Uncategorized – Astronomy Now

Join us for the Cosmic Clouds 3-D book launch

22 September 2020 Astronomy Now

Join us at 8pm BST (1900 GMT) for the launch of Cosmic Cloud 3-D, hosted by London’s Science Museum. Featuring a breath-taking lenticular 3-D front cover, Cosmic Clouds 3-D takes you on a mesmerising journey that tells the story of the birth, death and recycling of stars in nebulae.

Watch today’s major announcement from the Royal Astronomical Society

14 September 2020 Astronomy Now

The Royal Astronomical Society is hosting a news conference today to announce a groundbreaking astronomy result. Tune in at 4pm BST (1500 GMT).

Watch the lunar eclipse

31 January 2018 Astronomy Now

Live video from NASA of today’s total lunar eclipse. The so-called super blue blood Moon.

First light detected from violent neutron star collision

16 October 2017 Astronomy Now

For the first time, scientists have detected light tied to a gravitational-wave event, thanks to two merging neutron stars in the galaxy NGC 4993, located about 130 million light-years from Earth in the constellation Hydra.

Watch NASA exoplanets announcement

22 February 2017 Astronomy Now

Watch live as NASA holds a news conference at the space agency’s headquarters in Washington, DC to announce new findings on exoplanets. The news conference begins at 6pm GMT.

Live coverage: Falcon 9 rocket counting down to launch tonight

14 August 2016 Stephen Clark

For the second time this year, SpaceX is preparing to launch a commercial communications satellite for Tokyo-based SKY Perfect JSAT Corp. early Sunday. A Falcon 9 rocket is set to blast off at 1:26 a.m. EDT (0526 GMT) from Cape Canaveral with the JCSAT 16 satellite to relay data and video across Japan and the Asia-Pacific. A first stage landing attempt will follow in the Atlantic Ocean a few minutes later.

LISA Pathfinder success paves way for space-based gravitational wave detection

9 June 2016 Astronomy Now

LISA Pathfinder, a mission led by the European Space Agency with contributions from NASA, has successfully tested key technology needed to build a space-based observatory for detecting gravitational waves. These tiny ripples in the fabric of space, predicted by Albert Einstein a century ago, were first seen last year by the ground-based Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave Observatory (LIGO).

How to view the transit of Mercury online on 9 May

8 May 2016 Astronomy Now

The 2016 transit of Mercury is upon us! With fine weather predicted across a large swathe of the British Isles, many will enjoy clear skies for at least some of this 7½-hour event. But if you don’t have a suitably equipped telescope, or are unable to attend any of the transit-viewing activities organised nationwide, you can still view the phenomenon online.

Where to view the transit of Mercury on 9 May

7 May 2016 Astronomy Now

With the transit of Mercury just two days away, interest in this comparatively rare event is growing fast. Given the favourable timing of this 7½-hour phenomenon for the UK, many will be able to view it at lunchtime or after work. If you don’t have suitably equipped telescope, join one of the many transit-viewing activities hosted by astronomical organisations nationwide.

Discovery of two close-in exoplanet companions sheds new light on planet formation

19 October 2015 Astronomy Now

Some 300 so-called hot Jupiters have been identified over the past two decades, but how did these large, hot planets ever get so close to their suns? Now scientists have made a startling discovery: One of these mysterious hot Jupiter systems has not one, but two close-in planetary companions, leading to new clues about planet formation and migration.