Space
A supermassive black hole shredded a star and was caught in the act
Astronomers have gotten the earliest glimpse yet of a black hole ripping up a star, a process known as a tidal disruption event.
Astronomy
More Stories in Astronomy
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SpaceWhy 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.
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SpaceA new image reveals the structure of the cosmic web
Newly spotted tendrils of gas within a forming cluster of galaxies support scientists’ theory of the cosmos.
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SpaceNASA’s new black hole visualizations showcase how gravity warps light
Images from computer simulations highlight how the extreme gravity of a black hole tampers with light rays emanating from its accretion disk to create weird patterns.
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SpaceThis fast radio burst shined a light on a galaxy’s mysterious gas halo
A lucky alignment let astronomers probe one galaxy’s diffuse gas using a brief, bright blast from a more distant galaxy.
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AstronomyHow an astrophysicist chased a star from the Halo games to real life
Julián Alvarado Gómez has devoted his career to a star called Iota Horologii. His former life as a Halo video gamer helps fuel that devotion.
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SpaceThe Milky Way’s supermassive black hole reached record brightness this year
The big black hole at the center of the galaxy recently flared twice as bright as ever seen before in near-infrared wavelengths.
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AstronomyThis 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.
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AstronomyGiant radio bubbles spew from near the Milky Way’s central black hole
New structures found at the heart of our galaxy join other bubbles, chimneys and filaments that hint at a turbulent past.
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SpaceEinstein’s general relativity reveals new features of a pulsar
Measurements that rely on the physicist’s theory of gravity are letting astronomers view a pulsar in ‘a whole new way.’