Astronomy
- Astronomy
3 explanations for ‘Oumuamua that aren’t alien spaceships
Astronomers are coming up with some creative ideas to explain the weird behavior of the first known interstellar object.
- Astronomy
Colliding neutron stars shot a light-speed jet through space
A stream of particles created in a neutron star crash, detected in 2017 using gravitational waves, could explain certain mysterious flashes of light.
- Physics
Supernovas show the universe expands at the same rate in all directions
Analyzing supernovas indicates that expansion rates agree within 1 percent across large regions of sky.
- Quantum Physics
LIGO will be getting a quantum upgrade
Quantum squeezing of light will help scientists make better gravitational wave detectors.
- Artificial Intelligence
Readers marvel at AI, space missions and wombat poop
Readers had comments and questions about defining artificial intelligence, the New Horizons space mission and more.
- Astronomy
Ultima Thule is shaped like two lumpy pancakes
Scientists are rethinking the shape of the space rock, once thought to be a snowman.
- Astronomy
A space rock collision may explain how this exoplanet was born
Simulations suggest a planet roughly 2,000 light-years away formed when two space rocks collided, supporting the idea that such events are universal.
- Space
It’s time to start taking the search for E.T. seriously, astronomers say
Astronomers are hoping to make looking for alien technology an official science goal of NASA.
- Planetary Science
Ring ripples reveal how long a day lasts on Saturn
Clues in Saturn’s rings divulge the planet’s rotation rate: 10 hours, 33 minutes, 38 seconds.
- Physics
A new gravitational wave detector is almost ready to join the search
Buried deep underground, Japan’s KAGRA detector relies on components cooled to just 20 degrees above absolute zero.
- Astronomy
The first suspected exomoon may remain hidden for another decade
The discoverers of the first evidence for a moon orbiting a planet around a distant star are still trying to confirm the object’s existence.
- Cosmology
A cosmic flare called the ‘Cow’ may reveal a new way that stars die
A burst of light from far away may have been an odd type of exploding star or a white dwarf being eaten by a black hole.
