In our notes about the night sky in December, we talked about how the Orion constellation looks like an hourglass and is easy to see. But guess what? It turns out that what we see as Orion is not the whole constellation; it’s actually just a part called an asterism. An asterism is like a […]
Observations for the Night Sky in January: Linking Celestial Patterns through Asterisms Read More »
NASA’s Webb offers stunning view of exploded star. NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope presents a fresh image of the supernova remnant Cassiopeia A (Cas A), resembling a gleaming, spherical ornament poised for the perfect holiday tree placement. First Lady Dr. Jill Biden, during the 2023 Holidays at the White House, unveiled the inaugural White House
NASA’s Webb Offers Stunning View of Exploded Star Read More »
When astronomers search for life beyond Earth, they focus on planets in a star’s “habitable zone” or “Goldilocks zone.” This zone has temperatures that are just perfect for having liquid water on a planet’s surface, which is crucial for supporting life as we understand it. Goldilocks stars A growing concept, supported by three decades of
Ideal Stars for Finding Life Read More »
Physicists’ insistence on celestial bodies being non-perfect spheres raises questions about our understanding of their true dimensions. In the case of the Sun, renowned for its familiarity, discrepancies emerge when various methods are employed to measure its size. The International Astronomical Union, in 2015, established the accepted radius of the Sun at 695,700 kilometers (432,288
Unveiling Solar Uncertainty: The Enigma of the Sun’s Size Read More »
In a groundbreaking achievement, a deep space experiment conducted aboard NASA’s Psyche spacecraft has successfully transmitted a laser message to Earth from a location surpassing the Moon’s distance for the first time. The achievement by the Deep Space Optical Communications (DSOC) could revolutionize interplanetary communication methods. Record-breaking distance and Precision The DSOC beamed a near-infrared
Earth Receives Laser Message from 16 Million Kilometers Away Read More »
ALMA, a big telescope, looked at an old star and saw it really well. The star has a ring of gas around it, and some of the gas is moving away into space. Using this powerful telescope in the future will help us understand not only how stars end but also how planets start forming
ALMA Reveals High-Resolution Structure of Old Star Read More »
Last year witnessed an extraordinary celestial event as Earth encountered the brightest flash of light ever recorded in the night sky, unsettling the upper atmosphere in an unprecedented manner, according to researchers on Tuesday. BOAT: Brightest Of All Time On October 9, 2022, a colossal burst of gamma rays emanating from a cosmic explosion approximately
Unprecedented Light Show: The Spectacular Arrival of the “BOAT” Gamma-Ray Burst Read More »
Renowned astronomer David H. Levy once likened comets to cats, asserting, “They both have tails and do precisely what they want.” With his extensive experience as the co-discoverer of numerous comets, including the infamous Shoemaker-Levy 9, which collided with Jupiter in a spectacular display witnessed globally, Levy’s analogy resonates in the unpredictable nature of these
Why Did Comet Erasmus Wag its Tail Happily as it Passed by the Sun? Read More »
For the first time, oxygen atoms have been identified in the dayside atmosphere of Venus, free from being part of larger molecules. This revelation not only marks a significant advancement in our understanding of Venus but also paves the way for future missions to the enigmatic planet. Revised Text For the first time in history,
A Breakthrough Discovery: Oxygen Atoms Unveiled in Venus’ Dayside Atmosphere Read More »
NASA’s Kepler missions have concluded, but astronomers persist in refining their data, leading to remarkable discoveries in exoplanets. Among these findings is identifying the hottest seven-planet system, facilitated by meticulous data analysis. A Fiery Star at the Center: Kepler-385 At the heart of this extraordinary system is Kepler-385, a star surpassing our Sun in size
Kepler Discovers a New System of 7 Planets Read More »