Astronomy

December 24th, 2024, NASA's Parker Solar Probe made its closest approach to the Sun so far, coming within just 6.1 million km from the surface of the Sun. During this flyby, it captured data and images, including this incredible picture using the Wide Field Imager for Solar Probe, or WISPR. In this WISPR image, you can see the corona and solar wind, charged particles coming from the Sun, hurled across the Solar System. The next pass will happen in September.

Close encounters with massive objects can alter the orbits of planets around their stars. Stellar flybys can change planetary orbits, and may be responsible for some of the rogue or free-floating planets astronomers have discovered. But stars aren't the only massive objects out there, and new research suggests that primordial black holes may alter the orbits of exoplanets.

Astrobiology can be split into two very distinct fields. There’s the field that astronomers are likely more familiar with, involving large telescopes, exoplanets, and spectroscopic signals that are pored over to debate whether they show signs of life. But there is another camp, collective known as the Origins researchers that focus on developing a scientific understanding of how life originally developed on Earth. A new paper from Cole Mathis at Arizona State and Harrison B. Smith at the Institute of Science in Tokyo suggests a new path forward to tackling those challenges - set them up as competitions and let a hefty prize motivate scientific teams and individuals to pursue them.

In the last couple of decades, evidence has accumulated showing that ancient Mars was a warm planet with abundant water flowing across its surface. The more scientists study the planet, the more evidence they find. New research examining Mars' Noachis Terra region adds to this evidence, showing that flowing water was once widespread across this less-often studied region.

A Long March 7 rocket lifted off this evening (July 14), sending China's Tianzhou 9 cargo spacecraft toward the Tiangong space station.

Astronomers have discovered that vampire white dwarfs that feast on victim companion stars have assistance in acquiring prey in the form of lurking third stars.

Many states, including Texas, have not used billions of dollars from FEMA intended to reduce damage from flooding and other disasters

Adding fire-suppressing chemicals into batteries can prevent overheating, fires and explosions, cutting the risks for electric vehicles and portable electronics

Adding fire-suppressing chemicals into batteries can prevent overheating, fires and explosions, cutting the risks for electric vehicles and portable electronics

Much like hurricanes further south, the strongest storms to pummel the US north-east are getting even stronger as sea surface temperatures rise

Much like hurricanes further south, the strongest storms to pummel the US north-east are getting even stronger as sea surface temperatures rise

People with disrupted access to GLP-1 drugs, like Ozempic, still seem to lose substantial amounts of weight

People with disrupted access to GLP-1 drugs, like Ozempic, still seem to lose substantial amounts of weight

Why isn't this ant a big sphere?

As the Sun set, a bright Full Moon rose on July 10.

Stars are forming in Lynds Dark Nebula

If you have looked at the sky and seen a group of

What is going on with this galaxy?