Archive

Astronomers spot black hole-powered ‘galactic fountain’

9 November 2018 Astronomy Now

A supermassive black hole at the heart of the brightest galaxy in a cluster a billion light years away is powering a vast “galactic fountain” of gas that shoots out into space and then rains back inward to fuel another cycle.

Merging galactic black holes focus of new survey

9 November 2018 Astronomy Now

Astronomers are getting their best views yet of supermassive black holes in the cores of colliding galaxies moving toward mergers, rapidly growing as they gorge on stellar debris

Astronomers find oldest known star in the Milky Way

6 November 2018 Astronomy Now

Astronomers have found what may be the oldest star in the Milky Way, a tiny 13.5-billion-year-old body made up primarily of elements created in the Big Bang.

Foundation takes shape for Extremely Large Telescope

4 November 2018 Astronomy Now

The foundation of the European Southern Observatory’s Extremely Large Telescope is taking shape atop a mountain in Chile’s Atacama Desert, home to what will be the world’s largest optical instrument, a gargantuan telescope with a segmented primary mirror 39 metres (128 feet) across.

Data indicate Milky Way smash up 10 billion years ago

4 November 2018 Astronomy Now

Data from ESA’s Gaia spacecraft indicate a large galaxy collided with the Milky Way about 10 billion years ago, leaving identifiable stars strewn in its wake to help astronomers piece together our galaxy’s history.

OSIRIS-REx captures first clear images of asteroid Bennu

3 November 2018 Astronomy Now

NASA’s OSIRIS-REx spacecraft, closing in on asteroid Bennu, has sent back photos showing a body remarkably similar in appearance to the asteroid Ryugu being studied by Japan’s Hayabusa2 spacecraft.

Chinese photographer captures Insight competition’s ‘best newcomer’ award

1 November 2018 Astronomy Now

Chinese photographer Tianhong Li won “best newcomer” honours in the 2018 Insight Investment Astronomy Photographer of the Year competition for this captivating view of the Milky Way and the vast clouds of stars, gas and dust making up the core and the galactic plane stretching skyward.