Astronomy

Big Jupiter now rises in the east-southeast less than an hour after dark. It's high in sharp telescopic viewing by about 10 p.m.

The post This Week's Sky at a Glance, December 12 – 21 appeared first on Sky & Telescope.

Image: Following International Mountain Day, which creates awareness of the importance of mountain environments around the world, the Copernicus Sentinel-2 mission takes us over the Pariacaca Mountain Range in Peru.

Controlling qubits with quantum superpositions allows them to dramatically violate a fundamental limit and encode information for about five times longer during quantum computations

Controlling qubits with quantum superpositions allows them to dramatically violate a fundamental limit and encode information for about five times longer during quantum computations

What geological features on Earth can be used to better understand unique geological features on Jupiter’s icy moon, Europa? This is what a recent study published in The Planetary Science Journal hopes to address as a team of researchers investigated potential Earth analogs for studying a unique geological feature on Europa scientists identified almost 30 years ago. This study has the potential help scientists gain insights into Europa’s unique geological features, some of which scientists hypothesize are caused by the moon’s internal liquid water ocean.

Blasting outward from variable star KX Andromedae,

Neisseria gonorrhoeae, the microbe responsible for gonorrhoea, is developing resistance to most antibiotics, which means we need new drugs to treat the condition. An antibiotic called zoliflodacin might be part of a solution

Neisseria gonorrhoeae, the microbe responsible for gonorrhoea, is developing resistance to most antibiotics, which means we need new drugs to treat the condition. An antibiotic called zoliflodacin might be part of a solution

Surface-bound gels may have provided the structure and chemistry necessary for life to take root on Earth. These findings could also have implications in the search for life beyond Earth.

Observations from the James Webb Space Telescope suggest the planet might have a nitrogen-and-methane atmosphere — but more data are needed to rule out a bare rock scenario.

The post Webb’s First Look at TRAPPIST-1e Hints at a Titan-like Atmosphere appeared first on Sky & Telescope.

The Leibniz Institute for Astrophysics Potsdam (AIP) is forming a new research group that will focus solely on the Large and Small Magellanic Clouds. The pair of irregular dwarf galaxies are satellites of the Milky Way, and are natural, nearby laboratories for studying how galaxies form and evolve. The research group will make heavy use of the spectroscopic 4MOST survey from the VISTA telescope.

The FDA has approved a device that aims to treat depression by sending electric current into a part of the brain known to regulate mood

New research on strange cycad plants offers a glimpse into the prehistoric origins of pollination

In a stunning reversal, Disney has changed tack with regard to safeguarding its copyrighted characters from incorporation into AI tools – perhaps a sign that no one can stem the tide of AI

In a stunning reversal, Disney has changed tack with regard to safeguarding its copyrighted characters from incorporation into AI tools – perhaps a sign that no one can stem the tide of AI

The U.S. is considering allowing bemotrizinol, a highly effective UV filter used throughout Europe and Asia, in its sunscreen products for the first time

Two winter stars left their mark long ago on wispy gas clouds near the solar system. Their passage might even have influenced life on Earth.

The post Two Stars’ Swept by the Solar System 4.5 million Years Ago  appeared first on Sky & Telescope.

More than 1,900 people, mostly children, have been sickened by measles in the U.S. in 2025. The outbreaks are moving the country toward losing its measles-free status by early next year

Tantalizing observations suggest marine mammals may be teaming up to hunt