Unprecedented gamma-ray burst hints at rare black hole

A team of astronomers have observed an explosion in the universe unlike any ever witnessed before. The gamma-ray bursts from outside the Milky Way galaxy repeated several times over the course of a day. Gamma-ray bursts (GRBs) are the most powerful explosions in the...

Methane gas found on dwarf planet Makemake

A Southwest Research Institute-led team has reported the first detection of gas on the distant dwarf planet Makemake, using NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope (JWST). This discovery makes Makemake only the second trans-Neptunian object, after Pluto, where the...

Cosmic accident solves Jupiter–Saturn silicon puzzle

Why has silicon, one of the most common elements in the universe, gone largely undetected in the atmospheres of Jupiter, Saturn, and gas planets like them orbiting other stars? A new study using observations from NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope sheds light on...