Articles tagged with Milky Way
A new study using the James Webb Space Telescope found that the universe's early galaxies developed and matured much faster than previously believed. Almost 20% of disc galaxies observed had bar formations, indicating a more settled stage in galaxy evolution.
Researchers have discovered a star orbiting a massive black hole 33 times heavier than the sun's mass, located 1500 light-years away from Earth. The binary system Gaia BH3 contains an ordinary star that seems to have formed over ten billion years ago.
Researchers found compelling evidence that the Milky Way highlighted Nut's divine presence, tracing her backbone across the heavens. The study also connected Egyptian beliefs with those of other cultures, showing similarities in how different societies interpret the Milky Way.
Astrophysicists simulated 1,000 stars orbiting the galaxy's central supermassive black hole and found that collision survivors can lose mass to become stripped down low-mass stars or merge with other stars. The likelihood of collision increases for stars closer to the supermassive black hole.
Scientists unveil strong and organized magnetic fields near Sagittarius A* black hole, strikingly similar to M87*, suggesting common traits among all black holes. The discovery hints at a hidden jet in Sgr A* and reveals the importance of magnetic fields in black hole interactions.
Researchers used a powerful framework called THEMIS to generate clear images of the Sagittarius A* (Sgr A*) black hole, revealing its plasma ring and magnetic field lines. The study provides strong evidence for the need of strong magnetic fields in the accretion disk to push accreting plasma around.
Researchers observed strong, twisted, and organised magnetic fields near the black hole at the centre of the Milky Way galaxy. The findings suggest that strong magnetic fields may be common to all black holes.
Astronomers Khyati Malhan and Hans-Walter Rix identified two proto-galactic fragments, Shakti and Shiva, that merged with an early Milky Way between 12-13 billion years ago. These remnants share low metal content and unusual energy and angular momentum values, making them potential ancestors of the galaxy.
Astronomers have found a second-generation star in the Large Magellanic Cloud that formed in a different galaxy, offering clues about how elements were enriched in the universe. This discovery provides new hints about the early element-forming process and suggests that conditions may not be the same across all galaxies.
Researchers at Nagoya University discovered IVCs have lower heavy elements than previously reported, contradicting the Galactic Fountain Model. This finding suggests that particles in these clouds originated outside our galaxy, leading to new insights into galaxy evolution.
A team of researchers discovered that some white dwarf stars stopped cooling due to the formation of floating crystals, which displace heavier material and release gravitational energy. This phenomenon challenges the traditional view of white dwarfs as 'dead stars' and requires a revision of astronomy textbooks.
A team of 160 researchers from 60 institutions used supercomputers to simulate galaxy formation, correcting limitations and assumptions. The results show disc galaxies formed early in the Universe's history, solving the 'missing satellites problem'.
Astronomers have discovered a massive, wave-shaped structure in the Milky Way, which is oscillating through space-time. The Radcliffe Wave is approximately 9,000 light years long and moves like a traveling wave, with star clusters along its path moving up and down.
Researchers have discovered a multi-planet system that provides a rare glimpse into the formation of planets around a young star. The system consists of six confirmed planets and potentially a seventh, all forming under similar conditions at an age of just 700 million years.
A team of MIT physicists analyzed Gaia and APOGEE data to find stars farther out in the galactic disk are rotating more slowly than expected. This flat rotation curve indicates a lower mass galactic core, potentially containing less dark matter than previously estimated.
A team of international scientists has spotted a new type of elderly giant star, nicknamed 'old smokers,' which emits clouds of smoke over decades. These stars, hidden from view in visible light, were discovered using infrared light and have significant implications for the spread of heavy elements in space.
Researchers found an unknown object orbiting a rapidly spinning millisecond pulsar, weighing more than the heaviest neutron stars and less than the lightest black holes. The discovery was made using the MeerKAT Radio Telescope and could reveal new insights into black holes and neutron stars.
A team of astronomers used JWST data to create detailed photos of nearby star-forming galaxies, revealing the intricate physics of cosmic dust. The study found consistent patterns in the distribution of diffuse gas across galaxies, suggesting universal principles in star and planet formation.
A team of astronomers created the first-ever 3D map of magnetic field structures within a spiral arm of the Milky Way galaxy, showing that magnetic fields break away from the general picture and impact star-forming regions. The findings suggest that magnetic fields played a role in creating our own solar system.
Researchers from Lehigh University have successfully mapped 15 orphaned stars to their birth clusters in the Milky Way using Gaia Mission data. The study provides new insights into the galaxy's history and star cluster dynamics.
Researchers used ALMA to study the motion of gas in ancient spiral galaxy BRI 1335-0417, detecting seismic waves that reveal the galaxy's dynamic growth. The findings suggest that gas was streaming into the galaxy or colliding with smaller galaxies, fueling star formation at a rate hundreds of times faster than modern galaxies.
The EXPLORE toolkit offers interactive visual analytics and machine learning to analyze galaxy data, identify unusual stars, and visualize the lunar surface. Users can create immersive experiences, including 3D models of the Moon and interactive sky maps.
Researchers at Lund University have determined the age of three mysterious baby stars at the heart of the Milky Way, finding them to be 100 million to 1 billion years old. The stars' unusual chemical composition also surprised the team, indicating that the galaxy's center may be inhomogeneous.
Researchers discover substantial presence of frozen carbon monoxide in 'The Brick', a mysterious dark region at the Milky Way's center. The findings indicate a critical need to re-evaluate established theories regarding star formation.
Astronomers discover star S0-6 with chemical composition similar to small galaxies outside Milky Way, suggesting extragalactic origin. The star, 10 billion years old, has traveled over 50,000 light-years from its birthplace to reach vicinity of Sagittarius A*, raising questions about its past and possible companions.
Researchers from Rice University and Durham University discovered a rotating disc of material circling a massive young star outside the Milky Way. The finding provides strong evidence for the formation process of high-mass stars, which are several times bigger than the Sun.
A team of astronomers led by Durham University detected a rotating disc structure around a forming high-mass star in another galaxy, marking the first extragalactic detection. The disc is estimated to be around 15 times the mass of our Sun and provides insights into star formation across different galactic environments.
The Telescope Array has detected the second-highest energy cosmic ray ever observed, with an energy equivalent to dropping a brick on your toe from waist height. The Amaterasu particle deepens the mystery of ultra-high-energy cosmic rays, which may follow particle physics unknown to science.
Researchers found a barred spiral galaxy similar to the Milky Way at a redshift of 3, challenging previous understanding of galaxy evolution. The discovery suggests that galaxies matured and became ordered much faster than thought, with implications for theories of galaxy formation and evolution.
Astronomers have observed the active galactic nucleus of the Circinus Galaxy, resolving a long-standing mystery about how gas feeds supermassive black holes. The team found that most gas is expelled as atomic or molecular outflows and recycled into an accretion flow, rather than directly contributing to black hole growth.
A young star cluster, IRS13, has been found to be significantly younger than expected, with stars only 100,000 years old, despite being near the supermassive black hole Sgr A*. The cluster's turbulent history suggests it was 'captured' by the black hole's gravity, leading to a bow shock and increased star formation.
Astronomers at Harvard University have discovered a tilted dark matter halo, explaining the Milky Way's warp and flare. The team used models to calculate star orbits within a warped, oblong dark matter halo, matching existing observations of a distorted galaxy.
Astronomers used James Webb Space Telescope to discover that Milky Way-like galaxies are surprisingly common and dominated throughout the universe's history. These 'disk' galaxies formed 10 billion years ago or longer and were previously thought to be fragile in early Universe.
A WVU astronomer is searching the Milky Way for debris left behind by supernovas, with $331,170 in NSF funding. He hopes to discover new supernova remnants using radio wavelength data from telescopes and machine-learning software.
An international team of scientists reported on a radio pulsar phase from a Galactic magnetar, revealing unique emission mechanisms for 'bursts' and 'pulses'. The study provides clues to the formation theory of fast radio bursts.
Researchers have found a source for the mysterious alignment of planetary nebulae near the Galactic Centre, attributing it to close binary stars. The study confirms the alignment but also reveals that specific groups of planets are responsible.
Researchers at U.S. National Science Foundation's IceCube Neutrino Observatory reveal a galactic portrait made with particles of matter, unlike any before, by determining the origin of thousands of neutrinos. The breakthrough allows for the first 'ghost particle' image of the Milky Way galaxy.
The IceCube Neutrino Observatory has produced an image of the Milky Way using neutrinos for the first time. The high-energy neutrinos were detected from the galactic plane, confirming what is known about our galaxy and cosmic ray sources.
The IceCube Neutrino Observatory has produced an image of the Milky Way using neutrinos, revealing it is a neutrino desert. The observation suggests the galaxy produces significantly fewer high-energy neutrinos than distant galaxies.
An international team of scientists has discovered an echo emitted by the supermassive black hole at the centre of the Milky Way, which emerged from a long period of dormancy 200 years ago. The black hole, four million times more massive than the Sun, gobbled up cosmic objects before re-entering quiescence.
A recent study suggests that supermassive black holes at the center of large galaxies grew in size over billions of years, challenging previous estimates. The research, led by astrophysicist Joseph Simon, used computer simulations to predict the masses of massive black holes, revealing a diverse range of sizes across the universe.
A new population of shorter, horizontally-oriented filaments has been discovered near Sagittarius A*, the galaxy's central supermassive black hole. These filaments are thought to be tied to the outflow of hot material from the black hole, providing insights into its spin and accretion disk orientation.
A team led by Akshay Suresh is searching for periodic signals in the Milky Way's core, which could be a strategic site for an extraterrestrial beacon. The Breakthrough Listen Investigation for Periodic Spectral Signals (BLIPSS) uses novel methodology to sift through data and identify potential evidence of advanced life forms.
New analysis reveals that two-thirds of planets around small stars could be sterilized by tidal forces, leaving one-third with potentially habitable zones. Hundreds of millions of promising targets have been identified for future studies.
Researchers at Ohio State University found that the shells of galactic bubbles are more complex than previously thought, with unexpected temperature and chemical properties. The study suggests that these bubbles were formed by intense star-formation activity rather than supermassive black hole activity.
Researchers from McGill University have discovered 25 new sources of repeating fast radio bursts (FRBs), bringing the total number of confirmed FRB sources to 50. This new study uses a novel statistical tool to confirm the repetition of these mysterious phenomena, shedding light on their origins.
Scientists have discovered that quasars are ignited by galaxies crashing together, a process that drives gas towards supermassive black holes and releases extraordinary amounts of energy. This finding provides a significant step forward in understanding how these powerful objects are triggered and fuelled.
Astronomers have released a colossal dataset revealing 3.32 billion celestial objects in unprecedented detail, covering 6.5% of the night sky. The Dark Energy Camera Plane Survey captures stars, star-forming regions, and dark clouds with innovative data-processing techniques.
A team of researchers has discovered three ultra-faint dwarf galaxies around a Milky Way-mass galaxy, providing insights into the formation and evolution of these enigmatic objects. The findings may help develop universal models for how the universe's oldest galaxies formed.
A team of astronomers discovered 87 galaxies that could be the earliest known galaxies in the universe using data from NASA's James Webb Space Telescope. This finding suggests a revision to our understanding of galaxy formation, indicating that more galaxies may have formed earlier than previously thought.
Researchers at RIT have made a groundbreaking discovery confirming the light emitted by stars outside our galaxy is two to three times brighter than previously thought. This finding suggests a possible absence of optical light sources in the universe, potentially changing our understanding of how it formed over time.
Using supercomputers and machine learning, researchers created simulations of millions of computer-generated universes to test astrophysical predictions. The study found that supermassive black holes grow in the same way as their host galaxies, revealing a long-elusive relationship.
A new study has revealed the true shape of the diffuse cloud of stars surrounding the disk of our galaxy, with the stellar halo found to be oblong and tilted. The findings shed light on the history of our galaxy and galactic evolution, while also offering clues in the ongoing hunt for dark matter.
A team of astronomers used the James Webb Telescope to identify five ancient globular clusters, potentially containing the first and oldest stars in the universe. The clusters were formed close to the Big Bang, offering insights into star formation and galaxy evolution.
A new study has created the first map of the Milky Way's ancient dead stars, which reveals a 'galactic underworld' stretching three times the height of the galaxy. The map shows that almost a third of objects have been flung out from the galaxy, with neutron stars and black holes formed when massive stars collapse.
A team of researchers at Lund University used Gaia space telescope data to study the outer disk of the Milky Way, finding large parts vibrate due to a passing dwarf galaxy. This 'galactic seismology' provides clues about Sagittarius' history and orbit around our home galaxy.
Researchers found that dark matter halos in ultra-diffuse galaxies have lower concentrations than expected, raising questions about their formation and evolution. The study's surprising results indicate these galaxies may be younger and contain more gas than normal galaxies.
A new simulation suggests that gravitational interactions, not over-eating, are responsible for the Milky Way Galaxy's peanut-shaped and nuclear bulges. The study reveals a clear break in star ages between the two types of bulges, indicating when the bar formed.
A team of researchers has discovered that gamma-ray radiation from the Sagittarius Dwarf galaxy can be explained by millisecond pulsars, ruling out dark matter annihilation as a possible explanation. The study reveals that these stellar objects are efficient accelerators of high-energy electrons and positrons.
New research from Curtin University reveals that comets may have formed Earth's early continents when the Solar System passed through densely populated areas of the Milky Way Galaxy. The study found a rhythm of crust production every 200 million years matching the system's transit through galaxy arms.