The Dawn of ‘Dark Ages’ Astronomy
The universe’s light-starved early epochs, as well as the first stars and galaxies, lie beyond the reach of conventional observatories but could be revealed by a new generation of radio telescope arrays
Why We Probably Won’t Find Aliens Anytime Soon
Odds are that we’re not truly alone in the cosmos. But practically speaking, we might as well be
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A Science Breakthrough Too Good to Be True? It Probably Isn’t
The more exciting, transformative and revolutionary a science result appears, especially if it comes out of nowhere, the more likely it is to be dead wrong. So approach science headlines with a healthy amount of skepticism and patience
Why Is the Sky Dark at Night? You Can Thank the Big Bang
Called Olbers’ paradox, the seemingly simple mystery of the sky’s darkness is something that stumped astronomers for centuries
Famous Star Hasn’t Formed Planets, and We Don’t Know Why
The nearby star Vega, featured in the 1997 movie Contact, appears to have a smooth disk devoid of giant planets for reasons we can’t explain
Ending NASA’s Chandra Will Cut Us Out of the High-Resolution X-Ray Universe
The Chandra X-ray Observatory is facing closure. Shutting it down would be a loss to science as a whole
What’s the Roundest Object in the Universe?
Finding a perfect sphere is actually pretty difficult
Scientists Spy a ‘Dandelion’ Supernova around a ‘Zombie’ Star
A strange supernova remnant first appeared as a “guest star” seen in 1181 by sky watchers in China and Japan
Scientists Nuke an Asteroid in a Lab Mock-Up
Experiment shows that a nuclear explosion could save the planet from a deadly asteroid impact
Shields Up! Lunar Swirls Arise from Ancient Underground Force Fields on the Moon
Wispy whorls on the moon’s surface are as lovely as they are strange. Scientists are starting to unravel their origins
Black Hole Detectors Fulfill Moore’s Law
A famous prediction that microchips improve exponentially over time can be applicable in unrelated developments, such as the technology used to discover colliding black holes
Will the Milky Way and Andromeda Galaxies Ever Collide?
Andromeda and the Milky Way may collide, or they may safely swing past each other. Time will tell