May 2023 – Page 2 – Astronomy Now

Catch the rays from the Sunflower Galaxy

10 May 2023 Mark Armstrong

Messier 63 (NGC 5055), the Sunflower Galaxy in Canes Venatici, sits comfortably with its reputation as one of the great galaxies visible in the night sky at springtime.

Water, water everywhere, including the icy moons of Uranus

10 May 2023 Astronomy Now

A re-analysis of Voyager data, along with computer modelling, suggests four of Uranus’ moons may harbour oceans beneath their icy crusts.

A luminous Seyfert galaxy and its active black hole-driven nucleus

10 May 2023 Astronomy Now

The Hubble Space Telescope captures a textbook example of a luminous Seyfert galaxy and its active galactic nucleus along with details of the galaxy’s structure.

Mizar and Alcor: The Great Bear’s famous naked-eye double

9 May 2023 Mark Armstrong

Not only of surpassing interest historically, zeta Ursae Majoris (UMa), or Mizar, the middle star in Ursa Major’s famous Plough asterism, is also one of the finest double stars in the sky for a small telescope.

Webb finds more debris rings around Fomalhaut suggesting unseen planets

9 May 2023 Astronomy Now

Webb telescope discovers nested rings of debris around the hot young star Fomalhaut, an apparent indicator of unseen planets amid the chaos of their formation.

Rubin Observatory reaches major construction milestone

8 May 2023 Astronomy Now

Rubin Observatory telescope structure ready for integrated tests with replica 8.4-metre mirror and mock instruments in major milestone.

A spectacular tapestry marks the death throes of a massive star

8 May 2023 Astronomy Now

The brightest supernova remnant in the Large Magellanic Cloud provides a stunning target for the Hubble Space Telescope’s super-sharp vision.

‘Death star’ caught in the act of devouring one of its own

4 May 2023 Astronomy Now

For the first time, astronomers catch an aging star in the act of devouring one of its own, brightening as it consumed a Jupiter-size world

Webb serves up baby pictures of galaxy cluster in infant cosmos

4 May 2023 Astronomy Now

In another startling discovery, the James Webb telescope has confirmed a galaxy cluster shining just 650 million years after the Big Bang.