Space
New search methods are ramping up the hunt for alien intelligence
Six decades of radio silence hasn’t stopped scientists searching for intelligent life beyond Earth. In fact, new technologies are boosting efforts.
Space
More Stories in Space
-
SpaceSaturn’s auroras may explain the planet’s weirdly hot upper atmosphere
Data from NASA’s Cassini spacecraft could help solve Saturn’s mysterious “energy crisis.”
-
Quantum PhysicsQuantum mechanics means some black hole orbits are impossible to predict
Computer simulations reveal that foreseeing the paths of three orbiting objects sometimes requires precision better than the quantum limit.
-
SpaceQuasar winds with record energy levels were seen fleeing a distant galaxy
The Hubble Space Telescope has seen the most energetic quasar winds yet, showing these active black holes can blow star-forming gas out of galaxies.
-
Planetary ScienceIf Pluto has a subsurface ocean, it may be old and deep
New analyses of images from NASA’s New Horizons spacecraft suggest that Pluto may have had a sea beneath its icy shell for roughly 4.5 billion years.
-
SpaceA controversial X-ray glow didn’t show up in the Milky Way’s dark matter halo
A new look at old data suggests that an odd X-ray glow that emanates from some galaxies cannot come from decaying dark matter.
-
SpaceAstronomers have found the edge of the Milky Way at last
Computer simulations and observations of nearby galaxies let astrophysicists put a firm number on the Milky Way's size.
-
PhysicsNew telescopes could help spot ‘photon ring’ of the first black hole ever imaged
Expanding the Event Horizon Telescope by adding telescopes in space could help capture the rings around galaxy M87’s supermassive black hole.
-
PhysicsHow slime mold helped scientists map out the cosmic web
Tapping a similarity between a slime mold’s lacy web and the vast threads of matter that connect galaxies, astronomers visualized the cosmic web.
-
Planetary ScienceThe asteroid Ryugu has a texture like freeze-dried coffee
Only about half of the asteroid Ryugu is rock; the rest is airy holes, a finding that could help reveal details of how the planets formed.