379 results
- Space
Phosphine gas found in Venus’ atmosphere may be ‘a possible sign of life’
Astronomers have detected a stinky, toxic gas in Venus’ clouds that could be a sign of life, or some strange unknown chemistry.
- Space
How 2019’s space missions explored distant worlds
Planets and asteroids and Arrokoth, oh my. Space probes had a busy year.
- Physics
Physics Nobel awarded for discoveries about the universe’s evolution and exoplanets
Three scientists share the 2019 Nobel Prize in physics for revealing what makes up our cosmos and for finding the first planet orbiting a sunlike star.
- Astronomy
This may be the first known exoplanet with rain and clouds of water droplets
For the first time, astronomers have detected water vapor and possibly signs of clouds and even rain in the air of a potentially habitable exoplanet.
- Astronomy
Arecibo Observatory, an ‘icon of Puerto Rican science,’ will be demolished
The telescope, known for cameos in moves like Contact and for fast radio burst observations, was feared to be on the verge of collapse.
- Science & Society
How our SN 10 scientists have responded to tumultuous times
COVID-19, social justice movements and the realities of climate change have given our Scientists to Watch new perspective.
- Space
Why just being in the habitable zone doesn’t make exoplanets livable
A reignited debate over whether a new planet is habitable highlights the difficult science of seeking alien life.
- Science & Society
These science claims from 2019 could be big deals — if true
Some of this year’s most tantalizing scientific finds aren’t yet ready for a “best of” list.
- Astronomy
The sun is less magnetically active than similar stars, and we don’t know why
Why our star seems so different from its stellar kin is a mystery.
- Space
Flat spots on Saturn’s moon Titan may be the floors of ancient lake beds
Bright radio signals from Titan indicate the presence of ancient lake beds in its tropics, a new analysis finds.
- Astronomy
TESS has found the first-ever ‘ultrahot Neptune’
NASA’s TESS telescope has spotted a world that could be a bridge between other types of exoplanets: hot Jupiters and scorched Earths.
- Space
Stunning images of swirling gas and dust may show a planet forming
Infrared images show a spiral of gas and dust around a star 520 light-years away. A smaller, tantalizing twist hints at where a planet is coalescing.
