Astrophysics

Using Gravitational Waves to Hunt for Dark Matter

Credit: Unsplash.A global team of cosmologists has discovered through computer simulations that observing gravitational waves from merging black holes can reveal the real nature of dark matter. Dr. Alex Jenkins of University College London will co-author their discovery today at the 2023 National Astronomy Meeting.The team studied the production of gravitational wave signals in...

How a Scientist Weighed Black Holes Invisible to The Naked Eye

Black hole. Credit: Unsplash.Joseph Simon, a postdoctoral researcher at the Department of Astrophysical and Planetary Sciences at the University of Colorado, Boulder, employed computer simulations to make predictions about the masses of the largest supermassive black holes existing in the universe.In a press statement, Simon highlighted the substantial mass of the black hole situated...

Scientists are Developing a Sci-Fi-Like Tractor Beam to Clear Up Space Junk

Credit: PexelsAccording to a press statement, a group of engineers from the University of Colorado Boulder is creating a machine that draws inspiration from the tractor beams depicted in science fiction films. These engineers suggest that tractor beams, often seen in popular franchises like Star Trek and Star Wars, could soon become a reality....

Webb Space Telescope Shows Early Universe Crackled With Bursts of Star Formation

The James Webb Space Telescope’s JADES program is providing unprecedented insights into the early universe, discovering hundreds of ancient galaxies, and unveiling complex patterns of star formation. Credit: SCITECHDAILY.Equipped with a sizable mirror and the ability to detect infrared radiation, NASA's James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) is uniquely designed for the investigation of galaxies...

Elusive Intermediate-mass Black Holes Take Bites From Stars and Expel the Contents

This artist’s impression depicts a star being torn apart by an intermediate-mass black hole, surrounded by an accretion disk. Image credit: Hubble / NASA / ESA / M. Kornmesser.According to space experts, there is a possibility of the existence of intermediate-mass black holes. These are black holes that can consume some of the stray...

The Current Discovery Sheds Light On Very Early Supermassive Black Holes

This system consists of a pair of galaxies, dubbed IC 694 and NGC 3690, which made a close pass some 700 million years ago. As a result of this interaction, the system underwent a fierce burst of star formation. In the last fifteen years or so six supernovae have popped off in the outer...

Using Minnesota Rocks To Illustrate How An Atmosphere Could Have Formed On Mars

Comparison between (proto-)serpentinites of the Duluth Complex and available samples from Mars. Credit: Science Advances (2023). DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.add8472A pair of researchers, hailing respectively from the University of Calgary in Canada and the University of Cambridge in the UK, have found that analyzing rocks from Duluth, Minnesota, may yield understanding about the development of the ancient atmosphere...

A New Ring System Found in Our Solar System

Artist impression of Quaoar's rings. Credit: Paris ObservatoryA group of researchers has discovered a previously unknown ring system around a dwarf planet located at the outer edge of the solar system. This ring system is unique in that it orbits much farther out than other known ring systems, which challenges current theories about the...

Ominous Green Lasers Shot Over Hawaii Did Not Come From NASA Satellite After All

A series of green laser beams seen over Hawaii in January. (National Observatory of Japan)Above the islands of Hawaii on January 28th, a green laser was seen piercing the evening sky, silently tracing a course towards the horizon such as a stutter in the Matrix's code.The scene was captured on camera from a telescope atop...

Astronomers Identify Twenty Ultraviolet-Emitting Supernova Remnants in the Andromeda Galaxy

Positions of the 20 SNRs with detected diffuse UV emission (red squares) and of the 5 SNRs with likely, but confused, diffuse emission (blue squares), overlaid on the image of the Andromeda Galaxy in the F148W filter. Credit: Leahy et al, 2023Utilizing the AstroSat satellite, astronomers from the University of Calgary, Canada, have identified...