Virgo Constellation tagged posts

A rocky planet discovered in the Virgo constellation could change how we look for life in the universe. It could be our best chance yet of studying rocky planet atmospheres outside the solar system, a new international study involving UNSW Sydney shows.

The planet, called Gliese 486b (pronounced Glee-seh), is a ‘super-Earth’: that is, a rocky planet bigger than Earth but smaller than ice giants like Neptune and Uranus. It orbits a red dwarf star around 26 light-years away, making it a close neighbour — galactically speaking.

With a piping-hot surface temperature of 430 degrees Celsius, Gliese 486b is too hot to support human life...

The beautiful spiral galaxy visible in the center of the image is known as RX J1140.1+0307, a galaxy in the Virgo constellation imaged by the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope. Credit: ESA/Hubble & NASA, Acknowledgement: Judy Schmidt

The beautiful spiral galaxy visible in the center of the image is known as RX J1140.1+0307, a galaxy in the Virgo constellation imaged by the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope, and it presents an interesting puzzle. At first glance, this galaxy appears to be a normal spiral galaxy, much like the Milky Way – which has a supermassive black hole at its center. But some galaxies are centered on lighter, intermediate-mass black holes. RX J1140.1+0307 is such a galaxy. In fact, it is centered on one of the lowest black hole masses known in any luminous galactic core.

Wh...

Columbia researchers predict that a pair of converging supermassive black holes in the Virgo constellation will collide sooner than expected. Above, an artist’s conception of a merger. CREDIT (P. Marenfeld/NOAO/AURA/NSF)

Astronomers have provided additional evidence that a pair of closely orbiting black holes deep in the Virgo constellation is causing the rhythmic flashes of light coming from quasar PG 1302-102. Based on calculations of the pair’s mass – together, and relative to each other – the researchers go on to predict a smashup 100,000 years from now, far sooner than previously predicted. The collision will be so powerful it would send a burst of gravitational waves surging through the fabric of space-time itself.

Spiraling together 3...