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Astronomy & Space news
Study reports the first detection of a sugar in interstellar space
Sugars are key biomolecules in living organisms, as they form the backbone of DNA and RNA and play a fundamental role in metabolic processes. In theories of the origin of life, sugars are also essential for the synthesis ...
Astronomy
1 hour ago
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Quantum-gravitational mechanism could explain the universe's homogeneity
Our universe is known to be remarkably homogeneous and isotropic. This essentially means that matter is distributed evenly throughout the universe and that it looks almost the same in all directions.
The US just approved a giant space mirror to test 'sunlight on demand.' Low Earth orbit is getting weird
A giant mirror to create "sunlight on demand" was just approved by the United States Federal Communications Commission (FCC), despite opposition from astronomers and the public, and real safety concerns.
Space Exploration
1 hour ago
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Gravitational waves reveal hidden populations within black hole mergers
Since gravitational waves were first detected in 2015, instruments including LIGO, Virgo and KAGRA have picked up a steady stream of signals from colliding black holes, building a catalog that now numbers in the hundreds. ...
Oldest quasars ever discovered add to 'perplexing' space mystery
The Euclid space telescope has spotted the oldest quasars—the brightest objects in the universe—ever discovered, deepening a cosmic mystery that has been puzzling scientists.
Astronomy
Jul 12, 2026
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Could permanent magnets protect astronauts from solar storms?
Shielding astronauts from the deadly radiation they face is a central challenge for any designer of a deep-space crewed mission. Even relatively low levels of exposure over long periods can lead to everything from central ...
Space Exploration
Jul 11, 2026
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X-ray tracking reveals uneven expansion in young supernova remnant G292.0+1.8
By analyzing data from NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory, Dutch astronomers have investigated a young, oxygen-rich supernova remnant known as G292.0+1.8. Results of the new study, published June 29 on the arXiv preprint server, ...
Japan's space agency conducts first test flight for experimental reusable rocket
Japan's experimental reusable rocket took off and safely landed in a first test flight Saturday as the country seeks to achieve the technology key to cut launch costs and compete in the global space market dominated by SpaceX.
Space Exploration
Jul 11, 2026
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Capturing the cosmic 'drift' before a star is born
Stars like our sun are formed from the collapse of stellar objects called prestellar cores, cold and dense concentrations of gas and dust held together by gravity. While many questions remain about the exact mechanisms of ...
Astronomy
Jul 10, 2026
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Warm Jupiter exoplanet transiting a sun-like star discovered
An international team of astronomers reports the discovery of a new exoplanet orbiting a sunlike star as part of the Next Generation Transit Survey (NGTS). The newfound alien world, designated NGTS-39 b, is a Jupiter-sized ...
Could exoplanets locked in eternal day and endless night support life?
Ever so slightly bigger than Earth, the exoplanet LHS 3844b orbits its parent star, LHS 3844, a red dwarf 48.5 light-years from our solar system. Its rotational speed mirrors its orbital speed. The result? One side of LHS ...
Astrobiology
Jul 10, 2026
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NASA space telescope maps magnetic fields of 'Lighthouse' pulsar
For the first time, scientists have used NASA's IXPE (Imaging X-ray Polarimetry Explorer) to directly measure the magnetic fields of PSR J1101−6101, a pulsar located within what is often referred to as the Lighthouse Nebula. ...
Astronomy
Jul 10, 2026
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China takes a page from SpaceX and recaptures the first stage of a rocket to reuse it
China successfully recaptured the first stage of a rocket after a launch on Friday in a breakthrough for the country's space program, state media said.
Space Exploration
Jul 10, 2026
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Astronomers reveal how clouds shape the hidden interiors of the galaxy's most common planets
Sub-Neptunes are the most common type of planet in our galaxy. Bigger than Earth but smaller than Neptune, these worlds remain deeply mysterious because scientists still do not know what they are made of. What astronomers ...
Astronomy
Jul 10, 2026
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To ancient astronomers, Theta Eridani was brighter for 1,000 years—now we know why
There's a bit of a historical mystery surrounding the star Theta Eridani. Ptolemy in the second century A.D. and al-Sufi in A.D. 964 both recorded Theta Eridani as one of the 13 brightest stars in the sky. Hipparchus may ...
Astronomy
Jul 10, 2026
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Wally Funk, aviation pioneer who was the oldest woman to travel into space, dies at 87
Wally Funk, an aviation pioneer who was the oldest woman to launch into space, has died. She was 87.
Space Exploration
Jul 10, 2026
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Image: Curiosity rover sees Martian sulfur up close
This close-up view shows fragments of sulfur crystals, the first ever seen on the Red Planet.
Planetary Sciences
Jul 9, 2026
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Observing oscillations, flares and tornados on the sun
For six and a half days in July 2024, the balloon-borne solar observatory Sunrise III kept its gaze fixed on the sun. The stratospheric flight, which stretched from the northernmost tip of Sweden to Canada's Northwest Territories, ...
Astronomy
Jul 9, 2026
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The ghost in Orion's shell: Hydrogen maps show repeated stellar feedback sculpted around Orion Nebula
An international team led by Juan Diego Soler at the University of Vienna used two of the world's most powerful radio telescopes to uncover previously hidden structures within the Orion Nebula. The project produced the sharpest ...
Astronomy
Jul 9, 2026
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Newborn stars preserve organic-rich gas within ancient supernova debris
For the first time, astronomers have discovered stellar cocoons rich in complex organic molecules within a supernova remnant. A research team from Niigata University, Gifu University, RIKEN and Kyoto University in Japan used ...
Astronomy
Jul 9, 2026
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Atomic‐scale tracing of lithium trapped in copper current collectors
Galaxy mergers aren't always obvious
Japan releases snowman-like asteroid image after flyby
New imaging method offers fresh insight into LED materials
