Scalding hot water vapor has been discovered in the atmosphere of an aging star, surprising scientists who thought the chemistry of such stars would forbid it.
Sep 1, 2010 - 9:20:04 PM
Results of a new study link a recent, temporary shrinking of a high atmospheric layer with a sharp drop in the Sun's ultraviolet radiation levels.
Aug 29, 2010 - 5:12:30 PM
A relatively new type of El Niño, which has its warmest waters in the central-equatorial Pacific Ocean, rather than in the eastern-equatorial Pacific, is becoming more common and progressively stronger, according to a new study by NASA and NOAA. The research may improve our understanding of the relationship between El Niños and climate change, and has potentially significant implications for long-term weather forecasting.
Aug 29, 2010 - 5:11:34 PM
The video below, which uses data from the Asteroid Orbital Elements Database, presents a visual history of the asteroids discovered since 1980.
Aug 29, 2010 - 5:10:22 PM
September offers longer nights in the northern hemisphere that tend to be less hazy than those experienced in mid-summer. In the sky, no major showers are visible from either hemisphere but the northern hemisphere enjoys the advantage of higher sporadic rates.
Aug 29, 2010 - 10:31:26 AM
A NASA space telescope has snapped a stunning photo of a huge, flower-shaped cloud of dust and gas about 5,000 light-years from Earth.
Aug 28, 2010 - 6:08:16 PM
Photos just released by the European Space Agency give an up-close look at the strange, elongated Martian crater known as Orcus Patera.
Aug 28, 2010 - 6:07:56 PM
Asteroids are changeable worlds that can split into pieces, creating two smaller space rocks with separate paths around the sun, a new study finds. The process can happen non-destructively - just add sunlight and lots of time.
Aug 28, 2010 - 6:00:21 PM
NJIT Distinguished Professor Philip R. Goode and the Big Bear Solar Observatory (BBSO) team have achieved "first light" using a deformable mirror in what is called adaptive optics at Big Bear Solar Observatory (BBSO).
Aug 24, 2010 - 11:08:26 AM
For the third time in just over a year, amateur astronomers have detected a comet or asteroid strike on Jupiter. The observations, made possible by the widespread use of astronomical video recordings, show that impacts on the giant planet occur more frequently than previously thought.
Aug 24, 2010 - 11:02:13 AM
Astronomers using ESO's world-leading HARPS instrument have discovered a planetary system containing at least five planets, orbiting the Sun-like star HD 10180. The researchers also have tantalising evidence that two other planets may be present, one of which would have the lowest mass ever found.
Aug 24, 2010 - 10:59:10 AM
The volcano that formed Turkey's largest lake is still active despite not having erupted in nearly 600 years, according to a group of international researchers working in the eastern province of Van.
Aug 24, 2010 - 10:14:45 AM
The Sun's corona is threaded with a complex network of magnetic fields, and this amazing new image from the Solar Dynamics Observatory shows the magnetic field lines associated with a coronal hole that is now turning to face Earth. This map is from data taken on August 20, 2010 by the Helioseismic and Magnetic Imager instrument (HMI).
Aug 23, 2010 - 12:30:04 PM
Finding the mass of other planets is tricky, and usually is done by measuring the orbits of their moons or of spacecraft flying past them. But an international group of astronomers have found a new way to weigh planets, and they have now weighed entire planetary systems using radio signals from pulsars.
Aug 23, 2010 - 12:12:02 PM
Tight double-star systems might not be the best places for life to spring up, according to a new study using data from NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope. The infrared observatory spotted a surprisingly large amount of dust around three mature, close-orbiting star pairs. Where did the dust come from? Astronomers say it might be the aftermath of tremendous planetary collisions.
Aug 23, 2010 - 12:10:08 PM
The solar system may be up to two million years older than previously thought, a new study has found.Researchers studying bits of a meteorite discovered that the space rock was 4.5682 billion years old, predating previous estimates of the solar system's age by up to 1.9 million years.
