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Astronomy & Space news

The Milky Way does the wave
In results announced this week at the 237th Meeting of the American Astronomical Society, scientists from the Sloan Digital Sky survey present the most detailed look yet at the warp of our own galaxy.
Astronomy
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A 'super-puff' planet like no other
The core mass of the giant exoplanet WASP-107b is much lower than what was thought necessary to build up the immense gas envelope surrounding giant planets like Jupiter and Saturn, astronomers at Université de Montréal ...
Astronomy
20 hours ago
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Astronomers find planetary system with gas giant exoplanet and white dwarf companion
Using NASA's Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS), an international team of astronomers has discovered an interesting extrasolar planetary system consisting of a K-dwarf host star, a Jupiter-sized planet and a white ...

Cosmic beasts and where to find them
Two giant radio galaxies have been discovered with South Africa's powerful MeerKAT telescope. These galaxies are thought to be amongst the largest single objects in the Universe. The discovery has been published today in ...
Astronomy
23 hours ago
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Richard Branson's Virgin Orbit reaches space on 2nd try
Richard Branson's Virgin Orbit reached space on Sunday, eight months after the first demonstration flight of its air-launched rocket system failed, the company said.
Space Exploration
Jan 18, 2021
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The U.S. Postal Service to issue NASA sun science forever stamps
NASA's images of the sun's dynamic and dazzling beauty have captivated the attention of millions. In 2021, the US Postal Service is showcasing the sun's many faces with a series of sun Science forever stamps that show images ...
Space Exploration
Jan 18, 2021
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NASA test of mega Moon rocket engines cut short
NASA conducted a test firing of the engines for its giant Space Launch System (SLS) lunar rocket on Saturday but they shut down earlier than planned, the space agency said.
Space Exploration
Jan 17, 2021
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Examination of Theia 456 finds its nearly 500 stars were born at same time
The Milky Way houses 8,292 recently discovered stellar streams—all named Theia. But Theia 456 is special.
Astronomy
Jan 15, 2021
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X-rays surrounding 'Magnificent 7' may be traces of sought-after particle
A new study, led by a theoretical physicist at the U.S. Department of Energy's Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab), suggests that never-before-observed particles called axions may be the source of unexplained, ...
Astronomy
Jan 15, 2021
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Six-wavelength spectroscopy can offer new details of surface of Venus
A trio of papers provide new insight into the composition and evolution of the surface of Venus, hidden beneath its caustic, high temperature atmosphere. Utilizing imaging from orbit using multiple wavelengths—six-band ...
Space Exploration
Jan 15, 2021
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Astronomers document the rise and fall of a rarely observed stellar dance
The sun is the only star in our system. But many of the points of light in our night sky are not as lonely. By some estimates, more than three-quarters of all stars exist as binaries—with one companion—or in even more ...
Astronomy
Jan 15, 2021
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Project maps 'astronomical' number of celestial objects
Nearly 700 million astronomical objects have been carefully cataloged and made public as part of a major international collaboration involving researchers from The Australian National University (ANU).
Astronomy
Jan 15, 2021
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Researchers rewind the clock to calculate age and site of supernova blast
Astronomers are winding back the clock on the expanding remains of a nearby, exploded star. By using NASA's Hubble Space Telescope, they retraced the speedy shrapnel from the blast to calculate a more accurate estimate of ...
Astronomy
Jan 15, 2021
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Mars is still an active world—here's a landslide in Nili Fossae
Since the 1960s and '70s, scientists have come to view Mars as something of a "dead planet." As the first close-up images from orbit and the surface came in, previous speculation about canals, water and a Martian civilization ...
Astronomy
Jan 15, 2021
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Shining a new light on dark energy
The Dark Energy Survey has released a massive, public collection of astronomical data and calibrated images from six years of work. Containing data on nearly 700 million astronomical objects, this second data release in the ...
Astronomy
Jan 14, 2021
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RIP: Mars digger bites the dust after 2 years on red planet
NASA declared the Mars digger dead Thursday after failing to burrow deep into the red planet to take its temperature.
Space Exploration
Jan 14, 2021
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Blue Origin launches capsule to space with astronaut perks
Jeff Bezos' Blue Origin company launched a new capsule into space Thursday to test all the astronaut perks before people strap in.
Space Exploration
Jan 14, 2021
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Asteroids vs. microbes
Inside one of the containers of this 40-cm-across miniature laboratory in orbit, a battle is set to start between asteroid-like fragments and rock-hungry microbes, to probe their use for space mining in the future.
Space Exploration
Jan 14, 2021
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Building a giant 2-D map of the universe to prepare for the largest 3-D map
Before DESI, the Dark Energy Spectroscopic Instrument, can begin its 5-year mission from an Arizona mountaintop to produce the largest 3-D sky map yet, researchers first needed an even bigger 2-D map of the universe.
Astronomy
Jan 14, 2021
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Galaxies hit single, doubles, and triple (growing black holes)
When three galaxies collide, what happens to the huge black holes at the centers of each? A new study using NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory and several other telescopes reveals new information about how many black holes ...
Astronomy
Jan 14, 2021
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More news

NASA's Juno mission expands into the future

Mars 2020 Perseverance rover to capture sounds from the red planet

A robot made of ice could adapt and repair itself on other worlds

Image: Underwater astronaut training
Other news

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The long-range transport of deconfined magnetic hedgehogs

Synthesis of potent antibiotic follows unusual chemical pathway

Using drones to create local quantum networks

'Babysitters' provide boost to offspring of elderly birds

Researchers find how cells move while avoiding adhesion

Parrots pushed to extinction despite protection policies

Energy from solar wind favors the north

Cheers! French wine, vines headed home after year in space

The obliquity of Mars: Periodic bedding in Tithonium Chasma

SpaceX's next idea: Catch Super Heavy boosters with the launch tower

Image: Frosty scenes in Martian summer

New mathematical model: How dangerous bacteria form colonies

Researchers develop sustainable catalysis process

Phase diagram for infinite layer nickel superconductors

Well-built muscles underlie athletic performance in birds

A trap for nematodes

Surprising new mechanism of heat shock response identified in yeast cells
