per s...
by Mercury
Tue Dec 22, 2020 4:56 pm
Forum: The Bridge: Discuss an Astronomy Picture of the Day
Topic: APOD: Trifid Pillars and Jets (2020 Dec 22)
Replies: 3
Views: 2355

Re: APOD: Trifid Pillars and Jets (2020 Dec 22)

According to the cover story in the November 2019 Sky & Telescope , the Trifid Nebula is in the Sagittarius Arm of the Galaxy. That's the next spiral arm in toward the center of the Galaxy from the Local Arm, the spiral arm that contains the Sun and the Earth. Here is a recent estimate of the di...