“The pulsar sort of consumes the thing that recycled it, just as the spider eats its mate.”
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In 2017, a kilonova sent light and gravitational waves across the Universe. Here on Earth, there was a 1.7 second signal arrival delay. Why?
Even if you aren’t in the path of totality, you can still use the solar eclipse to measure how long it takes the Moon to orbit Earth.
Radar astronomy is nothing new, but a new transmitter may give us unprecedented image resolution.
We’ve almost got the entire story. James Webb will put the last piece into place. In all of science, there are really only two ways that something can be “known” to […]
Puerto Rico’s iconic telescope facilitated important scientific discoveries while inspiring young scientists and the public imagination.
Researchers hypothesize that these exoplanets could support the development of alien life.
Astronomers claim to have found structures so large, they shouldn’t exist. With such biased, incomplete observations, perhaps they don’t.
The controversy over the universe’s expansion rate continues with a new, faster estimate.
Where did the “seed” magnetic field come from in the first place?
Today, the star-formation rate across the Universe is a mere trickle: just 3% of what it was at its peak. Here’s what it was like back then.
As early as we’ve been able to identify them, the youngest galaxies seem to have large supermassive black holes. Here’s how they were made.
In all the Universe, only a few particles are eternally stable. The photon, the quantum of light, has an infinite lifetime. Or does it?
Earth, the only rocky planet with a large, massive satellite, is greatly affected by the Moon. Destroying it would cause 7 major changes.
Researchers are working nest by nest to limit the threat while developing better eradication methods.
When what we predict and what we measure don’t add up, that’s a sign there’s something new to learn. Could it be a new fundamental force?
Atomic nuclei form in minutes. Atoms form in hundreds of thousands of years. But the “dark ages” rule thereafter, until stars finally form.
Don’t wait until Christmas to gift a telescope this year. All throughout the year, two bright lights have stood out in the post-sunset skies. Earlier this year, on March 31, 2020, […]
Planets can emit radio waves. For the first time, we’ve picked them up from outside the solar system.
The Crab Nebula goes back to 1054, opening a window into our cosmic past. On July 4, 1054, Chinese astronomers recorded a “guest star” in the Taurus constellation. A ‘guest star’ […]
In 2017, we detected gold being forged in a neutron star-neutron star merger. Now, in 2024, the amounts created simply don’t add up.
In all the Universe, only a few particles are eternally stable. The photon, the quantum of light, has an infinite lifetime. Or does it?
Hubble’s deepest views of space revealed fewer than 10% of the Universe’s galaxies. James Webb will change that forever.
Galaxies can have regions both hotter and colder than the background radiation of the Universe. When we talk about the depths of space, we get this picture in our heads […]
Everything we observe beyond our Local Group is speeding away from us, omnidirectionally. If the Universe is expanding, where is the center?
The last image puts it all in perspective. Compared to what we find in our Solar System, galaxies are truly enormous. The Sun may be 109 times the diameter of […]
Even if you or I will never actually visit these distant worlds, we now know they exist. They should fill us with wonder.
After a wait of 397 years in orbit, we’re finally getting a truly ‘Great’ Conjunction. Recently, December 21, 2020, Jupiter and Saturn finally met. Looking towards the southwest skies from […]
The Universe’s idea of a ‘typical star’ has changed dramatically over time. When you look out at the Universe today, you’re not seeing it exactly as it is at one particular […]
‘Fast Optical Bursts’ will confound ground-based astronomy. As of 2021, planet Earth is currently experiencing the least pristine night sky in recorded history. Prior to the development of artificial lighting, […]