Space
We summarize the week's scientific breakthroughs every Thursday.
- Planetary Science
Europa Clipper has launched to solve an alien mystery
Launched October 14, the spacecraft will repeatedly buzz Europa in search of water, energy and organic compounds.
- Space
50 years ago, satellites threatened astronomers’ view of the cosmos
As satellite launches ramp up and the spacecraft clog the skies, astronomers fear for their data.
- Astronomy
Barnard’s star has at least one planet orbiting it after all
After decades of searching, a telltale gravitational wobble points to an exoplanet orbiting the nearby red dwarf every 3.15 days.
- Astronomy
Betelgeuse has a tiny companion star hidden in plain sight
Betelgeuse has a sequel — in the form of a companion star that's about the same mass as the sun, orbiting it about once every 2,100 days.
- Astronomy
Starlink satellites’ leaky radio waves obscure the cosmos
Starlink satellites unintentionally emit radio waves that appear more than 10 million times brighter than natural sources, as seen by ground-based radio telescopes.
- Physics
X-rays from nuclear blasts could defend Earth from asteroids
The X-ray pulses could deflect asteroids up to 4 kilometers wide, a new study suggests.
- Cosmology
How did dark matter shape the universe? This physicist has ideas
Theoretical physicist Tracy Slatyer proposes new scenarios for dark matter and helped discover the Fermi bubbles.
- Particle Physics
A neutrino mass mismatch could shake cosmology’s foundations
Cosmological data suggest unexpected masses for neutrinos, including the possibility of zero or negative mass.
- Space
Meet Porphyrion, the largest pair of black hole jets ever seen
The two plasma fountains, spanning 23 million light-years, could shape cosmic structures far beyond their home galaxy.
- Physics
How to spot tiny black holes that might pass through the solar system
Flybys of primordial black holes may occur once a decade. Tweaks to the orbits of planets and GPS satellites could give away their presence.
- Space
How a dying star is similar to a lava lamp
In a first, astronomers captured how convective forces power the quick bubbling movement of gas cells on the surface of a distant, massive star.
- Planetary Science
Scientists find a long-sought electric field in Earth’s atmosphere
The Earth’s ambipolar electric field is weak but strong enough to control the shape and evolution of the upper atmosphere.
