Space Exploration News – Latest Headlines

Stellar waltz with dramatic ending

Astronomers have identified an unusual celestial object. It is most likely the product of the fusion of two stars that died a long time ago. After billions of years circling around each other these so-called white dwarfs merged and rose from the dead.

May 21, 2019 Read more

A new filter to better map the dark universe

New method cuts through galaxies' messy emissions, provides clearer window into dark matter, dark energy.

May 14, 2019 Read more

New clues about how ancient galaxies lit up the Universe

NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope has revealed that some of the Universe's earliest galaxies were brighter than expected. The excess light is a by-product of the galaxies releasing incredibly high amounts of ionising radiation.

May 9, 2019 Read more

Could this rare supernova resolve a longstanding origin debate?

Although hydrogen is the most-abundant element in the universe, it is almost never seen in Type Ia supernova explosions, except this one.

May 7, 2019 Read more

Hubble assembles wide view of the distant universe

Astronomers developed a mosaic of the distant Universe that documents 16 years of observations from the Hubble Space Telescope. The image, called the Hubble Legacy Field, contains roughly 265,000 galaxies that stretch back to just 500 million years after the Big Bang.

May 2, 2019 Read more

Cosmic dust reveals new insights on the formation of solar system

'One of the greatest curiosities is how the universe was formed and how life started. And this weirdo particle showed us something we didn't know before.'

April 29, 2019 Read more

Mystery of the universe's expansion rate widens with new Hubble data

Astronomers say they have crossed an important threshold in revealing a discrepancy between the two key techniques for measuring the universe's expansion rate. The recent study strengthens the case that new theories may be needed to explain the forces that have shaped the cosmos.

April 25, 2019 Read more

How would you survive on Mars? (w/video)

The Resilient ExtraTerrestrial Habitats Institute is working to ensure that the first long-term settlement on other planetary bodies are safe from hazards such as a meteoroid colliding with the moon or violent sandstorms on Mars.

April 24, 2019 Read more

First astrophysical detection of the first molecule that formed in the universe

Operating the GREAT far-infrared spectrometer onboard the flying observatory SOFIA, an international research team reports the unambiguous detection of the helium hydride ion towards the planetary nebula NGC 7027.

April 18, 2019 Read more

ARIEL Data Challenge Series launched to build global community for exoplanet data solutions

ARIEL, a mission to make the first large-scale survey of exoplanet atmospheres, has launched a global competition series to find innovative solutions for the interpretation and analysis of exoplanet data.

April 17, 2019 Read more

Explosion on Jupiter-sized star ten times more powerful than ever seen on our Sun

A stellar flare ten times more powerful than anything seen on our sun has burst from an ultracool star almost the same size as Jupiter.

April 17, 2019 Read more

Powerful particles and tugging tides may affect extraterrestrial life

Two new studies by space scientists may bring into question the habitability of TRAPPIST-1 exoplanets.

April 17, 2019 Read more

Old black holes in a young universe

Astronomers reveal supermassive black holes were common in the early universe.

April 16, 2019 Read more

Variations in the 'fogginess' of the universe identify a milestone in cosmic history

Large differences in the 'foggines' of the early universe were caused by islands of cold gas left behind when the universe heated up after the big bang, according to an international team of astronomers.

April 16, 2019 Read more

Asteroids help scientists to measure the diameters of far away stars

New technique doubles resolution of angular size measurements.

April 16, 2019 Read more

TESS discovers its first Earth-sized planet

Orbiting a nearby star, the new planet is the smallest identified so far by the TESS mission.

April 16, 2019 Read more

Researchers observe formation of a magnetar 6.5 billion light years away

X-ray data holds evidence of two neutron stars merging to form a celestial object with an extremely powerful magnetic field.

April 11, 2019 Read more

Astronomers capture first image of a black hole

The Event Horizon Telescope (EHT) - a planet-scale array of eight ground-based radio telescopes forged through international collaboration - was set up to capture the first images of a black hole. Today, astronometrs reveal that they have succeeded, unveiling the first direct visual evidence of a black hole.

April 10, 2019 Read more