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One of our planets may be missing, and it could explain why the solar system looks the way it does

Our solar system has two ice giants, Uranus and Neptune, but there may have been a third. According to a new study published in the journal Icarus, this extra world might have triggered a violent planetary shuffling billions of years ago that could have disrupted some of Jupiter’s and Uranus’s moons and possibly led to […]

A giant star may have destroyed itself in one of the universe’s rarest explosions

Astronomers may have discovered one of the clearest examples yet of a rare “pair-instability” supernova. It is a catastrophic explosion thought to completely destroy some of the most massive stars in the universe, leaving behind no remnant. The paper outlining the properties of this rare explosion was posted to the arXiv preprint server on May […]

Student astronomer discovers ‘Rosetta Stone’ for mysterious cosmic signals

An international team led by astronomers at the University of Sydney has uncovered the clearest evidence yet for the origin of an unusual class of cosmic signals. In doing so, they have identified a rare stellar system that is providing scientists with a natural laboratory to study extreme physics.

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A natural chemistry laboratory in protostar shock waves

Life exists because elements combine to form complex organic molecules. Astrochemistry studies this process, trying to understand how nature creates carbon-based molecules critical for life. One source for these types of molecules is the outflows emitted by protostars.

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Supermassive black holes could be the universe’s biggest planet nurseries

Supermassive black holes are the largest known black holes in the universe, sitting at the center of most large galaxies. They are sometimes described as cosmic monsters because they feed on surrounding gas and dust when they are active, as well as destroy anything that gets too close. But their reputation could be due for […]

JWST finds a stellar bar in the early universe that breaks all rules

Astronomers using the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) have discovered a stellar bar in GN20, a massive galaxy seen just 1.5 billion years after the Big Bang. The new paper was submitted to the preprint server arXiv on May 14.

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Meteor over Massachusetts causes explosion reports, sightings from Delaware to Montreal

Reports of an explosion from people across New England on Saturday afternoon sent police agencies and others scrambling to understand what caused a double boom that shook buildings in Massachusetts and Rhode Island.

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Is extracting oxygen from lunar soil the future of space exploration?

A new race to the moon is emerging between the United States and China. Unlike fifty years ago, the goal is no longer just about landing and leaving, but establishing a base that allows for a sustainable presence and extended stays on the surface of our natural satellite. The objective is now to use the […]

How mobile deep‑space medical systems could support future landings on the moon and Mars

Around the world, people watched NASA’s Artemis II mission in awe as humans returned to lunar orbit for the first time since 1972.

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Pulsar wind nebula inside supernova remnant explored with Chandra

Astronomers from the George Washington University (GWU) in Washington, DC, and elsewhere have employed NASA’s Chandra X-ray spacecraft to observe a pulsar wind nebula inside a supernova remnant known as CTA 1. Results of the observational campaign, presented in a research paper published May 20 on the arXiv preprint server, shed more light on the […]

Evidence of cosmic-ray acceleration from a nearby supernova remnant

Cosmic rays seen at Earth show a wide range of particle energies, from 107 electron-volts (eV) to more than 1020 eV, the latter being about the same as the kinetic energy of a 450 gram football (soccer ball) being kicked across the pitch at about 8 meters per second. A plot of cosmic ray energies […]

A trip to the United Arab Emirates’ darkest spot reveals a rare view of the Milky Way

The gleaming skyscrapers and bright lights of the United Arab Emirates draw the eyes of all who travel there, a sign of the Arabian Peninsula nation’s rapid, oil-fueled development over the last decades into a major hub for commerce and tourism.

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Blue Origin rocket explosion is bad news for both Bezos and NASA

Space exploration is filled with setbacks, but the spectacular explosion of Blue Origin’s New Glenn rocket on Thursday night marked a significant blow to not only the company, which was founded by billionaire Jeff Bezos, but also NASA, with the two collaborating for the upcoming US moon missions.

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Blue Origin investigates rocket explosion as public is warned about possible wreckage washing ashore

Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin is assessing damage to its launch pad after a rocket exploded during a test firing, creating a giant orange fireball seen and felt for miles around.

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Mars’s manganese ‘bathtub ring’ reveals ancient ocean timeline and its potential for life

Past research has indicated Mars’s largest northern basin, Utopia Planitia, was once the location of a large body of water, but details surrounding when this body of water may have existed have not been resolved. Researchers have now identified a ring of minerals in the region that have helped them string together a timeline of […]