ESO
The hibernating stellar magnet: First optically active magnetar-candidate discovered
Astronomers have discovered a most bizarre celestial object that emitted 40 visible-light flashes before disappearing again. It is most likely to be a missing link in the family of neutron stars, the first ...
Sep 24, 2008 |
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Serious blow to dark matter theories? New study finds mysterious lack of dark matter in Sun's neighborhood
(Phys.org) -- The most accurate study so far of the motions of stars in the Milky Way has found no evidence for dark matter in a large volume around the Sun. According to widely accepted theories, the solar ...
Apr 18, 2012 |
4.6 / 5 (45) |
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Unprecedented 16-year-long study tracks stars orbiting Milky Way black hole
By watching the motions of 28 stars orbiting the Milky Way's most central region with admirable patience and amazing precision, astronomers have been able to study the supermassive black hole lurking there. ...
Dec 09, 2008 |
4.8 / 5 (42) |
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A trio of super-Earths
Today, at an international conference, a team of European astronomers announced a remarkable breakthrough in the field of extra-solar planets. Using the HARPS instrument at the ESO La Silla Observatory, they ...
Jun 16, 2008 |
4.7 / 5 (41) |
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300 solar masses: Scientists find most massive star ever discovered (w/ Video)
(PhysOrg.com) -- Using a combination of instruments on ESO's Very Large Telescope, astronomers have discovered the most massive stars to date, one weighing at birth more than 300 times the mass of the sun, ...
Jul 21, 2010 |
4.9 / 5 (38) |
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The star that should not exist
(PhysOrg.com) -- A team of European astronomers has used ESO’s Very Large Telescope (VLT) to track down a star in the Milky Way that many thought was impossible. They discovered that this star is composed ...
Aug 31, 2011 |
4.8 / 5 (35) |
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Students discover unique planet
The students were testing a method of investigating the light fluctuations of thousands of stars in the OGLE database in an automated way. The brightness of one of the stars was found to decrease for two hours ...
Dec 04, 2008 |
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Sharpest views of Betelgeuse reveal how supergiant stars lose mass
(PhysOrg.com) -- Betelgeuse -- the second brightest star in the constellation of Orion (the Hunter) -- is a red supergiant, one of the biggest stars known, and almost 1000 times larger than our Sun. It is ...
Jul 29, 2009 |
4.8 / 5 (33) |
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A pool of distant galaxies -- the deepest ultraviolet image of the universe yet
This uniquely beautiful patchwork image, with its myriad of brightly coloured galaxies, shows the Chandra Deep Field South (CDF-S), arguably the most observed and best studied region in the entire sky. The ...
Nov 07, 2008 |
4.6 / 5 (33) |
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Astronomers detect matter torn apart by black hole
The team of European and US astronomers used ESO's Very Large Telescope (VLT) and the Atacama Pathfinder Experiment (APEX) telescope, both in Chile, to study light from Sagittarius A* at near-infrared wavelengths ...
Nov 18, 2008 |
4.6 / 5 (33) |
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Violent flickering in Black Holes
(PhysOrg.com) -- Unique observations of the flickering light from the surroundings of two black holes provide new insights into the colossal energy that flows at their hearts. By mapping out how well the variations ...
Oct 15, 2008 |
4.7 / 5 (31) |
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How Much Mass Makes a Black Hole? Astronomers Challenge Current Theories
(PhysOrg.com) -- Using ESO's Very Large Telescope, European astronomers have for the first time demonstrated that a magnetar -- an unusual type of neutron star -- was formed from a star with at least 40 times ...
Aug 18, 2010 |
4.7 / 5 (31) |
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Omega Centauri -- The Glittering Giant of the Southern Skies
Sparkling away at magnitude 3.7 and appearing nearly as large as the full moon on the southern night sky, Omega Centauri is visible with the unaided eye from a clear, dark observing site. Even through a modest ...
Dec 02, 2008 |
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Clearing the cosmic fog: The most distant galaxy ever measured (w/ Video)
(PhysOrg.com) -- A European team of astronomers using ESO's Very Large Telescope (VLT) has measured the distance to the most remote galaxy so far. By carefully analysing the very faint glow of the galaxy they ...
Oct 20, 2010 |
4.8 / 5 (30) |
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Richest planetary system discovered (w/ Video)
(PhysOrg.com) -- Astronomers using ESO's world-leading HARPS instrument have discovered a planetary system containing at least five planets, orbiting the Sun-like star HD 10180. The researchers also have tantalising ...
Aug 24, 2010 |
4.9 / 5 (29) |
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