The Milky Way's middle-aged inner ring

Using a combination of observed stars and a realistic model of the Milky Way, scientists at the Max Planck Institute for Extraterrestrial Physics have found a new structure in our home galaxy. Just outside the galactic bar, ...

NASA finalizes plans for its next cosmic mapmaker

NASA's upcoming SPHEREx mission will have some similarities with the James Webb Space Telescope. But the two observatories will take dramatically different approaches to studying the sky.

Light derails electrons through graphene

The way electrons flow in a material determines its electronic properties. For example, when a voltage is sustained across a conducting material, electrons start flowing, generating an electrical current. These electrons ...

Still searching for Planet 9

The solar system has eight planets. In 2006, astronomers reclassified Pluto as a dwarf planet, the same class that contains Eris, Sedna, Quaoar, Ceres and perhaps many more solar system small bodies. These are defined approximately ...

The unfolding story of a kilonova told in X-rays

Astronomers may have detected a "sonic boom" from a powerful blast known as a kilonova. This event was seen in GW170817, a merger of two neutron stars and the first object detected in both gravitational waves and electromagnetic ...

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