Astronomical Discoveries
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Astronomers Capture First-Ever Early Snapshot of Supernova Shock Wave Using ESO’s VLT
Astronomers using ESO’s Very Large Telescope have captured a rare early look at supernova SN 2024ggi, just one day after its discovery. The blast shockwave appeared olive-shaped—not spherical—revealing surprising asymmetry in the explosion. Recorded with the FORS2 instrument, the data shows the shock-breakout phase in unprecedented detail. Th...
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Astronomers Detect "Super-Earth" Just 18 Light-Years Away In Habitable Zone
Researchers at UC Irvine and their partners published their study in The Astronomical Journal.
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Nearby Super-Earth GJ 251 c Could Help Learn About Worlds That Once Supported Life, Astronomers Say
Astronomers discovered GJ 251 c, a super-Earth 20 light-years away. Its location in the habitable zone and rocky composition make it a top candidate for future searches for life beyond our solar system. The team, led by Suvrath Mahadevan and Corey Beard, said this discovery provides a clock for one of the best candidates to search for life's atmo...
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Webb Finds Phosphorus-Bearing Gas in an Ancient Brown Dwarf
NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope has detected phosphine (PH₃) in the atmosphere of the ancient brown dwarf Wolf 1130C, about 54 light-years away in Cygnus. This marks the first confirmed detection of a phosphorus-bearing gas in such a metal-poor object. The finding surprises astronomers, as phosphine was previously undetected in similar brown ...
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NASA Telescopes Capture First-Ever Companion Star Orbiting Massive Red Supergiant Betelgeuse
Astronomers have detected a small companion star orbiting the red supergiant Betelgeuse using Hubble and Chandra observations. Dubbed “Betelbuddy,” the discovery reveals an extreme binary system that challenges existing models of stellar evolution and may offer clues to Betelgeuse’s future.
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Astronomers Detect Heavy Water in Planet-Forming Disk Around Young Star
Scientists have detected heavy water in the planet-forming disk around young star V883 Orionis, confirming the water existed long before the star formed. The discovery, made using ALMA, shows that water’s origins trace back to ancient interstellar clouds, linking molecular gas, comets, and planetary systems across billions of years.
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Astronomers Discover Most Distant And Powerful Odd Radio Circle In The Universe
A rare discovery in deep space has stunned astronomers: twin radio rings surrounding a galaxy about 7 billion light-years away. Known as an odd radio circle (ORC), this is the most distant and powerful ever found. Citizen scientists first spotted it, and LOFAR confirmed its existence, opening new insights into galactic and black hole evolution.
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Astronomers Capture First Image of Two Supermassive Black Holes Orbiting Each Other
Astronomers have captured the first image of two supermassive black holes orbiting in quasar OJ 287. The smaller black hole’s jet spirals due to gravitational forces from the larger one. This discovery validates dual-core theories and opens doors for research on gravitational waves and galaxy evolution.
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Astronomers Capture First-Ever Image Of A Baby Planet Forming In Real Time
Astronomers have made a groundbreaking discovery by directly observing a young protoplanet, WISPIT 2b, embedded in a ring-shaped gap in a disk around a young star.
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Astronomers Spot Rapidly Growing Rogue Planet Feeding on Surrounding Gas
Astronomers have discovered that Cha 1107-7626, a rogue planet 620 light-years away, is now the fastest-growing planet ever observed. The massive world consumes six billion tonnes of gas per second, a rate never before recorded. The findings suggest rogue planets can grow in star-like ways, reshaping how scientists view free-floating planetary obje...
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NASA’s James Webb Telescope May Have Found First Black Hole Star, Known as ‘The Cliff’
JWST detected “The Cliff,” a candidate black hole star with a black hole core wrapped in a luminous gas shell. This discovery offers insights into black hole formation, stellar evolution, and cosmic dynamics, prompting astronomers to search for similar objects across the universe.
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James Webb Space Telescope Spots Rare Protostar Blasting Twin Jets Across Milky Way
NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope has captured a rare protostar about ten times the Sun’s mass blasting twin jets nearly eight light-years long. The beams carve through the glowing Sharpless 2-284 nebula, offering astronomers a vivid glimpse into how massive stars form and shape their galactic environment.
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Universe’s First Stars May Have Been Smaller Than Astronomers Once Believed
Astronomers once thought the universe’s first stars were only massive giants. New simulations and lab experiments reveal turbulence and early chemistry allowed smaller, Sun-like stars to form too. This discovery reshapes our view of cosmic dawn, showing the first stellar generation was more diverse than previously believed.
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Exoplanets Explained: How Astronomers Find Worlds Orbiting Stars Beyond the Sun
Exoplanets are planets orbiting stars outside our solar system, hidden by stellar glare and detected indirectly. Astronomers identify them by tracking star wobbles or dips in brightness during planetary transits. NASA’s Kepler mission revealed thousands, with TESS now expanding the search. These discoveries confirm that planetary systems are abun...
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Astronomers Discover Calvera, a Runaway Pulsar Racing Above the Milky Way
Astronomers have discovered Calvera, a pulsar speeding 6,500 light-years above the Milky Way’s disk. Formed from a supernova in a nearly empty region, Calvera challenges long-held ideas of star birth and death. Its discovery reveals that extreme stellar events can occur even in the galaxy’s sparse outer halo.
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Astronomers Capture First-Ever Early Snapshot of Supernova Shock Wave Using ESO’s VLT
Astronomers using ESO’s Very Large Telescope have captured a rare early look at supernova SN 2024ggi, just one day after its discovery. The blast shockwave appeared olive-shaped—not spherical—revealing surprising asymmetry in the explosion. Recorded with the FORS2 instrument, the data shows the shock-breakout phase in unprecedented detail. Th...
-
Astronomers Detect "Super-Earth" Just 18 Light-Years Away In Habitable Zone
Researchers at UC Irvine and their partners published their study in The Astronomical Journal.
-
Nearby Super-Earth GJ 251 c Could Help Learn About Worlds That Once Supported Life, Astronomers Say
Astronomers discovered GJ 251 c, a super-Earth 20 light-years away. Its location in the habitable zone and rocky composition make it a top candidate for future searches for life beyond our solar system. The team, led by Suvrath Mahadevan and Corey Beard, said this discovery provides a clock for one of the best candidates to search for life's atmo...
-
Webb Finds Phosphorus-Bearing Gas in an Ancient Brown Dwarf
NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope has detected phosphine (PH₃) in the atmosphere of the ancient brown dwarf Wolf 1130C, about 54 light-years away in Cygnus. This marks the first confirmed detection of a phosphorus-bearing gas in such a metal-poor object. The finding surprises astronomers, as phosphine was previously undetected in similar brown ...
-
NASA Telescopes Capture First-Ever Companion Star Orbiting Massive Red Supergiant Betelgeuse
Astronomers have detected a small companion star orbiting the red supergiant Betelgeuse using Hubble and Chandra observations. Dubbed “Betelbuddy,” the discovery reveals an extreme binary system that challenges existing models of stellar evolution and may offer clues to Betelgeuse’s future.
-
Astronomers Detect Heavy Water in Planet-Forming Disk Around Young Star
Scientists have detected heavy water in the planet-forming disk around young star V883 Orionis, confirming the water existed long before the star formed. The discovery, made using ALMA, shows that water’s origins trace back to ancient interstellar clouds, linking molecular gas, comets, and planetary systems across billions of years.
-
Astronomers Discover Most Distant And Powerful Odd Radio Circle In The Universe
A rare discovery in deep space has stunned astronomers: twin radio rings surrounding a galaxy about 7 billion light-years away. Known as an odd radio circle (ORC), this is the most distant and powerful ever found. Citizen scientists first spotted it, and LOFAR confirmed its existence, opening new insights into galactic and black hole evolution.
-
Astronomers Capture First Image of Two Supermassive Black Holes Orbiting Each Other
Astronomers have captured the first image of two supermassive black holes orbiting in quasar OJ 287. The smaller black hole’s jet spirals due to gravitational forces from the larger one. This discovery validates dual-core theories and opens doors for research on gravitational waves and galaxy evolution.
-
Astronomers Capture First-Ever Image Of A Baby Planet Forming In Real Time
Astronomers have made a groundbreaking discovery by directly observing a young protoplanet, WISPIT 2b, embedded in a ring-shaped gap in a disk around a young star.
-
Astronomers Spot Rapidly Growing Rogue Planet Feeding on Surrounding Gas
Astronomers have discovered that Cha 1107-7626, a rogue planet 620 light-years away, is now the fastest-growing planet ever observed. The massive world consumes six billion tonnes of gas per second, a rate never before recorded. The findings suggest rogue planets can grow in star-like ways, reshaping how scientists view free-floating planetary obje...
-
NASA’s James Webb Telescope May Have Found First Black Hole Star, Known as ‘The Cliff’
JWST detected “The Cliff,” a candidate black hole star with a black hole core wrapped in a luminous gas shell. This discovery offers insights into black hole formation, stellar evolution, and cosmic dynamics, prompting astronomers to search for similar objects across the universe.
-
James Webb Space Telescope Spots Rare Protostar Blasting Twin Jets Across Milky Way
NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope has captured a rare protostar about ten times the Sun’s mass blasting twin jets nearly eight light-years long. The beams carve through the glowing Sharpless 2-284 nebula, offering astronomers a vivid glimpse into how massive stars form and shape their galactic environment.
-
Universe’s First Stars May Have Been Smaller Than Astronomers Once Believed
Astronomers once thought the universe’s first stars were only massive giants. New simulations and lab experiments reveal turbulence and early chemistry allowed smaller, Sun-like stars to form too. This discovery reshapes our view of cosmic dawn, showing the first stellar generation was more diverse than previously believed.
-
Exoplanets Explained: How Astronomers Find Worlds Orbiting Stars Beyond the Sun
Exoplanets are planets orbiting stars outside our solar system, hidden by stellar glare and detected indirectly. Astronomers identify them by tracking star wobbles or dips in brightness during planetary transits. NASA’s Kepler mission revealed thousands, with TESS now expanding the search. These discoveries confirm that planetary systems are abun...
-
Astronomers Discover Calvera, a Runaway Pulsar Racing Above the Milky Way
Astronomers have discovered Calvera, a pulsar speeding 6,500 light-years above the Milky Way’s disk. Formed from a supernova in a nearly empty region, Calvera challenges long-held ideas of star birth and death. Its discovery reveals that extreme stellar events can occur even in the galaxy’s sparse outer halo.
