FCC approves first launch for space reflector constellation
Reflect Orbital moves ahead with the company's first Eärendil launch amid concerns from the astronomical community.
Astronomy
Jul 17, 2026
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Astronomy news
Webb telescope discovers hidden planet in famous star system
Astronomers using NASA's James Webb Space Telescope have discovered a giant planet outside our solar system, called an exoplanet, hiding within one of the most intensely studied planetary systems in the Milky Way galaxy.
Astronomy
Jul 16, 2026
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211
Listening to 'ringing' black holes unlocks future gravitational-wave astronomy
Listening to the "ringing" produced by black holes after they collide and merge could allow scientists to test Einstein's theory of general relativity under the most extreme conditions in the universe while unlocking the ...
Astronomy
Jul 16, 2026
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111
The starry night redux: Dark energy camera captures stars, nebulae, clusters, and more in a rich, van Gogh-esque scene
The 570-megapixel Department of Energy-fabricated Dark Energy Camera (DECam) captures a vibrant scene filled with swirls and stars reminiscent of Van Gogh's The Starry Night. This new cosmic masterpiece features the glowing ...
Astronomy
Jul 16, 2026
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A new stellar census strengthens the case for a 13.8-billion-year-old universe
Astronomers have used the ages of more than 155,000 stars in the Milky Way to independently estimate the age of the universe, and their findings may be good news for the standard cosmological model. The new research was reported ...
Asteroid with unexplained orbital shift turns out to be a 'dark comet'
Typically, astronomers identify comets by their distinct atmospheres, or comae, and their tails, which are created as the sun vaporizes a comet's ice. These features emit a glow when sunlight bounces off dust and water droplets. ...
GRS 0917+75 is a giant radio galaxy, observations find
European astronomers have conducted optical and radio observations of an enigmatic radio source designated GRS 0917+75. As a result, they found that GRS 0917+75 is a giant radio galaxy and determined its properties. The new ...
Faintest planet ever imaged from Earth found after more than 10 years of hide-and-seek
A team of astronomers has discovered a third planet orbiting the star Beta Pictoris. The new planet, Beta Pictoris d, is 100 times fainter than Beta Pictoris b—the first planet discovered in the same system—and is among the ...
Astronomy
Jul 15, 2026
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To measure a black hole's ultimate spin, we have to go to space
Despite their depiction as massive monsters that simply suck in everything, including light, astronomers know black holes actually spin. And they spin really, really quickly. Determining just how quickly is key to understanding ...
Astronomy
Jul 15, 2026
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Spiral arms and bars are galactic fuel pumps for star formation
Peak star formation took place during cosmic noon, between 2–3 billion years after the Big Bang. The star formation rate (SFR) back then was up to 100 times greater than it is today. For the SFR to be so high, gas had to ...
Astronomy
Jul 15, 2026
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