Ultraviolet astronomy is the research area focused on observing and interpreting electromagnetic radiation in the ultraviolet (UV) spectral range, typically ~10–400 nm, to investigate astrophysical plasmas and high-energy processes. Because Earth’s atmosphere absorbs most UV photons, the field relies on space-based observatories and suborbital platforms equipped with specialized optics, coatings, and photon-counting detectors. Ultraviolet observations probe hot stars, the interstellar and intergalactic medium, accretion disks, stellar winds, and shock fronts via resonance lines and continua, enabling measurements of temperature, composition, ionization state, kinematics, and mass loss. This domain is crucial for constraining models of star formation, galaxy evolution, feedback, and the baryon cycle in cosmic structures.
During their historic lunar flyby, astronauts on NASA's Artemis II mission witnessed meteorites striking the rugged surface of the moon, a sight that has piqued scientists' curiosity.
Space Exploration
Apr 8, 2026
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Using the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST), astronomers have discovered a new red galaxy at a redshift of approximately 11.45. The newfound galaxy, which received designation EGS-z11-R0, turns out to be the most distant ...
This March 16, 2026, image from NASA's Hubble Space Telescope and the James Webb Space Telescope takes a closer look at the core of Messier 101, also known as the Pinwheel Galaxy.
Astronomy
Mar 23, 2026
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With the first images from the spacecraft now in hand, the team behind NASA's Star-Planet Activity Research CubeSat, or SPARCS, is ready to begin charting the energetic lives of the galaxy's most common stars to help answer ...
Astronomy
Mar 12, 2026
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The James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) was involved in yet another first discovery recently available in pre-print form on arXiv from Cicero Lu at the Gemini Observatory and his co-authors. This time, humanity's most advanced ...
Astronomy
Dec 23, 2025
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The Southwest Research Institute-led Ultraviolet Spectrograph (UVS) aboard NASA's Europa Clipper spacecraft has made valuable observations of the interstellar comet 3I/ATLAS, which in July became the third officially recognized ...
Astronomy
Dec 18, 2025
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Southwest Research Institute (SwRI) scientists are collaborating with researchers at UT San Antonio to study how space weathering can alter the lunar surface materials to help interpret regional and global far-ultraviolet ...
Planetary Sciences
Dec 10, 2025
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An international team of astronomers has investigated a short-lived optical flare designated AT2022zod. As a result, they found evidence indicating that this flare is an unusual tidal disruption event. The findings were presented ...
Researchers used the MIRI instrument onboard the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) to identify the presence of ultraviolet radiation in five young stars in the Ophiuchus region, and to understand its role in the formation ...
Astronomy
Nov 25, 2025
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University of Warwick astronomers have uncovered compelling evidence that a nearby white dwarf is in fact the remnant of two stars merging—a rare stellar discovery revealed through Hubble Space Telescope ultraviolet observations ...
Astronomy
Aug 6, 2025
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