Category Astronomy/Space

The weather on Earth can get pretty messy sometimes. But in space, it can be wild, and the effects can be far-reaching. Solar flares, giant explosions on the sun, can send out streams of energy that block radio communications and fry satellite electronics. Geomagnetic storms, caused by variations in solar wind, can mess with GPS signals and spark current surges on Earth that overload power grids.

The impact of space weather isn’t limited to temporarily losing electricity or digging out dusty paper maps for directions when satellite navigation systems fail. Every electronic financial transaction in the world, for instance, relies on time stamps sent by satellite systems...

A team of astronomers has found the strongest evidence yet that some planets outside our solar system may be magnetic. Using the European Southern Observatory’s Very Large Telescope (ESO’s VLT) and the GeminiNorth telescope, the researchers measured wind speeds on seven very hot, Jupiter-like exoplanets.

The observations reveal that the winds on these planets are most likely governed by magnetic fields, providing the first robust measurement of magnetism on planets outside the solar system.

“This breakthrough opens a completely new window on exoplanet research...

An international team led by astronomers at the University of Sydney has uncovered the clearest evidence yet for the origin of an unusual class of cosmic signals. In doing so, they have identified a rare stellar system that is providing scientists with a natural laboratory to study extreme physics.

Using CSIRO’s ASKAP radio telescope, the team discovered a small, dense star, called a white dwarf, shredding material ...

Life exists because elements combine to form complex organic molecules. Astrochemistry studies this process, trying to understand how nature creates carbon-based molecules critical for life. One source for these types of molecules is the outflows emitted by protostars.

Protostars grow by accreting gas, and while they do so, they also emit energy. Protostars haven’t begun fusing hydrogen yet, so their energy comes from shocks on its surface generated by in-falling gas. They can also emit high speed streams of gas as astrophysical jets. These jets carry away excess angular momentum, allowing the protostars to keep growing. These jets also create illuminated shocks in the interstellar medium (ISM).

Shock fronts like these are where energy and matter are concentrated, and that’s whe...