Astronomy

James Webb Space Telescope directly studies an exoplanet's surface for the 1st time: 'We see a dark, hot, barren rock'

By Sharmila Kuthunur published 4 May 26

Astronomers using the James Webb Space Telescope have directly analyzed the surface of a distant super-Earth, revealing a dark, airless, Mercury-like world.

Our Milky Way's 'Zone of Avoidance' holds a galaxy supercluster with 30,000 trillion times the sun's mass

By Keith Cooper published 4 May 26

The Vela Supercluster, in our Milky Way's Zone of Avoidance, is competing gravitationally with other superclusters for the attention of local galaxies.

Lasers take aim at a galaxy far, far away | Space photo of the day for May 4, 2026

By Brett Tingley published 4 May 26

Looking like a scene out of "Star Wars," this image shows the ESO's Very Large Telescope Interferometer (VLTI) beaming four separate lasers into the sky towards the Tarantula Nebula.

Why were galaxies so active in the early universe? We may be getting close to the answer

By Paul Sutter published 4 May 26

Early galaxies were star-forming machines, gobbling up gas and spitting out stars with a furious intensity. A new model helps explain why things were so different back then.

Why do some stars become 'supernova impostors'? Astronomers still don't quite know

By Paul Sutter published 3 May 26

Astronomers call this "eruptive mass loss," and it's a stellar drama we're still trying to fully grasp.

Drone radar could help spacecraft pinpoint where to drill for water on Mars, scientists say

By Samantha Mathewson published 1 May 26

Drone-mounted radar flown over glaciers on Earth show how the technology can map buried ice in detail, helping future Mars spacecraft choose exactly where to drill.

Is it cake? No, it's a parachute! | Space photo of the day for May 1, 2026

By Chelsea Gohd published 1 May 26

In this donut-shaped bag is a massive parachute. Next stop? Mars.

NASA's Curiosity and Perseverance rovers capture sweeping Mars panoramas (video)

By Samantha Mathewson published 1 May 26

New panoramic views from NASA's Curiosity and Perseverance rovers reveal dramatically different Martian terrains shaped by ancient water and billions of years of geological change.

Is Venus volcanically active? Big Hawaiian eruption in 2022 could help scientists find out

By Keith Cooper published 30 April 26

Evidence suggests that Venus is still volcanically active, and new data about a big eruption in Hawaii a few years ago could help scientists find out for sure.