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Just Wonderful Space Telescope News

JWST launches the first day of astronomy’s big meeting with news about science, technology, and galaxies!

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Artist impression of the debris disk surrounding star HD53143.

Artist impression of the debris disk surrounding star HD53143. Credit: ALMA (ESO/NAOJ/NRAO); M. Weiss (NRAO/AUI/NSF)

Disks and Planet Formation

The connection between disks and planet formation continues to expand as astronomers view them in new detail.

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Artists rendering of a "hot Jupiter"

An artist’s rendering of a “hot Jupiter,” a type of gas giant planet that orbits very close to its star.

Hot Jupiters and Engulfed Planets

Screwball giant planets and ravenous stars kick off this week’s gathering of professional astronomers.

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brown dwarf

This artist’s concept shows a brown dwarf with clouds, much like you might expect to find on a giant planet. Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/T. Pyle (IPAC)

Star or Planet? Both or Neither?

I can’t help imagining brown dwarfs as having an identity crisis. And two announcements today did not help them.

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Fermi bubbles

A snapshot from the Digital Universe shows a representation of the Fermi bubbles emerging from our Milky Way galaxy. Lines show the view from Earth to distant quasars, used to determine that the Fermi bubbles formed millions of years ago during an outburst from the Milky Way’s central supermassive black hole.

Of Bubbles and Black Holes

You may have heard the rumor—that a supermassive black hole lurks at the center of our galaxy? It's true.

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Two merging black holes

Simulation of light emitted by two merging supermassive black holes surrounded by nearly transparent gas. (Image courtesy NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center.)

Black Holes Near and Far

How do black holes form? And why do they always feel like the popular kids in school?

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AB Aurigae

Planets form in disks around young stars, and this image shows a face-on view of AB Aurigae, which shows a “twist” near the center where a planet is likely forming. The image was taken by the Very Large Telescope (VLT), operated by the European Southern Observatory (ESO).

Thoughts from a Planetarian: Universe Update for May 2020

Join us on a journey through the Universe as we share recent news from the cosmos.

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NASA Artemis
Thoughts from a Planetarian: Who Sold the Moon?

Humankind has its eyes on the Moon’s resources. Should we strip-mine the Moon? Why or why not?

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Artists Illustration of two neutron stars colliding

Artists illustration of a neutron star collision. Image Source: NASA

A Stellar Smash Up Makes Waves—and What Else?

News Headline, Gravitational waves, gamma ray bursts, and reading between the lines.

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NASA/JPL-Caltech/Vivien Parmentier/Aix-Marseille University (AMU)
The Life of Water on an Ultrahot Jupiter

Even water needs sunscreen when the stars are this close.

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Image courtesy of NASA Image Gallery
Radiation: An Obstacle for Life

We're well-protected from solar radiation. But what about life on other planets and moons? Could it survive?

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TESS, NASA
Your Space Trash—My Space Treasure?

Could we use space debris to find technologically advanced life on other planets?

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Small, Spinning Galaxies

Big surprises coming from little galaxies…

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NASA/JPL-Caltech/Univ. of Arizona
Rolling Grains of Sand on the Red Planet

The dark streaks on Mars may have no equivalent on Earth.

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