White dwarfs — the superdense, slowly cooling embers left behind when stars like our sun die — are usually quiet cosmic relics. A rare few, however, are anything but. In…
Category: Space
NASA aeroshell material takes extended space trip
Robert Mosher, HIAD materials and processing lead at NASA Langley, holds up a piece of webbing material, known as Zylon, which comprise the straps of the HIAD. Credit: NASA/Joe Atkinson…
Why do we photograph the Milky Way in summer?
For stargazers and astrophotographers in the northern hemisphere, summer is the best time to observe and photograph our cosmic neighborhood, the Milky Way galaxy. The summer months of June, July…
GJ 1132 b doesn’t have an atmosphere, according to new JWST data
Artist’s impression of exoplanet GJ 1132 b and its host M-dwarf star. Credit: Dana Berry, Skyworks Digital, CfA Astronomers sometimes find conflicting data when trying to answer a question. This…
Harassment at Antarctic research bases could spell problems for moon, Mars outposts
Warning: This story contains details of violence that may be disturbing to some readers. You can find resources and help for survivors at the U.S. Department of Justice website. More…
SpaceX looks to launch Starship on Tuesday night after two days of scrubs
Credit: Pixabay/CC0 Public Domain SpaceX has lined up its massive Starship and Super Heavy rocket for what would be its 10th suborbital test flight, aiming to complete goals that have…
James Webb Space Telescope takes 1st look at interstellar comet 3I/ATLAS with unexpected results
The James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) has observed the interstellar visitor 3I/ATLAS for the first time. The powerful space telescope trained its infrared vision and its Near-Infrared Spectrograph instrument (NIRspec)…
How the Apollo missions unlocked the origins of the moon
Astronaut Harrison Schmitt retrieves lunar samples during Apollo 17. Credit: NASA You know, if you think about it, and trust me we’re about to, the moon is kind of weird.…
Dark matter could create black holes that devour planets from within
New research suggests that dark matter could gather over vast periods of time at the heart of Jupiter-sized planets, creating black holes that eat these worlds from within. This striking…
