Saturn's outer ring much bigger than thought
(Phys.org)—A small team of researchers with members affiliated with the University of Maryland, the University of Virginia and Caltech, has found that the outermost ring of Saturn is much bigger than...
View ArticleHelium-shrouded planets may be common in our galaxy
They wouldn't float like balloons or give you the chance to talk in high, squeaky voices, but planets with helium skies may constitute an exotic planetary class in our Milky Way galaxy. Researchers...
View ArticleCan planets be rejuvenated around dead stars?
For a planet, this would be like a day at the spa. After years of growing old, a massive planet could, in theory, brighten up with a radiant, youthful glow. Rejuvenated planets, as they are nicknamed,...
View ArticleNASA image: Stellar sparklers that last
While fireworks only last a short time here on Earth, a bundle of cosmic sparklers in a nearby cluster of stars will be going off for a very long time. NGC 1333 is a star cluster populated with many...
View ArticleSaturn's rings in a supercomputer
Why do some planets, like Saturn or Jupiter, have rings, while others, like Earth or Mars, do not? It turns out that "size does not matter"—gas giants like Saturn are not the only bodies that can...
View ArticleThe dwarf planet Orcus
Since the early 2000s, more and more objects have been discovered in the outer solar system that resemble planets. However, until they are officially classified, the terms Kuiper Belt Object (KBO) and...
View ArticleAstronomers detect the farthest galaxy yet with Keck telescope
A team of Caltech researchers that has spent years searching for the earliest objects in the universe now reports the detection of what may be the most distant galaxy ever found. In an article...
View ArticleBlack hole is 30 times expected size
The central supermassive black hole of a recently discovered galaxy is far larger than should be possible, according to current theories of galactic evolution. New work, carried out by astronomers at...
View ArticleWhopping galaxy cluster spotted with help of NASA telescopes
Astronomers have discovered a giant gathering of galaxies in a very remote part of the universe, thanks to NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope and Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer (WISE). The galaxy...
View ArticleGMRT discovers a dying, giant radio galaxy 9 billion light years away
A team of astronomers working at the National Centre for Radio Astrophysics (NCRA, TIFR), Pune have discovered, using the Giant Metrewave Radio Telescope (GMRT), an extremely rare galaxy of gigantic...
View ArticleAstronomer discusses the science behind that mysterious star you've heard so...
A Yale-led team of astronomers has had its eye on a particularly bright star whose dramatic dips in energy output may be the result of fragmented, extra-solar comets buzzing past the star.
View ArticleHubble reveals diversity of exoplanet atmosphere: Largest ever comparative...
Astronomers have used the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope and the NASA Spitzer Space Telescope to study the atmospheres of ten hot, Jupiter-sized exoplanets in detail, the largest number of such...
View ArticleSearching for water in the atmosphere of a Neptune-mass exoplanet HAT-P-26b
(Phys.org)—HAT-P-26b is an inflated, Neptune-mass exoplanet located about 437 light years from Earth, which orbits its parent star HAT-P-26 every 4.23 days. The planet has a relatively low surface...
View ArticleRunaway stars leave infrared waves in space
Astronomers are finding dozens of the fastest stars in our galaxy with the help of images from NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope and Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer, or WISE.
View ArticleMost distant massive galaxy cluster identified
The early universe was a chaotic mess of gas and matter that only began to coalesce into distinct galaxies hundreds of millions of years after the Big Bang. It would take several billion more years for...
View ArticleHubble breaks cosmic distance record
By pushing the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope to its limits astronomers have shattered the cosmic distance record by measuring the distance to the most remote galaxy ever seen in the Universe. This...
View ArticleObservations of an extreme-weather planet raise questions about hot Jupiters'...
For centuries, the solar system was viewed as a standard blueprint for planetary systems in the universe, with a star (our sun) at the center of a circular track, and a planet orbiting within each...
View ArticleInvestigating the mystery of migrating 'hot Jupiters'
The last decade has seen a bonanza of exoplanet discoveries. Nearly 2,000 exoplanets—planets outside our solar system—have been confirmed so far, and more than 5,000 candidate exoplanets have been...
View ArticleHubble Space Telescope spies galaxy 32 billion light years away
When a team of astronomers found a galaxy in the direction of Ursa Major two years ago, they weren't sure what to make of it.
View ArticleMap of rocky exoplanet reveals a lava world
An international team of astronomers, led by the University of Cambridge, has obtained the most detailed 'fingerprint' of a rocky planet outside our solar system to date, and found a planet of two...
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