News – Page 42 – Astronomy Now

WFIRST telescope passes preliminary design review

30 August 2019 Astronomy Now

NASA’s Wide Field Infrared Survey Telescope optical system passes a preliminary design review, a major milestone in the Hubble-class wide-field observatory.

Earth’s chemical fingerprint could help identify habitable exoplanets

29 August 2019 Astronomy Now

Canadian astronomers have determined Earth’s spectral “fingerprint,” the characteristics that would indicate whether an exoplanet might have a viable biosphere.

NASA helicopter attached to agency’s Mars 2020 rover

29 August 2019 Astronomy Now

An experimental helicopter has been attached to NASA’s Mars 2020 rover, a pathfinder that could pave the way for more advanced aircraft on future missions.

Exoplanet found in unusually long, elliptical orbit

28 August 2019 Astronomy Now

Astronomers find an exoplanet three times more massive than Jupiter in an extreme elliptical orbit, another milestone for the radial velocity detection technique.

IAU approves names for newly discovered moons

26 August 2019 Astronomy Now

The IAU approves names for five newly discovered moons of Jupiter

Second giant planet found orbiting Beta Pictoris

22 August 2019 Astronomy Now

Astronomers have found a second giant planet orbiting the nearby star Beta Pictoris where a solar system is in the process of forming.

NASA’s Europa Clipper approved for development

20 August 2019 Astronomy Now

NASA formally approves development of the Europa Clipper, a spacecraft intended to explore Jupiter’s icy moon Europa in search of clues about a potentially habitable sub-surface ocean.

Black hole gobbles neutron star, belches gravity waves

19 August 2019 Astronomy Now

Gravity waves detected 14 August indicate the apparent destruction of a neutron star being ripped apart by a black hole, researchers say

A supernova that may shed light on how the first stars died

18 August 2019 Astronomy Now

Astronomers find an apparent pair-instability supernova, a titanic blast that may shed light on how the first stars ended their lives in a metal-poor cosmos.

A core-warping impact in Jupiter’s past?

17 August 2019 Astronomy Now

Researchers a collision between Jupiter and a still-forming planet at the dawn of the solar system best explains data suggesting the gas giant’s core is less dense than expected.