Space

Science & Society

The Smithsonian’s ‘Lights Out’ inspires visitors to save the fading night sky

The exhibition examines how light pollution harms astronomy, ecosystems and human cultures. But it also offers hope.

Planetary Science

Venus has almost 50 times as many volcanoes as previously thought

Where are there NOT volcanoes on Venus? A new map of the planet unveils a veritable volcanic bonanza.

Astronomy

A stream of cold gas is unexpectedly feeding the far-off Anthill Galaxy

The finding suggests that early galaxies might have gained more of their bulk from streams of cold gas instead of in violent galaxy collisions.

Planetary Science

Planets without stars might have moons suitable for life

Thanks to gravitational squeezing by their host planets, some moons of rogue planets could stay warm for over a billion years, simulations suggest.

Planetary Science

Baby Jupiter glowed so brightly it might have desiccated its moon

During its infancy, Jupiter may have glowed about 10 thousand times brighter than it does today, which may explain why its moon Io is completely dry.

Astronomy

The biggest planet orbiting TRAPPIST-1 doesn’t appear to have an atmosphere

TRAPPIST-1b is hotter than astronomers expected, suggesting there’s no atmosphere to transport heat around the planet.

Astronomy

A neutron star collision may have emitted a fast radio burst

Astronomers spotted both a fast radio burst and gravitational waves from a cosmic smashup in the same part of the sky and at about the same time.

Math

Here’s a peek into the mathematics of black holes

The universe tells us slowly rotating black holes are stable. A nearly 1,000-page proof confirms it.

Space

‘Off-Earth’ asks how to build a better future in space

As humans prepare to live in space someday, ethics should be as much of guide as science and technology, an astrophysicist argues in a new book.

Space

A crucial building block of life exists on the asteroid Ryugu

A sample from Ryugu collected by Japan’s Hayabusa2 spacecraft contains uracil, a component of RNA, which is found in all living cells.

Astronomy

The mystery of Christiaan Huygens’ flawed telescopes may have been solved

The discovery of Saturn’s largest moon, Titan, may have come despite its discoverer, Christiaan Huygens, needing eyeglasses.

Agriculture

Martian soil may have all the nutrients rice needs

Experiments hint that in the future, we might be able to grow the staple food in the soils of the Red Planet.