Astronomy - Page 50

Ancient neutron-star crash made enough gold and uranium to fill Earth's oceans

May 13, 2019

Ancient neutron-star crash made enough gold and uranium to fill Earth's oceans

Enough gold, uranium and other heavy elements about equal in mass to all of Earth's oceans likely came to the solar system from the collision of two neutron stars billions of years ago, a new study finds.

2,000-year-old cosmic fossil found from star explosion Chinese astronomers saw millenia ago

May 8, 2019

2,000-year-old cosmic fossil found from star explosion Chinese astronomers saw millenia ago

Astronomers found a 2,000-year-old cosmic fossil embedded in a field of stars — likely the leftovers of an explosion that Chinese astronomers saw and wrote about long ago.

Scientists think they've found the ancient neutron star crash that showered our solar system in gold

May 8, 2019

Scientists think they've found the ancient neutron star crash that showered our solar system in gold

Two astronomers think they've pinpointed the ancient stellar collision that gave our solar system its cache of precious gold and platinum — some of it, anyway.

Hubble spots giant 'buckyballs' jiggling like Jell-O in space

May 2, 2019

Hubble spots giant 'buckyballs' jiggling like Jell-O in space

The Hubble Space Telescope recently spied new evidence of a peculiar molecule: wiggly buckyballs, which have intrigued astrophysicists since they were discovered in space nearly a decade ago.

Black hole spits out high-energy jets at near light-speed

May 1, 2019

Black hole spits out high-energy jets at near light-speed

A stunning new image reveals two jets of high-energy material being spewed at nearly light-speed from the first-ever photographed black hole .

The most distant object ever explored is lumpy. And astronomers don't know why.

April 30, 2019

The most distant object ever explored is lumpy. And astronomers don't know why.

Ultima Thule is lumpy, and scientists aren't sure why.

Physicists closer to solving mystery of weird glowing ring around Milky Way's Black Hole

April 26, 2019

Physicists closer to solving mystery of weird glowing ring around Milky Way's Black Hole

DENVER — Astronomers watched a high-speed gas cloud slam into the matter getting sucked toward Sagittarius A* — the supermassive black hole at the center of the Milky Way — and then zip away into space.

High-altitude auroras create 'speed bumps' for satellites

April 26, 2019

High-altitude auroras create 'speed bumps' for satellites

A high-altitude version of the northern lights can create a headwind for some orbiting satellites, a new study reports.

The world's largest atom smasher could be tweaked to hunt 'dark world' particles

April 24, 2019

The world's largest atom smasher could be tweaked to hunt 'dark world' particles

Scientists may have a new way to peer into physics' "dark world."

Lyrid meteor shower peaks this week: How to watch the starry spectacle

April 22, 2019

Lyrid meteor shower peaks this week: How to watch the starry spectacle

Stargazers are going to appreciate these April showers.