Astronomy news

Exoplanets Clue to Sun's Curious Chemistry

Exoplanets Clue to Sun's Curious Chemistry

Space & Earth / Astronomy

created Nov 11, 2009 | popularity 4.6 / 5 (21) | comments 15

(PhysOrg.com) -- A ground-breaking census of 500 stars, 70 of which are known to host planets, has successfully linked the long-standing "lithium mystery" observed in the Sun to the presence of planetary systems. ...


A faraway planet intrigues: Exoplanet with extremely tilted orbit raises new interest in stellar astronomy

A faraway planet intrigues: Exoplanet with extremely tilted orbit raises new interest in stellar astronomy

Space & Earth / Astronomy

created Nov 12, 2009 | popularity 4.5 / 5 (12) | comments 6

(PhysOrg.com) -- Two teams of astronomers have found a planet outside the solar system that might be orbiting backwards compared to its star's rotation, a discovery that could shed light on how unique the ...


Maps Unveil the Source of Starburst Galaxy's Winds

Maps Unveil the Source of Starburst Galaxy's Winds

Space & Earth / Astronomy

created Nov 18, 2009 | popularity 5 / 5 (8) | comments 0

(PhysOrg.com) -- A research group at Kyoto University has discovered that shocks are the primary energy sources that excite the galactic wind region of starburst galaxy NGC 253. Their images of the center ...


Hunting for Planets in the Dark

Hunting for Planets in the Dark

Space & Earth / Astronomy

created Nov 19, 2009 | popularity 4.8 / 5 (5) | comments 5

A proposed space mission that aims to measure dark energy could also detect planets that current surveys are unable to find.


The Crab Nebula: A Cosmic Icon

The Crab Nebula: Energy for 100,000 Suns

Space & Earth / Astronomy

created Nov 23, 2009 | popularity 4 / 5 (9) | comments 1

(PhysOrg.com) -- A star's spectacular death in the constellation Taurus was observed on Earth as the supernova of 1054 A.D.


Subaru Telescope Spots Strange Spin

Discovery of a Retrograde or Highly Tilted Extrasolar Planet

Space & Earth / Astronomy

created Nov 18, 2009 | popularity 4.8 / 5 (6) | comments 1

Astronomers have found that the extrasolar planet HAT-P-7b has a retrograde or highly tilted orbit. Studying such planets is important in understanding the diversity of planetary systems and assessing current ...


NASA's Wise Gets Ready to Survey the Whole Sky

NASA's Wise Gets Ready to Survey the Whole Sky (w/ Video)

Space & Earth / Astronomy

created Nov 17, 2009 | popularity 4.8 / 5 (6) | comments 0

(PhysOrg.com) -- NASA's Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer, or Wise, is chilled out, sporting a sunshade and getting ready to roll. NASA's newest spacecraft is scheduled to roll to the pad on Friday, Nov. ...


Rapid supernova could be new class of exploding star

Rapid supernova could be new class of exploding star

Space & Earth / Astronomy

created Nov 05, 2009 | popularity 4.7 / 5 (18) | comments 6

(PhysOrg.com) -- An unusual supernova rediscovered in seven-year-old data may be the first example of a new type of exploding star, possibly from a binary star system where helium flows from one white dwarf ...


Carbon atmosphere discovered on neutron star

Carbon Atmosphere Discovered on Neutron Star

Space & Earth / Astronomy

created Nov 04, 2009 | popularity 4.7 / 5 (19) | comments 1

(PhysOrg.com) -- Evidence for a thin veil of carbon has been found on the neutron star in the Cassiopeia A supernova remnant. This discovery, made with NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory, resolves a ten-year ...


High-precision measurements confirm cosmologists' standard view of the universe

Precise picture of early Universe supports 'dark matter' theory

Space & Earth / Astronomy

created Nov 02, 2009 | popularity 4.8 / 5 (17) | comments 9

A detailed picture of the seeds of structures in the universe has been unveiled by an international team co-led by a Cardiff University scientist.


Mysterious X-rays from a Nearby Galaxy

Mysterious X-rays from a Nearby Galaxy

Space & Earth / Astronomy

created Nov 13, 2009 | popularity 4.3 / 5 (15) | comments 8

(PhysOrg.com) -- The nucleus of an active galaxy, an AGN, contains a massive black hole that is vigorously accreting material. In the process it typically ejects jets of particles and radiates brightly at ...


Research gives new insights into 4 billion year-old meteorites

Research gives new insights into 4 billion year-old meteorites

Space & Earth / Astronomy

created Nov 12, 2009 | popularity 5 / 5 (3) | comments 1

(PhysOrg.com) -- Scientists have gained new insight into the makeup of ancient meteorites called Carbonaceous Chondrites, in research published in the October edition of the journal Earth Science and Planetary Le ...


3 Questions: Sara Seager on searching for Earth-like planets

3 Questions: Sara Seager on searching for Earth-like planets

Space & Earth / Astronomy

created Nov 23, 2009 | popularity 3.3 / 5 (3) | comments 0

(PhysOrg.com) -- MIT planetary scientist Sara Seager has been studying exoplanets — planets circling stars other than the sun — for many years.


Hubble Image Showcases Star Birth in M83, the Southern Pinwheel

Hubble Image Showcases Star Birth in M83, the Southern Pinwheel

Space & Earth / Astronomy

created Nov 05, 2009 | popularity 4.6 / 5 (10) | comments 1

(PhysOrg.com) -- The spectacular new camera installed on NASA's Hubble Space Telescope during Servicing Mission 4 in May has delivered the most detailed view of star birth in the graceful, curving arms of ...


Rapid star formation spotted in 'stellar nurseries' of infant galaxies

Rapid star formation spotted in 'stellar nurseries' of infant galaxies

Space & Earth / Astronomy

created Nov 11, 2009 | popularity 4 / 5 (5) | comments 1

The Universe's infant galaxies enjoyed rapid growth spurts forming stars like our sun at a rate of up to 50 stars a year, according to scientists at Durham University.