Portrayed in this image from ESA's Planck satellite are the two Magellanic Clouds, among the nearest companions of our Milky Way galaxy. The Large Magellanic Cloud, about 160 000 light-years away, is the large red and orange ...
Astronomy
Sep 7, 2015
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Oxygen is the third most abundant element in the universe (after hydrogen and helium) and of course it is important: all known life forms require liquid water and its oxygen content. For over thirty years, astronomers have ...
Astronomy
Jul 27, 2015
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119
For millennia, human beings have stared up at the night sky and stood in awe of the Milky Way. Today, stargazers and amateur astronomers continue in this tradition, knowing that what they are witnessing is in fact a collection ...
Astronomy
Jul 10, 2015
0
103
In late 2013, when the neutron star at the heart of one of our galaxy's oddest supernovae gave off a massive burst of X-rays, the resulting echoes—created when the X-rays bounced off clouds of dust in interstellar space—yielded ...
Astronomy
Jun 23, 2015
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The moon is engulfed in a permanent but lopsided dust cloud that increases in density when annual events like the Geminids spew shooting stars, according to a new study led by University of Colorado Boulder.
Space Exploration
Jun 17, 2015
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1177
NASA's Aeronomy of Ice in the Mesosphere, or AIM, spacecraft has spotted a luminous patch of electric-blue drifting across the Arctic Circle. The sighting marks the beginning of the 2015 season for noctilucent clouds (NLCs).
Earth Sciences
Jun 3, 2015
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8
A group of Victoria-based scientists have made a discovery suggesting that the building blocks of planets may form earlier than previously thought. UVic astronomer, Mike Chen, presented the group's research at a Canadian ...
Astronomy
Jun 1, 2015
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75
When tons of ash spewed into the atmosphere from a 2010 Icelandic volcano it caused havoc for vacationers across Europe. But did it also dramatically change clouds? Researchers at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory found ...
Earth Sciences
May 28, 2015
1
45
With blue hues suggestive of marine paradises and a texture evoking the tranquil flow of sea waves, this image might make us daydream of sandy beaches and exotic holiday destinations. Instead, the subject of the scene is ...
Astronomy
May 20, 2015
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67
The constellation of Cygnus is one of the most recognisable in the northern hemisphere. During the summer months, the stars of its long neck stretch along the Milky Way and its wings sweep from side to side.
Astronomy
May 4, 2015
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