Astronomy

The NASA/ESA/CSA James Webb Space Telescope has captured a beautiful juxtaposition of the nearby protostellar outflow known as Herbig-Haro 49/50 with a perfectly positioned, more distant spiral galaxy. Due to the close proximity of this Herbig-Haro object to Earth, this new composite infrared image of the outflow from a young star allows researchers to examine details on small spatial scales like never before. With Webb, we can better understand how the jet activity associated with the formation of young stars can affect the environment surrounding them.

Astronomers have tracked several meteorites that dropped in on Earth back to their origin, space rocks in the main asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter.

Space-based solar power is one step closer to reality, now that Florida startup Star Catcher has successfully beamed energy across the Jacksonville Jaguars' stadium.

Simulations suggest that water can become a superacid under extremely high heat and pressure conditions. This may also explain how planets like Uranus and Neptune get diamond rain

Simulations suggest that water can become a superacid under extremely high heat and pressure conditions. This may also explain how planets like Uranus and Neptune get diamond rain

Programming devices with parental controls may seem daunting, but they can help parents ensure what their kids find on TV and the Internet is age-appropriate

A test for abnormal fetal chromosomes can also detect maternal cancers—and physicians are struggling to incorporate that knowledge into routine care

Melting ice is revealing new coastal zones in the Arctic, but while this new landscape might fuel speculation about natural resources, it is vulnerable to rockfalls and landslides that can cause dangerous tsunamis

Melting ice is revealing new coastal zones in the Arctic, but while this new landscape might fuel speculation about natural resources, it is vulnerable to rockfalls and landslides that can cause dangerous tsunamis

In this week’s news roundup, two NASA astronauts finally return to Earth after nine unexpected months in space, gray seals hold their breath for more than an hour, and penguin poop panics krill.

Using data from the Euclid Space Telescope, astronomers have discovered a stunning 2,674 dwarf galaxies, the study of which could help better understand cosmic evolution.

A new recipe for black holes could do away with central singularities, saving the laws of physics from troubling infinities.

What's on and in a star? What happens at an active galactic nucleus? Answering those question is the goal of a proposed giant interferometer on the Moon. It's called Artemis-enabled Stellar Imager (AeSI) and would deploy a series of 15-30 optical/ultraviolet-sensitive telescopes in a 1-km elliptical array across the lunar surface.

In the years since Miguel Alcubierre came up with a warp drive solution in 1994, you would occasionally see news headlines saying that warp drives can work. And then a few months later you’ll see that they’ve been ruled out. And then after that you’ll see that warp drives kind of work, but only in limited cases. It seems to constantly go around and around without a clear answer. What gives?

Thor not only has

There is a supermassive black hole at the center of our galaxy. There is also a lot of other stuff there as well. Young stars, gas, dust, and stellar-mass black holes. It's a happening place. It is also surrounded by a veil of interstellar gas and dust, which means we can't observe the region in visible light. We can observe stars in the region through infrared and radio, and some of the gas there emits radio light, but the stellar-mass black holes remain mostly a mystery.

Welcome back to our five-part examination of Webb's Cycle 4 General Observations program. In the first and second installments, we examined how some of Webb's 8,500 hours of prime observing time this cycle will be dedicated to exoplanet characterization, the study of galaxies at "Cosmic Dawn," the period known as "Cosmic Noon," and the study of star formation and evolution. In our final installment, we'll examine programs that leverage Webb's unique abilities to study objects in our cosmic backyard—the Solar System!

This original prop from Steven Spielberg's timeless 1982 film hits the auction block.

Nestled in the rolling green hills of the English countryside is an important site in global astronomical history. But now, with its future uncertain, this historic site is at risk.