Science & Astronomy

LATEST

What is a supermoon?

By Elizabeth Howell 19 hours ago

Scientists spot 6 alien worlds orbiting a star in strange — but precise — harmony

By Meghan Bartels 20 hours ago

The planets around a star called TOI-178 know how to keep a beat — so smoothly, in fact, that scientists were able to discover new alien worlds by deciphering the system’s music.

Pictures from space! Our image of the day

By Space.com Staff a day ago

These images, taken from the International Space Station, show Earth’s glowing, colorful aurora alongside lights coming from the cities on our planet’s surface down below.

E.T. signal from Proxima Centauri? A conversation with Breakthrough Initiatives’ Pete Worden

By Leonard David a day ago

Space.com recently talked with Breakthrough Initiatives executive director Pete Worden about a signal coming from the vicinity of Proxima Centauri, and about the search for alien life more generally.

Galaxies eject gas when they merge, preventing new stars forming — new research

By Annagrazia Puglisi a day ago

Most stars in the universe today are found in massive galaxies called ellipticals, named for their stretched-out-circle shape.

Preliminary investigation offers possible cause of Arecibo Observatory telescope collapse

By Meghan Bartels a day ago

An ongoing investigation of the December collapse of the iconic radio telescope at Arecibo Observatory in Puerto Rico offers early evidence a manufacturing issue may have contributed to the failure.

South African astronomy has a long, rich history of discovery — and a promising future

By Ian Glass 2 days ago

The South African Astronomical Observatory in Cape Town is the oldest permanent observatory in the southern hemisphere: it turned 200 in 2020.

Wormholes may be lurking in the universe — and new studies are proposing ways of finding them

By Andreea Font 2 days ago

Albert Einstein’s theory of general relativity profoundly changed our thinking about fundamental concepts in physics, such as space and time.

Largest sea on Saturn’s mysterious moon Titan could be more than 1,000 feet deep

By Elizabeth Howell 3 days ago

Data from one of Cassini’s last flybys of Titan probed the depths of Kraken Mare to better understand the moon’s alien chemistry.

Warm up with this cozy image of a hot spot on Jupiter

By Elizabeth Howell 3 days ago

A new composite image of Jupiter’s atmosphere shows a hot spot glowing brightly in infrared wavelengths.

The top space stories of the week!

By Doris Elin Urrutia 3 days ago

These are the top space stories this week from Space.com.

Mystery particle may explain extreme X-rays shooting from the ‘Magnificent 7’ stars

By Stephanie Pappas 4 days ago

Particles called axions may be the reason the ‘Magnificent 7’ cluster of neutron stars emits extreme X-rays.

Elon Musk says he’s donating $100 million for carbon-capture tech prize

By Mike Wall 4 days ago

Elon Musk is putting a big chunk of change into the fight against climate change.

‘Symbiotic stars’ caught snacking on each other outside the Milky Way

By Nola Taylor Redd 4 days ago

Stars snacking on their companions outside the Milky Way have been precisely mapped and measured for the first time.

Did water once flow through meteorites?

By Charles Q. Choi 5 days ago

Water may have recently flowed within meteorites, suggesting the asteroids they broke off from may bear ice, a new study finds.

Powerful cosmic eruptions traced to brilliant ‘magnetar’ in nearby galaxy

By Charles Q. Choi 5 days ago

Astronomers may have captured the first good look at giant flares from the strongest magnets in the universe.

NASA’s Mars rover Perseverance lands on the Red Planet in less than a month!

By Mike Wall 5 days ago

The car-size Perseverance rover, the core of NASA’s $2.7 billion Mars 2020 mission, will land Feb. 18, kicking off a new era of Red Planet exploration.

A galactic sideswipe 3 billion years ago warped our Milky Way galaxy

By Elizabeth Howell 5 days ago

New data from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey and Europe’s Gaia spacecraft suggest that a brush with another galaxy caused the strange, potato chip-like “warp” in our Milky Way galaxy.

This tiny comet photobombed the total solar eclipse of 2020

By Kasandra Brabaw 5 days ago

Looking closely at eclipse images, stargazers can spot a newfound Kreutz sungrazer comet that zoomed by the Sun during Chile and Argentina’s solar eclipse.

‘Sun Science’ postage stamps will feature NASA solar observatory images

By Robert Z. Pearlman 6 days ago

A new set of postage stamps will shine light on a NASA mission exploring our nearest star.