An ancient astronomy book donated to the Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT) may contain an undiscovered text underneath the current one. The book also includes a famous work by Nicolaus Copernicus, who postulated that the sun, not the Earth, is the center of the solar system. Students at RIT will attempt to decipher the erased... Continue Reading →
The Vera C. Rubin Observatory in Chile will soon have the most powerful digital camera ever built. It will map the Universe and discover billions of galaxies and stars. [PetaPixel]
Lovely 360⁰ Image of Observatory for Rubin
The Soul Nebula
The Soul Nebula in HRGB The Soul Nebula, also known as Westerhout 5 (W5) amongst other names. Located in the constellation Cassiopeia, this celestial body is a vast star-forming region in the Perseus Arm of the Milky Way galaxy, roughly 7,500 light-years away. Its name is derived mainly from its association on the sky close... Continue Reading →
Astronomers have discovered a new object in the Milky Way that is heavier than neutron stars but lighter than black holes. The discovery could allow for testing of Einstein's general relativity and shed light on the nature of black holes. The object was found using the MeerKAT Radio Telescope and is located around 40,000 light... Continue Reading →
Lightest black hole or heaviest neutron star?
Astronomers have (accidentally) discovered a galaxy called J0613+52 that appears to be devoid of stars. The galaxy is made almost entirely of gas and dark matter and is isolated, shedding light on galaxy formation. They spotted it because of a typo! [Scientific American]
First-Known ‘Empty’ Galaxy from the Early Universe
The Rising Influence of Private Space
Private space companies like SpaceX, Blue Origin, and Virgin Galactic are revolutionizing space exploration with innovations like reusable rockets and ambitious goals for interplanetary travel. These advancements are reshaping the industry, creating opportunities for more competitors and contributing to job creation. Exciting developments are expected in the near future, bringing us closer to the stars as new tourist destinations.
A recent paper explores the hypothesis that life on Earth originated from extraterrestrial sources brought by interstellar objects (ISOs), such as the asteroid 'Oumuamua detected in 2017, and finds that up to 100 million exoplanets could have harboured life but, according to the paper's author, they believed it is unlikely to have sparked life on... Continue Reading →
Interstellar Objects: Could They Bring Life?
New research reveals that headwinds made of gas and particles in the protosolar disk can strike planetesimals, throwing rocky debris out into space and altering the process of rocky planet formation. [Universe Today]
Planetesimals and Nebulae Throw Debris
Astronomers have discovered an Earth-sized exoplanet with a hemisphere of molten lava and another hemisphere perpetually in darkness. Another paper describes the discovery of a small, cold exoplanet with a massive outer companion. The Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS) is helping identify these planets and gather more information about them. [Ars Technica]
Astronomers discover ultra-hot exoplanet with a lava hemisphere
The Pacman Nebula
NGC 281 is more fondly known as the Pacman Nebula. In normal wavelengths this image resembles(ish) the ghost-gobbling Pacman, but here I'm using narrowband SHO data so things are slightly different. SHO Pacman Nebula (NGC 281) The centre of this bright emission region glows blue and green because of the dominant Oxygen and Hydrogen respectively.... Continue Reading →