News

ALMA spots unusually stable galaxy shining early in cosmic history

12 August 2020 Astronomy Now

A gravitationally lensed galaxy shining just 1.4 billion years after the Big Bang surprises astronomers with unusually evolved features.

Arecibo radio telescope damaged by cable break

11 August 2020 Astronomy Now

Engineers assess damage to Arecibo Observatory’ after a support cable snapped, causing a 100-foot-long gash in its reflector dish.

Bright deposits in Ceres’ Occator Crater hint at ongoing cryovolcanism

10 August 2020 Astronomy Now

Detailed analysis indicates the dwarf planet Ceres may be geologically active with ongoing cryovolcanism.

Hubble tests techniques for finding biosignatures in exoplanet atmospheres

7 August 2020 Astronomy Now

Hubble uses sunlight reflected from the moon during an eclipse to detect ozone in Earth’s atmosphere, testing methods needed to assess exoplanet atmospheres.

Radio astronomers measure star’s wobble, find Saturn-size exoplanet

4 August 2020 Astronomy Now

Radio telescope finds Saturn-class exoplanet orbiting nearby dwarf star after measuring slight changes in the star’s position.

Sub-glacial melting, not flowing rivers, may explain martian channels

3 August 2020 Astronomy Now

Channels seen as evidence for flowing rivers on ancient Mars may have been carved by subglacial meltwater, new research concludes.

NASA’s Perseverance rover leaves Earth bound for Mars

31 July 2020 Stephen Clark

Persevering through a global pandemic, a last-minute earthquake, and the trials of a rocket launch, NASA’s next Mars rover — named Perseverance — took off from Cape Canaveral on a nearly seven-month journey to the Red Planet with sophisticated science instruments, technology to collect samples for to Earth, and the first interplanetary helicopter that could produce a “Wright Brothers moment” on another world.