April 2021 – Astronomy Now

Proposed Interstellar Probe gains momentum with Johns Hopkins study

28 April 2021 Astronomy Now

Engineers are testing prototype heat shields for a proposed interstellar probe that first would fly close by the Sun for a gravitational slingshot into deep space.

New ‘test-bed’ telescope joins hunt for threatening asteroids

27 April 2021 Astronomy Now

A European Space Agency “test-bed” telescope has been installed at ESO’s La Silla Observatory to hunt for threatening asteroids and test advanced technology.

Rare luminous blue variable provides stellar spectacle for Hubble anniversary

27 April 2021 Astronomy Now

To mark the Hubble Space Telescope’s 31st anniversary in space, astronomers captured a dramatic image of a rare luminous blue variable, one of the most massive and brightest stars in the Milky Way.

The light-bending dance of binary black holes captured in mesmerising animation

21 April 2021 Astronomy Now

Using a supercomputer, researchers modelled the light-bending spectacle of two supermassive black holes locked in a space-warping gravitational dance.

Monster flare from Proxima Centauri dwarfs any ever seen from the Sun

21 April 2021 Astronomy Now

Astronomers have spotted the most powerful flare ever seen erupting from Proxima Centauri, an outburst 100 times more powerful than any from the Sun.

Look out for the Lyrids

21 April 2021 Mark Armstrong

Over the course of the next two nights the annual April Lyrid meteor shower is predicted to reach its 2021 peak. Lyrid meteors appear to emanate from the direction of Lyra’s brilliant star Vega, hence the name.

Ingenuity Mars ‘copter makes historic first flight on red planet

19 April 2021 Astronomy Now

NASA’s Ingenuity Mars helicopter completes a successful test flight, becoming the first aircraft to fly in the atmosphere of another world. Four more flights are planned.

Mars helicopter software update sets stage for Monday test flight

11 April 2021 Astronomy Now

NASA reschedules Mars helicopter flight for Monday, 19 April, after developing software fix for a computer timing issue.

A multi-instrument view of M61, showcasing its luminous heart and winding arms

11 April 2021 Astronomy Now

Discovered in 1779, M61 serves as a brilliant subject for ground- and space-based telescopes alike, with spiral arms bursting with young stars and a luminous core harboring a supermassive black hole.

Astronomers spot merging galaxies hosting dual quasars

7 April 2021 Astronomy Now

Astronomers have spotted two pairs of quasars in the cores of merging galaxies just a few billion years after the birth of the cosmos, shedding light on galactic evolution.