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  1. Astronomy

    Pulsar ages may need refiguring

    New images taken by the Chandra X-ray Observatory confirm that a known pulsar, a rapidly spinning neutron star, was born in a supernova explosion that Chinese astronomers witnessed in 386 A.D. and call into question how astronomers traditionally compute the ages of pulsars.

    By Ron Cowen
  2. Astronomy

    Cloudy puzzle on Uranus

    Astronomers can’t explain the seemingly ephemeral nature of bright clouds seen on the northernmost sunlit edge of Uranus.

    By Ron Cowen
  3. Physics

    Voltage flip turns magnetism on, off

    Researchers in Japan have made a material whose inherent magnetism can be turned off and on electrically, as long as the material, a novel semiconductor, stays ultracold.