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'Monster' planet discovery challenges formation theory

NGTS-1b is the largest planet compared to the size of its companion star ever discovered in universe and contradicts theories that a planet of this size could not be formed by such a small star.

October 31, 2017 Read more

Monster colliding black holes might lurk on the edge of spiral galaxies

The outskirts of spiral galaxies like our own could be crowded with colliding black holes of massive proportions and a prime location for scientists hunting the sources of gravitational waves.

October 30, 2017 Read more

Jupiter's X-ray auroras pulse independently

Jupiter's intense northern and southern lights pulse independently of each other according to new research using ESA's XMM-Newton and NASA's Chandra X-ray observatories.

October 30, 2017 Read more

Scientist devises a solar reactor to make water and oxygen from moon rocks

An aerospace engineer has built a machine to make water and oxygen from the lunar regolith, powered by solar energy.

October 27, 2017 Read more

Scientists detect comets outside our solar system

Team of professional and citizen scientists identifies tails of comets streaking past a distant star.

October 26, 2017 Read more

Dark matter: The mystery substance physics still can't identify that makes up the majority of our universe

One of the most vexing gets at the heart of what our universe is actually made of. Cosmological observations have determined the average density of matter in our universe to very high precision. But this density turns out to be much greater than can be accounted for with ordinary atoms.

October 25, 2017 Read more

Revealing galactic secrets

Captured using the exceptional sky-surveying abilities of the VLT Survey Telescope (VST) at ESO's Paranal Observatory in Chile, this deep view reveals the secrets of the luminous members of the Fornax Cluster, one of the richest and closest galaxy clusters to the Milky Way.

October 25, 2017 Read more

Spots on supergiant star drive spirals in stellar wind

An international team of astronomers recently discovered that spots on the surface of a supergiant star are driving huge spiral structures in its stellar wind.

October 24, 2017 Read more

Tiny tornados at the dawn of the universe

Swirling soup of matter's fundamental building blocks spins ten billion trillion times faster than the most powerful tornado, setting new record for 'vorticity'.

October 23, 2017 Read more

To keep Saturn's A ring contained, its moons stand united

For three decades, astronomers thought that only Saturn's moon Janus confined the planet's A ring -- the largest and farthest of the visible rings. But after poring over NASA's Cassini mission data, astronomers now conclude that the teamwork of seven moons keeps this ring corralled.

October 17, 2017 Read more

Gold origin confirmed with first ever gravitational wave sighting

Collision created large amounts of the heaviest elements, such as gold, platinum and uranium, pumping them into space and unlocking the mystery of how they are formed.

October 16, 2017 Read more

A gamma ray burst observed in unprecedented detail

A new study with observations from the robotic telescope MASTER-IAC at the Teide Observatory will help to clear up some unknown factors in the initial phase.

October 13, 2017 Read more

Jupiter's volcano-powered auroral lights

NASA's Juno spacecraft has helped explain how volcanoes on the moon Io spew particles that are flung out by Jupiter's magnetic field, before rebounding back. A high-speed atmospheric encounter on the return leg creates the Red Giant's once mysterious transient auroras.

October 13, 2017 Read more