Space

  1. Six images from the James Webb Space Telescope with three on top and three on the bottom. Each shows a different bright, red, dot that is a galaxy.
    Astronomy

    The James Webb telescope found six galaxies that may be too hefty for their age

    The galaxies formed in the universe’s first 700 million years and may be up to 100 times more massive than predicted.

    By Lisa Grossman
  2. NASA Rover Perseverance takes a selfie on Mars
    Space

    What has Perseverance found in two years on Mars?

    NASA's Perseverance rover has turned up volcanic rocks, signs of flowing water and some of the materials necessary for life.

    By Liz Kruesi
  3. An illustration of the James Webb Space Telescope deployed in space.
    Astronomy

    The James Webb telescope spotted the earliest known ‘quenched’ galaxy

    A galaxy dubbed GS-9209 ceased forming stars more than 12.5 billion years ago after a 200-million-year-long sprint.

    By Lisa Grossman
  4. An illustration of the dwarf planet Quaoar.
    Astronomy

    The Kuiper Belt’s dwarf planet Quaoar hosts an impossible ring

    Quaoar’s ring lies outside the Roche limit, an imaginary line beyond which rings aren’t thought to be stable.

    By Lisa Grossman
  5. A photo of a giant, 3,200-year-old statue of King Ramses II inside the Grand Egyptian Museum with constructions workers milling about.
    Science & Society

    Here are 7 new science museums and exhibitions to visit in 2023

    The Grand Egyptian Museum is slated to open, as well as new exhibitions dedicated to space travel, the Galápagos Islands and more.

    By Erin Wayman
  6. An illustration of the Kepler-35 system with a planet in the foreground and two stars in the background.
    Astronomy

    Lots of Tatooine-like planets around binary stars may be habitable

    A new simulation suggests that planets orbiting a pair of stars may be plentiful, and many of those worlds could be suitable for life.

    By James R. Riordon
  7. aerial photo of San Francisco at night
    Astronomy

    New data show how quickly light pollution is obscuring the night sky

    Tens of thousands of observations from citizen scientists spanning a decade show that the night sky is getting about 10 percent brighter every year.

    By Lisa Grossman
  8. A chain of craters on Enceladus looks like a Saturnian snowman.
    Planetary Science

    Enceladus is blanketed in a thick layer of snow

    Pits on the Saturnian moon reveal the surprising depth of the satellite’s snow, suggesting its plume was more active in the past.

    By Lisa Grossman
  9. The James Webb Space Telescope’s first image captured three “Green Pea” galaxies in the early universe (circled in green). The galaxies’ light has been stretched by the expansion of the universe, making them appear red.
    Astronomy

    The James Webb telescope found ‘Green Pea’ galaxies in the early universe

    The James Webb telescope spotted tiny “green” galaxies that might have helped trigger a dramatic cosmic makeover more than 13 billion years ago.

    By Lisa Grossman
  10. An illustration of an exoplanet passing in front of a star.
    Planetary Science

    Methylated gases could be an unambiguous indicator of alien life

    On Earth, methylated gases are produced by organisms cleaning up their environment — and by little else. The same might be true on some exoplanets.

    By James R. Riordon
  11. An illustration of green and white dots that make up a wormhole tunnel with a spaceship heading into the middle
    Physics

    We could get messages back from spacecraft sent through a wormhole

    A simulation of a probe sent to the other side of a wormhole shows it could send speedy messages back before the hole closes and the probe is lost.

    By James R. Riordon
  12. A volcano erupts (blue) on Jupiter’s innermost moon, Io, in this picture from NASA’s Galileo spacecraft.
    Space

    Io may have an underworld magma ocean or a hot metal heart

    New calculations support dueling ideas for what powers the ubiquitous volcanoes on the hellish surface of Jupiter’s innermost moon.

    By Nikk Ogasa