Archive – Page 132 – Astronomy Now

Messier spotted the first extra-galactic globular cluster in 1778

10 July 2018 Astronomy Now

Globular clusters orbiting the core of the Milky Way are favourite targets for amateur astronomers, especially those in the Messier catalogue. It turns out one of them is the first extra-galactic globular ever discovered, something Charles Messier could not have imagined.

Quasar provides clues about conditions in the early Universe

10 July 2018 Astronomy Now

Astronomers have found a brilliant quasar harbouring a super-massive black hole some 13 billion light years away, one of the most distant ever discovered, providing a tool of sorts to study conditions in the very early Universe.

Kepler spacecraft, nearly out of fuel, suspends exoplanet search

9 July 2018 Astronomy Now

The Kepler spacecraft, nearly out of fuel, has suspended its search for exoplanets pending the downlink of stored data. Flight controllers hope to resume observations in August for as long as the dwindling propellant holds out.

Computer simulations confirm massive impact knocked Uranus off kilter

6 July 2018 Astronomy Now

Supercomputer simulations confirm a cataclysmic impact with a body at least twice the size of Earth knocked Uranus on its side during the solar system’s formation, possibly explaining the evolution of its rings and moons.

Extracting critical resources from the Moon topic of ESA workshop

5 July 2018 Astronomy Now

European Space Agency astronaut Alexander Gerst captured this spectacular view of the moon just above Earth’s discernible atmosphere from his perch aboard the International Space Station. ESA held a workshop this week focused on extracting lunar resources.

Yet another test for general relativity; yet another “A” for Einstein

5 July 2018 Astronomy Now

In yet another success for Einstein’s theory of general relativity, astronomers studying the motions of a triple star system have again confirmed that objects fall at the same rate regardless of mass or composition.

Cataclysmic collision re-shaped Milky Way in distant past

4 July 2018 Astronomy Now

A head-on collision between the Milky Way and a smaller body dubbed the “Sausage” galaxy eight to 10 billion years ago had a profound effect on the structure and evolution of Earth’s home in space, astronomers say.

NuSTAR X-ray telescope shows Eta Carinae source of cosmic rays

4 July 2018 Astronomy Now

The origins of high-energy cosmic rays are difficult to trace because of the effects of magnetic fields, but data from NASA’s NuSTAR X-ray telescope indicates the massive binary star Eta Carinae is one likely source.

Dawn zooms in on Ceres’ enigmatic Occator Crater

2 July 2018 Astronomy Now

NASA’s Dawn spacecraft is now in an orbit around the asteroid Ceres that carries it as close as 35 kilometres (22 miles), giving researchers a bird’s eye view of enigmatic Occator Crater and its famously bright deposits of sodium carbonate.

Astronomers catch new planet in the process of forming

2 July 2018 Astronomy Now

Astronomers have managed to spot a new planet in the process of forming in a dusty disk surrounding a hot young star. It is the first definitive observation of its kind, opening a new window in exoplanet research.