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    Category Astronomy/Space

    There might be many Planets with Water-Rich Atmospheres

    March 17, 2021, Categories  Astronomy/Space

    Artist illustration of the exoplanet WASP-121b
    A study suggests that exoplanets close to their stars may actually retain a thick atmosphere full of water. Above, an artist’s illustration of the exoplanet WASP-121b, which appears to have water in its atmosphere.
    Image courtesy of Engine House VFX, At-Bristol Science Centre, University of Exeter

    A new study suggests that hot, rocky exoplanets could not only develop atmospheres full of water vapor, but keep them for long stretches. An atmosphere is what makes life on Earth’s surface possible, regulating our climate and sheltering us from damaging cosmic rays. But although telescopes have counted a growing number of rocky planets, scientists had thought most of their atmospheres long lost.

    However, a new study by University of Chicago and Stanford University researchers expands our p...

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    Largest Supernova Remnant ever discovered with X-rays

    March 16, 2021, Categories  Astronomy/Space

    In the first all-sky survey by the eROSITA X-ray telescope onboard SRG, astronomers at the Max Planck Institute for Extraterrestrial Physics have identified a previously unknown supernova remnant, dubbed “Hoinga.” The finding was confirmed in archival radio data and marks the first discovery of a joint Australian-eROSITA partnership established to explore our Galaxy using multiple wavelengths, from low-frequency radio waves to energetic X-rays. The Hoinga supernova remnant is very large and located far from the galactic plane — a surprising first finding — implying that the next years might bring many more discoveries.

    Massive stars end their lives in gigantic supernova explosions when the fusion processes in their interiors no longer produce enough energy to counter their gravitat...

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    Scientists Sketch Aged Star System using over a century of observations

    March 13, 2021, Categories  Astronomy/Space

    Two stars orbit each other within an enormous dusty disk in the U Monocerotis system, illustrated here. When the stars are farthest from each other, they funnel material from the disk’s inner edge. At this time, the primary star is slightly obscured by the disk from our perspective. The primary star, a yellow supergiant, expands and contracts. The smaller secondary star is thought to maintain its own disk of material, which likely powers an outflow of gas that emits X-rays.
    Credits: NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center/Chris Smith (USRA/GESTAR)
    Download high-resolution video and images from NASA’s Scientific Visualization Studio

    Astronomers have painted their best picture yet of an RV Tauri variable, a rare type of stellar binary where two stars — one approaching the end of its life ...

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    Astronomers have detected a Moving Supermassive Black Hole

    March 13, 2021, Categories  Astronomy/Space

    Astronomers detect a black hole on the move
    Galaxy J0437+2456 is thought to be home to a supermassive, moving black hole. Credit: Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS).

    Scientists have long theorized that supermassive black holes can wander through space – but catching them in the act has proven difficult. Now, researchers at the Center for Astrophysics | Harvard & Smithsonian have identified the clearest case to date of a supermassive black hole in motion. Their results are published today in the Astrophysical Journal.

    “We don’t expect the majority of supermassive black holes to be moving; they’re usually content to just sit around,” says Dominic Pesce, an astronomer at the Center for Astrophysics who led the study. “They’re just so heavy that it’s tough to get them going...

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