News – Astronomy Now

Hypernova sheds new light on how massive stars die

17 January 2019 Astronomy Now

Astronomers observing a hypernova 500 million light years away have found an explanation for why some generate gamma ray bursts and others do not.

Binary star system found with polar dust disc

17 January 2019 Astronomy Now

Astronomers have found a binary star system with a ring of debris tilted at right angles to the plane of the stars’ orbit, indicating planets likely can form in a wide variety of orientations.

A star’s death sheds light on black hole’s spin

14 January 2019 Astronomy Now

The remains of a destroyed star in a disc of shredded debris around a supermassive black hole showed the hole was spinning at more than half the speed of light.

Astronomers debate an unprecedented “holy cow” outburst

13 January 2019 Astronomy Now

Astronomers are debating what triggered an explosion of light in a galaxy 200 million like years away that was 10 to 100 times brighter than a typical supernova.

Hubble spies brightest known quasar in the early universe

11 January 2019 Astronomy Now

The Hubble Space Telescope has spotted the brightest quasar ever seen in the early universe, an active galactic nucleus shining 11 trillion times brighter than the Sun.

Hubble’s Wide Field Camera 3 expected back on line soon

10 January 2019 Astronomy Now

Engineers are optimistic they can safely return the Wide Field Camera 3 aboard the Hubble Space Telescope to normal operation after a fault 8 January.

Direct evidence of white dwarf crystallisation found

10 January 2019 Astronomy Now

Using data collected by ESA’s Gaia spacecraft, researchers have found direct evidence that white dwarfs eventually crystallise as they slowly cool after running out of fuel.

Habitable worlds orbiting dwarf stars may not be commonplace after all

9 January 2019 Astronomy Now

Observations by the Hubble Space Telescope and ESO’s Very Large Telescope indicate processes that may limit the habitability of planets orbiting dwarf stars.

Hardware problem knocks Hubble camera off line

9 January 2019 Astronomy Now

Engineers are troubleshooting a hardware problem with the Wide Field Camera 3, one of the Hubble Space Telescope’s premier science instruments.

TESS on track to revolutionise exoplanet astronomy

8 January 2019 Astronomy Now

In just three months, NASA’s Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite, or TESS, discovered three confirmed worlds, 280 candidates and six supernovae.