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Astronomy news
Fast radio burst confirmed to originate from neutron star
Fast radio bursts (FRBs) are notoriously difficult to study. They are flashes of radio light that can outshine a galaxy but often last for only a fraction of a second. For years, all we could do was observe them by random ...
Astronomy
1 hour ago
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Video: See and hear three years of solar fireworks
At the start of this new year, we look back at close-up pictures and solar flare data recorded by the ESA-led Solar Orbiter mission over the last three years. See and hear for yourself how the number of flares and their intensity ...
Astronomy
3 hours ago
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Astronomers map globular clusters in the NGC 5018 galaxy group
Using the VLT Survey Telescope (VST), astronomers from Italy and Germany have observed a group of galaxies designated NGC 5018. Results of the observational campaign, published Dec. 23 on the pre-print server arXiv, yield ...
A treasure trove of unseen stars beyond the 'Dragon Arc'
Looking halfway across the observable universe and expecting to see individual stars is considered a non-starter in astronomy, a bit like raising a pair of binoculars at the moon in hopes of making out individual grains of ...
Astronomy
7 hours ago
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Carbon in our bodies likely left galaxy and came back on cosmic 'conveyer belt'
Life on Earth could not exist without carbon. But carbon itself could not exist without stars. Nearly all elements except hydrogen and helium—including carbon, oxygen and iron—only exist because they were forged in stellar ...
Astronomy
Jan 3, 2025
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Hubble captures a pale blue supernova in galaxy LEDA 22057
This NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope Picture of the Week features the galaxy LEDA 22057, which is located about 650 million light-years away in the constellation Gemini. Like the subject of a previous Picture of the Week, ...
Astronomy
Jan 3, 2025
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Scientists detect mysterious suppression in cosmic structure growth
A new study in published in Physical Review Letters analyzes the most complete set of galaxy clustering data to test the ΛCDM model, revealing discrepancies in the formation of cosmic structures in the universe, hinting ...
Two luminous flares detected from a nearby tidal disruption event
A group of astronomers from numerous institutions have investigated a recently discovered nearby tidal disruption event known as ASASSN-22ci. They detected two luminous flares from this event. The finding was reported in ...
Unusual binary system hosts a massive fast-spinning white dwarf
In a recent study, an Italian astronomer has investigated the nature of a binary system known as HD 49798/RX J0648.0–4418. Results of the new research, published Dec. 24 on the preprint server arXiv, yield important insights ...
Dark energy camera captures the glittering galaxies of the Antlia Cluster
NSF NOIRLab rings in the New Year with a glittering galaxyscape captured with the Department of Energy-fabricated Dark Energy Camera, mounted on the U.S. National Science Foundation Víctor M. Blanco 4-meter Telescope at ...
Astronomy
Jan 1, 2025
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Scientists pin down the origins of a fast radio burst
Fast radio bursts are brief and brilliant explosions of radio waves emitted by extremely compact objects such as neutron stars and possibly black holes. These fleeting fireworks last for just a thousandth of a second and ...
Astronomy
Jan 1, 2025
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German astronomers discover three new hydrogen-deficient pre-white dwarfs
Using the X-shooter instrument at ESO's Very Large Telescope (VLT), German astronomers have detected three new pre-white dwarfs, which turned out to be strongly hydrogen-deficient. The finding was reported in a research paper ...
New method traces molecular gas mass in distant galaxies
Prof. Zhao Yinghe from the Yunnan Observatories of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, along with collaborators, have conducted a study examining the correlation between the [C II] 158 micron emission and the CO(1-0) line. Their ...
Astronomy
Dec 31, 2024
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Observers investigate a nearby galaxy cluster merger
Using the Very Large Array (VLA), an international team of astronomers have observed a nearby galaxy merger known as CIZA J0107.7+5408. Results of the observational campaign, presented December 20 on the preprint server arXiv, ...
From dead galaxies to mysterious red dots, here's what the James Webb Telescope has found in just 3 years
On this day three years ago, we witnessed the nail-biting launch of the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST), the largest and most powerful telescope humans have ever sent into space.
Astronomy
Dec 28, 2024
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Astronomers discover an ultra-massive grand-design spiral galaxy
Using the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST), an international team of astronomers has detected a new grand-design spiral galaxy as part of the PANORAMIC survey. The newfound galaxy, named Zhúlóng, is extremely massive and ...
Study sheds more light on the nature of compact symmetric object DA 362
Indian astronomers have performed a multiwavelength study of a gamma-ray emitting compact symmetric object known as DA 362. Results of the study, presented in a research paper published December 17 on the pre-print server ...
Researchers reveal changes in geometry and kinematics of the broad-line region in active galactic nuclei
Dr. Feng Haicheng from the Yunnan Observatories of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, along with his collaborators, has made progress in studying the geometrical and kinematical evolution of the broad-line region (BLR) in active ...
Astronomy
Dec 27, 2024
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In Disney's 'Moana,' the characters navigate using the stars—an astronomer explains how these methods work
If you have visited an island like one of the Hawaiian Islands, Tahiti or Easter Island, also known as Rapa Nui, you may have noticed how small these land masses appear against the vast Pacific Ocean. If you're on Hawaii, ...
Astronomy
Dec 25, 2024
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Image: The twin galaxies NGC 4496A and NGC 4496B
NGC 4496 in the constellation Virgo consists of two spiral galaxies, NGC 4496A (upper large galaxy) and NGC 4496B (lower galaxy). They are in the same line of sight from Earth but located at quite different distances, and ...
Astronomy
Dec 24, 2024
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