What makes up the matter we perceive in the universe? To start, there are the usual suspects, like electrons, protons, quarks and neutrinos. But if those particles aren’t strange enough for you, I’m here to help. There are other particles that are so rare, we’re not even sure they exist. Here are five of the … Read more
The James Webb Space Telescope has discovered that the centaur called 2060 Chiron is an oddball. The object, which is a minor body that orbits the sun in the expanse between Jupiter and Neptune, has a mixture of ices and gases that make it stand out from other objects in the distant outer solar system. … Read more
It’s been a busy year on the sun, as it officially entered the peak of its roughly 11-year cycle of activity, known as solar maximum. In 2024, the sun launched over 50 X-class solar flares — the most powerful type of solar flare — at Earth. Solar flares are categorized by the level of X-rays … Read more
NASA’s first two crewed Artemis moon missions have been pushed back to 2026 and 2027, respectively, and the move could have big ramifications for the agency’s Artemis program and competition with China for leadership in space. Artemis 2, which will send a crew of three Americans and a Canadian astronaut around the moon, was due … Read more
Earth has never been more observed, with swarms of spacecraft providing nonstop satellite imagery of our planet. And there’s some amazing imagery to look back on this year! From historic hurricanes to a total solar eclipse, here are 12 breathtaking sights captured by NOAA’s GOES satellites in 2024. The 2025 EarthSky Lunar Calendar is now … Read more
Life in Silos 17 and 18 isn’t getting any easier as we enter the sixth episode of Apple TV+’s “Silo” titled “Barricades.” And this is an apt name for this chapter as all the traumatized denizens of the bunkers suffer restrictions from barricades, both physical and emotional, as their unnatural subterranean life seems to be … Read more
Bonobos (along with chimpanzees) are the closest surviving relatives to humans. They live solely in the Democratic Republic of the Congo in Central Africa. Bonobos are listed as endangered due to habitat loss and poaching for meat and pets. Unfortunately, poaching has left many bonobos orphans. On December 18, 2024, Durham University in the U.K. … Read more
Back to Article List MIT researchers have identified 138 near-Earth objects using a common astrophotography technique. NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope reveals a population of small asteroids in the main asteroid belt in this artist’s illustration. Credit: Ella Maru/MIT Over the past 200 years, astronomers have cataloged over a million asteroids in the solar system’s … Read more
Superman isn’t the only one with X-ray vision. Plenty of exploding stars are also adept at blasting outbursts of this high-energy light. Now, thanks to a chance discovery, scientists are aware of an entirely new explosive stellar source of X-ray radiation. These outbursts’ light output didn’t resemble any previous cosmic explosion. Meet the “millinovas,” a … Read more
There’s this running debate among astronomers about whether our moon deserves a proper name. After all, it is the way of our solar system. Other moons each have monikers, like Phobos and Deimos, and there is certainly no planet named “planet” nor asteroid named “asteroid.” Even worlds beyond our cosmic neighborhood have names, albeit often … Read more