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Unusual CO₂-rich disk detected around young star challenges planet formation models

A study led by Jenny Frediani at Stockholm University has revealed a planet-forming disk with a strikingly unusual chemical composition: an unexpectedly high abundance of carbon dioxide (CO2) in regions where Earth-like planets may one day form.

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Earth-size stars and alien oceans: An astronomer explains the case for life around white dwarfs

The sun will someday die. This will happen when it runs out of hydrogen fuel in its core and can no longer produce energy through nuclear fusion as it does now. The death of the sun is often thought of as the end of the solar system. But in reality, it may be the beginning […]

Sun dogs, rainbows and glories are celestial wonders, and they may appear in alien skies too

Every once in a while, you may look up toward the sun and see strange bright lights on either side of it. Or perhaps you’ll be sitting in an aircraft, looking out the window at its shadow, and see a circle of light, like a halo below (known as glories). Or, if you’re really adventurous, […]

Scientists confirm presence of standing shocks in black hole accretion flows

A team led by Prof. Mao Jirong from the Yunnan Observatories of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, in collaboration with international researchers, has recently published a study in The Astrophysical Journal confirming the presence of a standing shock in low-angular-momentum black hole accretion modes.

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Izaña-2 joins the laser game to track space debris

In Tenerife, Spain, stands a unique duo: ESA’s Izaña-1 and Izaña-2 laser-ranging stations. Together, they form an optical technology testbed of the European Space Agency that takes the monitoring of space debris and satellites to a new level while maturing new technologies for commercialization.

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Perseverance exploration update: Over Soroya Ridge and onward

Perseverance has continued exploring beyond the rim of Jezero crater, spending time last week at Parnasset conducting a mini-campaign on aeolian bedforms. After wrapping up that work, three separate drives brought Perseverance further southeast to an outcrop named Soroya.

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A new theory of the universe’s origins without inflation

How exactly did the universe start and how did these processes determine its formation and evolution? This is what a study published in Physical Review Research hopes to address as a team of researchers from Spain and Italy proposed a new model for the events that transpired immediately after the birth of the universe.

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CHORD will be a huge leap forward for Canadian radio astronomy

Construction is underway of CHORD, the most ambitious radio telescope project ever built on Canadian soil. Short for the Canadian Hydrogen Observatory and Radio-transient Detector, CHORD will give astronomers an unprecedented opportunity to explore some of the most exciting and mysterious questions in astrophysics and cosmology, from Fast Radio Bursts (FRBs) and dark energy to […]

Observations track rapid heating and evolution of the Spirograph Nebula

By analyzing the available optical spectroscopic data, astronomers have investigated a nearby planetary nebula designated IC 418, also known as the Spirograph Nebula. Results of the study, published August 20 in The Astrophysical Journal Letters, shed more light on the evolution of this nebula.

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GJ 1132 b doesn’t have an atmosphere, according to new JWST data

Astronomers sometimes find conflicting data when trying to answer a question. This is a normal part of the scientific process, and it simply means that more data is needed to prove or disprove the theory they are trying to test. One prominent example of conflicting data in recent exoplanet research was that of planet GJ […]

Warped protoplanetary disks reshape existing ideas about how planets form

The textbook picture of how planets form—serene, flat disks of cosmic dust—has just received a significant cosmic twist.

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Chemists create new high-energy compound to fuel space flight

University at Albany chemists have created a new high-energy compound that could revolutionize rocket fuel and make space flights more efficient. Upon ignition, the compound releases more energy relative to its weight and volume compared to current fuels. In a rocket, this would mean less fuel required to power the same flight duration or payload […]

A blaze of glory: SpaceX’s starship goes the distance in tenth flight test

SpaceX executed the most successful flight test of its super-powerful Starship launch system to date, featuring Starship’s first-ever payload deployment and a thrilling Indian Ocean splashdown. Today’s 10th test flight followed three earlier missions that fell short of full success.

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The exposed core of this supernova is a head-scratcher

Stars have layers like onions, according to theory. The layers are made of different elements, progressing from light to heavy the deeper the layers are. While the theory is strong, observing the inner layers of a star has been basically impossible.

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New study counters idea that Jupiter’s mysterious core was formed by a giant impact

A new Durham University study has found that a giant impact may not be responsible for the formation of Jupiter’s remarkable “dilute” core, challenging a theory about the planet’s history.

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