Triple star system found with weirdly warped planetary disc

It can be easy to assume that the way things are in our solar system are mostly how they are elsewhere in the universe – but that’s often not the case. Now, astronomers have observed a triple star system that’s warping and splitting its planetary disc … Continue reading Triple star system found with weirdly warped planetary disc

Triple star system found with weirdly warped planetary disc

It can be easy to assume that the way things are in our solar system are mostly how they are elsewhere in the universe – but that’s often not the case. Now, astronomers have observed a triple star system that’s warping and splitting its planetary disc … Continue reading Triple star system found with weirdly warped planetary disc

Exotic objects made of dark energy could be pushing the universe apart

The universe is expanding, and that expansion is accelerating, but exactly why and how that’s happening remains unknown. One hypothesis suggests that this expansion is driven by mysterious, black hole-like objects made of dark energy, and now astrophys… Continue reading Exotic objects made of dark energy could be pushing the universe apart

Gravitational waves signal most massive black hole collision ever recorded

The LIGO and Virgo Scientific Collaboration has detected gravitational waves coming from the most massive black hole collision that it’s ever recorded. The end result created a gargantuan black hole that belongs to a new class.Continue ReadingCategory:… Continue reading Gravitational waves signal most massive black hole collision ever recorded

Sun’s long-lost twin could have captured Planet Nine

While the Sun is very clearly a solo act nowadays, some astronomers theorize that it once had a binary companion star. Now, Harvard scientists have added weight to the idea by showing that an ancient binary solar system explains the strange structure o… Continue reading Sun’s long-lost twin could have captured Planet Nine

How old is the universe? New studies disagree by a billion years

The universe likes to play coy about its age, but astronomers believe they have a pretty good idea of the range. Now, a series of new studies has investigated the question using different methods – and they’ve come up with two different answers, separa… Continue reading How old is the universe? New studies disagree by a billion years

Comprehensive 3D map of the universe fills 11-billion-year gap

A 20-year study of the night sky has allowed astronomers to produce a comprehensive 3D map of the universe, covering 11 billion years of expansion. A new analysis of this map has highlighted a mismatch in the Hubble Constant, and revealed when the expa… Continue reading Comprehensive 3D map of the universe fills 11-billion-year gap

Planet Nine could be a black hole, and a new telescope will tell us

The closest confirmed black hole to Earth is 1,000 light-years away – but could there be one hiding in our own backyard? It’s been hypothesized that a tiny black hole could be orbiting the Sun beyond Neptune, and now astronomers have proposed how we mi… Continue reading Planet Nine could be a black hole, and a new telescope will tell us

Black hole eats mystery object in latest gravitational wave detection

The LIGO-Virgo collaboration has reported a very strange gravitational wave signal. Most of these come from mergers between two black holes or two neutron stars, but this signal appears to have come from a black hole swallowing some unknown object, wit… Continue reading Black hole eats mystery object in latest gravitational wave detection

NASA funds SETI study to scan exoplanets for alien “technosignatures”

Given just how incomprehensibly, unfathomably big the universe is, chances are tiny that Earth is the only planet with life on it. But how would we find others? A new NASA grant has been awarded to aid the search for extraterrestrial intelligence (SETI… Continue reading NASA funds SETI study to scan exoplanets for alien “technosignatures”