Articles tagged with Astrophysics
Researchers at Kyoto University observe a peculiar supernova explosion, SN 2022esa, which reveals the birth of a black hole binary. The study provides new direction for understanding massive star evolution and black hole formation.
A new study has created a comprehensive model of neutrino mapping, revealing that most stars in the Milky Way generate and emit these ghost particles. The research provides valuable insights into the universe, offering a unique way to explore cosmic phenomena.
Researchers found evidence that dark matter and neutrinos interact, offering a rare glimpse into the universe's darkest regions. The study casts doubt on the long-standing cosmological model, suggesting interactions between dark matter and neutrinos could explain a discrepancy in cosmic structure formation.
Astronomers have created a naturally occurring space weather station around complex periodic variable M dwarf stars to study the environment of planets. This discovery sheds new light on how stars affect their planets' makeup and might provide clues about the habitability of distant worlds.
A recent study suggests that lunar spacecraft exhaust methane can contaminate areas of the moon where original ingredients of earthly life may be found. The pollution can unfold rapidly, with more than half of the total exhaust methane settling in regions potentially harboring prebiotic organic molecules within seven days.
Researchers identified nine objects with characteristics of stars and galaxies, sparking new questions about the cosmos. These 'platypus galaxies' have narrow emission lines indicative of active star formation, defying expectations.
Scientists at CU Boulder have solved a pressing mystery about the universe's gravitational wave background by revealing the role of smaller galaxies in galaxy evolution. The new study suggests that when a smaller supermassive black hole merges with a larger one, the smaller black hole gains mass, producing larger gravitational waves.
Researchers at Texas A&M University are building highly sensitive detectors to explore dark matter and energy. The team's work builds on previous breakthroughs in detecting low-mass particles, and they aim to find ways to amplify signals that were previously buried in noise.
The CHSN01 jacket material has achieved an average yield strength of 1560 MPa at 4.2 K, setting a new benchmark in cryogenic steel properties. This breakthrough demonstrates exceptional mechanical properties, non-magnetic nature, and high-strength performance under extreme conditions.
A team of astronomers has discovered that the winds of giant stars like R Doradus are driven by complex processes, rather than being powered solely by starlight and stardust. The study used advanced computer simulations to model how starlight interacts with dust grains, finding that they are too small to be pushed outward by starlight ...
Researchers will use revolutionary technology to transform understanding of extreme environments, revealing how black holes behave and evolve. The project aims to deliver dynamic gravitational tomography, creating 3D movies showing plasma flows around black holes.
The Cherenkov Telescope Array Observatory has begun construction on its southern site in Chile, paving the way for the world's largest and most powerful observatory for gamma-ray astronomy. The CTAO will focus on understanding relativistic cosmic particles, probing extreme environments, and searching for dark matter.
Scientists have found that active galactic nuclei are two to six times more common in merging galaxies than non-merging counterparts. Galaxy mergers were most strongly associated with bright, dust-cloaked supermassive black holes linked to rapid growth.
Researchers reanalyze Cassini mission data to find that Titan's interior is more icy and slushy than previously thought, with implications for the search for life on Titan. The new findings suggest a slushy layer instead of an ocean, which could facilitate the growth of simple organisms.
Scientists have discovered a rare superkilonova event, which may have produced gravitational waves and light, as detected by LIGO and Virgo. The candidate kilonova AT2025ulz showed signs of a supernova before fading and brightening again in red wavelengths.
Researchers detect strong evidence for an atmosphere on ultra-hot super-Earth TOI-561 b, challenging the idea that small planets can't sustain atmospheres. The planet's unusually low density is explained by a thick volatile-rich atmosphere that circulates heat and cools the nightside.
A team of astronomers detected with precision two huge tails of gas surrounding the ultra-hot Jupiter WASP-121b using the James Webb Space Telescope. The continuous observation revealed a trailing tail pushed back by radiation and a leading tail pulled towards the star, covering over three times the distance between planet and star.
A new study by the University of Zurich suggests that Uranus and Neptune may be more rocky than icy, challenging their classification as ice giants. The researchers developed a unique simulation process to model the planets' interiors, which found that the two planets could have either water-rich or rock-rich compositions.
Astronomers discovered a never-seen-before blast from a supermassive black hole, whipping up powerful winds at 60,000 km per second. The event was triggered by an X-ray flare and formed in just one day, providing new insights into the magnetism of active galactic nuclei (AGNs).
Astronomers discover galaxy Virgil with dual personality – ordinary in visible light but harboring massive black hole. JWST observations reveal hidden nature of Virgil, challenging current models of black hole formation.
Astronomers have detected a new gamma-ray source near Westerlund 1, a young massive star cluster in the Milky Way. The source is connected to a 'nascent outflow' of particles driven by the cluster's collective wind, creating a cavity in the interstellar medium.
The K-DRIFT pathfinder telescope, a compact off-axis freeform three-mirror system, has been developed to capture faint galactic structures. With its improved performance, the telescope achieves higher resolution and sharper images, paving the way for uncovering the hidden history of galaxy formation and evolution.
Scientists at UNIGE have developed a high-precision spectrograph called RISTRETTO to analyze light from the exoplanet Proxima b. The instrument can detect signs of oxygen or water in its atmosphere, similar to Earth.
Michael Blanton will lead the Carnegie Science Observatories as its 12th director, focusing on large-scale astronomical surveys to constrain cosmological history. The new director brings a deep well of knowledge of instrumentation and data collection to oversee research at Pasadena's campus and Las Campanas Observatory.
A team of researchers at Kyoto University used X-ray spectroscopy to measure the amount of chlorine and potassium inside a supernova remnant, revealing that these elements were created in intense environments deep inside stars. The study suggests that strong mixing inside massive stars can enhance the production of these elements.
A new study on TRAPPIST-1's flares could help scientists unravel how the star shapes its nearby planets, potentially in drastic ways. The researchers used observations from NASA's James Webb Space Telescope and computer simulations to understand the physics behind TRAPPIST-1's temper tantrums.
Researchers developed a comprehensive model of luminous black hole accretion, including radiation flows and interactions with surrounding gas. Their simulations reproduce consistent behaviors across various black hole systems, providing insight into extreme nonlinear processes.
Groundbreaking simulations reveal how black holes create dazzling light shows by material zipping around them. The results could help explain hundreds of faintly luminous objects spotted in the early universe.
Researchers have identified a massive cosmic filament containing 280 galaxies, many of which are spinning in the same direction as the filament itself. The discovery provides rare insight into how galaxies gain their spin and could inform future efforts to model intrinsic alignments of galaxies.
Scientists studied the effects of two hot stars, Epsilon and Beta Canis Majoris, on the local interstellar clouds around our solar system. The team found that these stars' ultraviolet radiation ionized about 20% of the hydrogen atoms and 40% of the helium atoms in the clouds.
Astronomers from UNIGE and others observe large streams of helium gas escaping from WASP-107b, a super-puff exoplanet with extremely low density. This is the first time helium has been detected on an exoplanet using JWST, revealing valuable clues for understanding atmospheric escape.
Researchers believe they have finally detected gamma rays predicted by the annihilation of theoretical dark matter particles. The observed energy spectrum matches the emission predicted from weakly interacting massive particles, with a mass approximately 500 times that of a proton.
Astronomers detected faint 'starquakes' in the companion star of Gaia BH2, allowing them to measure its core properties with remarkable precision. The star's makeup contradicts its age, suggesting it acquired extra mass from a companion through a merger.
The German Research Foundation has awarded a €10 million grant to the Collaborative Research Centre 211 'Strong-Interaction Matter under Extreme Conditions' for its third phase, extending funding for another 3.5 years.
Researchers used NASA's IXPE telescope to study the innermost region of an intermediate polar, revealing a surprisingly high degree of X-ray polarization and an unexpected direction of polarization. The team found that X-rays were emitted from a column of white-hot material pulled in by the white dwarf's strong magnetic field.
Researchers aim to prove Einstein wrong by testing Lorentz invariance, a fundamental concept in quantum field theory and the Standard Model of Particle Physics. Despite not succeeding, their new bounds improve upon previous limits by an order of magnitude.
The international collaboration has detected a significant fraction of gravitational signals, constituting two-thirds of approximately 350 signals detected to date. The analysis of the data has led to numerous new discoveries and a deeper understanding of compact binary systems and fundamental physical processes in the universe.
The team discovered a flat, spherical gas and dust structure resembling a diamond ring, formed by a massive star's radiation and winds. The 'Diamond Ring' is around 20 light years in diameter and shines strongly in infrared light.
Researchers at RIKEN successfully simulated the Milky Way Galaxy with over 100 billion individual stars, far surpassing previous state-of-the-art models. This achievement demonstrates the power of AI-accelerated simulations in tackling complex multi-scale problems in astrophysics and beyond.
New research reveals Pleiades star cluster as core of larger structure spanning 1,950 light-years, with similar ages and chemical compositions among its members. The study uses rotation-based approach to identify stars sharing origin story.
Astrophysicists used simulations to uncover the missing piece that previous studies had overlooked: magnetic fields. They found that strong magnetic fields can slow down a black hole and carry away some of its stellar mass, creating lighter and more slowly spinning black holes.
Researchers at University of Würzburg successfully tested an AI-based attitude controller for satellites directly in orbit, using Deep Reinforcement Learning. The test demonstrated the speed and flexibility of the DRL approach, which can automate control strategies and adapt to differences between expected and actual conditions.
A UNIGE-led team found that dark matter behaves similarly to ordinary matter on a cosmological scale, following Euler's equations. However, the possibility of an unknown interaction or fifth force remains open.
Researchers create plasma 'fireballs' using a laboratory analogue of blazar-driven pair cascades, finding no disruption from beam-plasma instabilities. This suggests that intergalactic medium contains a relic magnetic field likely seeded during the early Universe.
Researchers developed a new spectral shaper technology that can precisely control 10,000 individual lines of light, improving signal fidelity and enabling faster data transfer in various fields. This advancement could aid in the detection of Earth-like planets by making tiny stellar wobbles easier to measure.
A new study from UBC Okanagan has mathematically proven that the fundamental nature of reality operates in a way that no computer could simulate. The researchers demonstrate that a complete and consistent description of everything requires non-algorithmic understanding, which is beyond algorithmic computation.
Two distant black hole mergers, measured one month apart in 2024, provide insights into the nature and evolution of deep-space collisions. The mergers validate fundamental laws of physics predicted by Einstein and furthers the search for new elementary particles with potential to extract energy from black holes.
The LIGO-Virgo-KAGRA Collaboration reports the detection of two gravitational wave events with unusual black hole spins. The observed black holes have size differentials and spin orientations that suggest they were formed through earlier mergers, providing evidence for hierarchical mergers in dense cosmic environments.
A team from the International Centre for Radio Astronomy Research has assembled a record-breaking radio colour image of the Milky Way. The unprecedented level of detail offers new insights into the galaxy's radio emission and structure.
Researchers developed a new method to probe an atom's nucleus using its own electrons as messengers within a molecule. They measured the energy of electrons whizzing around a radium atom in a molecule, detecting a slight energy shift and analyzing it to sense the internal structure of the nucleus.
Researchers revive dark matter as a serious contender for explaining the Milky Way's central glow, proposing a more complex and nonspherical dark matter structure. Advanced simulations reveal that dark matter may still be the best explanation for the excess of high-energy radiation observed by NASA's Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope.
A mysterious glow in the Milky Way could be a clue to dark matter's existence. Researchers used supercomputers to simulate dark matter locations and found matches with actual gamma ray maps.
A team of astronomers has discovered the first tidal disruption event producing bright radio emission outside the center of a galaxy. The event revealed the fastest-evolving radio emission ever observed from a black-hole-driven stellar disruption, suggesting delayed and complex processes in the aftermath of the disruption.
Researchers seek to understand the origin of eccentric warm Jupiters, which are thought to have complex formation processes. Building on precise data from NASA's Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite, scientists aim to develop new models and update existing ones to shed light on these planetary outliers.
Recent studies reveal a class of short period binary systems where white dwarfs are inflated and their surface temperatures can reach 10-30 thousand degrees Kelvin. Tidal forces can strongly influence the evolution of these stars, causing them to inflate and increase in temperature.
Researchers at the University of York suggest Dark Matter could impart a subtle red or blue tint to light as it passes through regions with Dark Matter presence. Detecting such effects could open up a new way to study invisible mass in the cosmos.
A team of astronomers has discovered a mysterious dark object in the distant universe with a mass about 1 million times that of our Sun. The discovery is significant as it could confirm or refute theories about the nature of dark matter.
A Northwestern University-led team of astronomers used NASA's James Webb Space Telescope to capture the most detailed glimpse yet of a doomed star before it exploded. The study reveals that massive red supergiants rarely explode due to thick clouds of dust, but JWST's new capabilities can pierce through the dust to spot these phenomena.
A new study uses general-purpose AI to classify real cosmic events and explain its reasoning without complex training. The model achieved approximately 93% accuracy and provided plain-English explanations for every classification.
Scientists from Auburn University have detected hydroxyl gas from interstellar comet 3I/ATLAS, providing insight into the evolution of comets and their chemical composition. The discovery suggests that water activity can occur at large distances from the Sun, challenging current understanding of planetary formation.