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Astronomers spot galaxies trapped in the web of a supermassive black hole

With the help of ESO's Very Large Telescope (VLT), astronomers have found six galaxies lying around a supermassive black hole when the Universe was less than a billion years old.

Oct 1st, 2020

The most sensitive optical receivers yet for space communications

Communications in space demand the most sensitive receivers possible for maximum reach, while also requiring high bit-rate operations. A novel concept for laser-beam based communications uses an almost noiseless optical preamplifier in the receiver.

Oct 1st, 2020

Astronomers find the first galaxy whose ultraviolet luminosity is comparable to that of a quasar

An international scientific team have found the galaxy BOSS-EUVLG1. This is the galaxy with star formation but almost no dust, the most luminous of its type known up to now.

Sep 29th, 2020

Cosmic diamonds formed during gigantic planetary collisions

Geoscientists have now been able to prove that these diamonds formed in the early period of our solar system when minor planets collided together or with large asteroids. These new data disprove the theory that they originated deep inside planets.

Sep 29th, 2020

Second alignment plane of solar system discovered

A study of comet motions indicates that the Solar System has a second alignment plane. This has important implications for models of how comets originally formed in the Solar System.

Sep 29th, 2020

Scientists precisely measure total amount of matter in the universe

A top goal in cosmology is to precisely measure the total amount of matter in the universe, a daunting exercise for even the most mathematically proficient. A research team has now done just that.

Sep 28th, 2020

First study with CHEOPS data describes one of the most extreme planets in the universe

CHEOPS keeps its promise: Observations with the space telescope reveal details of the exoplanet WASP-189b - one of the most extreme planets known.

Sep 28th, 2020

Remnants of an ancient asteroid shed new light on the early solar system

Researchers have shaken up a once accepted timeline for cataclysmic events in the early solar system. It was once thought that this period had a relatively sudden onset, but a research team has found evidence that this bombardment period may have started much earlier, and decreased in intensity over time.

Sep 27th, 2020

Astronomers model, determine how disk galaxies evolve so smoothly

Computer simulations are showing astrophysicists how massive clumps of gas within galaxies scatter some stars from their orbits, eventually creating the smooth, exponential fade in the brightness of many galaxy disks.

Sep 25th, 2020

Pair of massive baby stars swaddled in salty water vapor

Astronomers spotted a pair of massive baby stars growing in salty cosmic soup. Each star is shrouded by a gaseous disk which includes molecules of sodium chloride, commonly known as table salt, and heated water vapor.

Sep 25th, 2020

Gravity causes homogeneity of the universe

Gravity can accelerate the homogenization of space-time as the universe evolves. This insight is based on theoretical studies of a physicist.

Sep 24th, 2020

The ring around the M 87* black hole shadow glitters

In 2019, the Event Horizon Telescope Collaboration delivered the first image of a black hole, revealing M 87* - the supermassive object in the center of M87. Astronomers,have now analyzed archival data sets from 2009-2013, some of them not published before.