Space
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Astronomy
Outlier Planet: Extrasolar places that are like home
A team of veteran hunters of planets outside the solar system has come up with a landmark finding: a Jupiterlike planet orbiting a Sunlike star at a Jupiterlike distance.
By Ron Cowen -
Astronomy
X-ray Data Reveal Black Holes Galore
Using a sensitive, new X-ray telescope, astronomers have identified the origin of the high-energy part of the X-ray background and found that supermassive black holes at the cores of galaxies are far more numerous than visible-light surveys indicate.
By Ron Cowen -
Astronomy
Seeing Red: A cool revival of Hubble’s infrared camera
New images provide a graphic demonstration that the Hubble Space Telescope's infrared vision has been restored.
By Ron Cowen -
Astronomy
Rare Find: Odd type of ammonia detected in space
The discovery of deuterated ammonia in space could help astronomers better understand the complex chemistry of dark clouds in star-forming regions.
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Planetary Science
Odyssey’s Homer: Hints of water near both poles of Mars
Sensors on board the Mars Odyssey spacecraft have spied strong signs of ice buried near both poles of the Red Planet, exactly the regions where scientists previously had said that such frozen water deposits could exist.
By Sid Perkins -
Astronomy
A Dark View of the Universe
Two new studies suggest that galaxies may be surrounded by vast halos of dark matter extending at least 1.5 million light-years from each galaxy's center.
By Ron Cowen -
Astronomy
Cosmic Dawn
New computer simulations suggest that the first stars in the universe were extremely massive and left behind gamma-ray bursts that may already have been detected by telescopes orbiting Earth.
By Ron Cowen -
Astronomy
More evidence for a revved-up universe
By studying the clustering pattern of galaxies, astronomers have obtained additional evidence that cosmic expansion is accelerating.
By Ron Cowen -
Planetary Science
Hard bodies pair off
About one out of every eight asteroids traveling near Earth has a rocky companion.
By Ron Cowen -
Astronomy
Heavenly Taffy: Galaxies in collision
Astronomers have discovered a pair of colliding galaxies connected by a bridge of high-speed electrons and elongated magnetic fields.
By Ron Cowen -
Astronomy
Physics-astronomy merger wins big
A new report recommends fostering the extraordinary collaboration taking place between particle physics and astronomy.
By Peter Weiss -
Astronomy
Sharper Images: New Hubble camera goes the distance
Astronomers have unveiled a picture of the distant universe that ranks as the sharpest and most detailed ever recorded.
By Ron Cowen