astronomy Archives

Two Perseid meteors from western NC (Emily Willoughby)

Discovered: Nearby Planets that Could Host Life

May 3, 2016April 3, 2021 Science Connectedastronomy, life in space, stars

MIT researchers found three potentially habitable planets orbiting an ultra-cool dwarf star. Three planets, just 40 light years away from Earth, could support life. And we will be able to explore them within the next ten years. The study, released today in Nature, located the planets just 40 light years away from Earth. While scientists continue to explore the potential of life on Europa, one of Jupiter’s moons, the newly-discovered planets represent the most likely so far to host life outside our solar system. The study’s lead author, Julien de Wit, tells us why the…

Astronomy and Astrophysics

Hubble Space Telescope Got the GOODS!

March 21, 2016March 18, 2021 Science Connectedastronomy, Hubble, space exploration, telescope

The Hubble Space Telescope has been conducting a deep-sky survey called “Great Observatories Origins Deep Survey North,” or GOODS North.

This artist's conception shows a blazar -- the core of an active galaxy powered by a supermassive black hole. The VERITAS array has detected gamma rays from a blazar known as PKS 1441+25. Researchers found that the source of the gamma rays was within the relativistic jet but surprisingly far from the galaxy's black hole. The emitting region is about five light-years away. Courtesy of M. Weiss/CfA

Astronomy and Astrophysics

Gamma Rays from a Galaxy Far, Far Away

January 4, 2016 Science Connectedastronomy, space

After traveling for about half the age of the universe, a flood of powerful gamma rays from a distant galaxy slammed into Earth’s atmosphere in April 2015. The gamma rays met our atmosphere and formed a cascade of light that fell onto the waiting mirrors of the Very Energetic Radiation Imaging Telescope Array System (VERITAS) in Arizona. The resulting data have given astronomers a unique look into that faraway galaxy and the black hole engine at its heart. What Are Gamma Rays? Gamma rays are photons of light with very…

Astronomy and Astrophysics

We May Send Humans to Mars by 2030

November 24, 2015November 20, 2015 Science Connectedastronomy, Mars, space

Our partners at ResearchGate recently spoke with Alfonso Davila from SETI, the Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence Institute, about what draws us to explore the red planet and beyond. Interested in Mars? Don’t miss this other article about the Martian atmosphere. ResearchGate: What motivates you to explore living conditions – and possible life – on Mars? Davila: The motivation is twofold. On the one hand there is this nagging drive to understand life at the most fundamental levels (the “what is life?” question), and on the other hand there is this obsessive curiosity about the possibility of life elsewhere…

Comet Lovejoy C/2014 Q2, photographed on 22 Feb. 2015 by Fabrice Noel

Astronomy and Astrophysics

Comet Lovejoy Delivers Free Alcohol

October 28, 2015October 27, 2015 Science Connectedastronomy, comets, origins of life

By Kate Stone Comet Lovejoy recently released large amounts of alcohol and sugar into space, according to new observations by an international team. This is the first time we have found ethyl alcohol, the same type in alcoholic beverages, in a comet. The finding adds to the evidence that comets could have been a source of the complex organic molecules necessary for the emergence of life. Cocktails in Space “We found that comet Lovejoy was releasing as much alcohol as in at least 500 bottles of wine every second during…

Astronomy and Astrophysics

New Horizon’s Pluto Flyby

July 14, 2015September 2, 2015 Science Connectedastronomy, NASA, solar system, space, spacecraft

NASA’s spacecraft New Horizons entered its closest approach with Pluto yesterday, as part of its nine-year mission to study the last of the nine “classical” planets in our solar system. Later today, we will receive the first “phone home” communication from the spacecraft. Here on Earth, scientists are eagerly awaiting today’s transmission from New Horizons. One of them is Noemi Pinilla-Alonso, an astrophysicist at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville and formerly of NASA. Our friends at ResearchGate recently chatted with Pinilla-Alonso about her hopes and plans for the long-awaited data.…

Astronomy and Astrophysics Science Videos

Stargazing Across Time: Shelf Life Episode 5

April 22, 2015April 22, 2015 Science Connectedastronomy, science videos, space, stargazing

Stargazing For eons, humanity has been fascinated by the stars. From sundials to telescopes, episode five of the Shelf Life series showcases not only the tools that have been used to observe the sky throughout history but also the stargazing technology of the future. Even though the tools currently in use for observing space are more powerful than ever before, there is still room for improvement. Scientists are working on space-based and land-based telescopes that will capture images of the universe in unparalleled detail. One new device in the planning stages…

Partial Solar Eclipse March 2015 (Steven Spence)

Astronomy and Astrophysics Environment Science and Art

Solar Eclipse from Stuttgart, Germany

March 23, 2015September 4, 2015 Science Connectedastronomy, nature photography, solar eclipse

On March 20, 2015, people across Europe, northern and eastern Asia, and northern and western Africa were treated to the best view of a partial solar eclipse. Steven Spence, a member of EH Science’s Contributors Community, was fortunate to witness this special celestial event, and today he shares with us his experience of photographing it. Don’t miss Steven’s other photos, including Winter Bees, First Visitors. Where I live in Germany we were lucky with the weather and had clear skies for the partial solar eclipse, and I found a…

Planet Earth Control Panel, Eleanor Lutz

Astronomy and Astrophysics Science and Art

Planet Earth’s Control Panel

February 16, 2015September 4, 2015 Science Connectedastronomy, infographic, science and art, space

This planet earth control panel infographic is the work of the fabulous Eleanor Lutz. Lutz is a Seattle-based graphic designer with a bachelor’s degree in molecular biology. She created this particular work of science-meets-art as a celebration of America’s tax-funded space program: NASA. NASA stands for National Aeronautics and Space Administration. NASA was started in 1958 as a part of the United States government. NASA is in charge of U.S. science and technology research that has to do with airplanes, space, and atmospheric conditions. From Planet Earth to Spaceship Earth “I wanted to…

An artist's conception of Kepler-444 with a planet passing across it (Tiago Campante/Peter Devine)

Astronomy and Astrophysics

Earth-sized Planets, Ancient Star System Found

January 27, 2015April 7, 2021 Science Connectedastronomy, experiments in space, space

An ancient solar system, dating back to the dawn of the Milky Way Galaxy, has been discovered by an international team of astronomers. Researchers have found five Earth-sized planets in orbit around a Sun-like star called Kepler-444 that, at 11.2 billion years old, is the oldest star with a planetary system ever found. This discovery suggests that ancient worlds are out there, and some of them may support life. Each of Kepler-444’s planets is a little smaller than Earth. “We’ve never seen anything like this – it is such an…