Robert Lea
Robert Lea is a science journalist in the U.K. whose articles have been published in Physics World, New Scientist, Astronomy Magazine, All About Space, Newsweek and ZME Science. He also writes about science communication for Elsevier and the European Journal of Physics. Rob holds a bachelor of science degree in physics and astronomy from the U.K.’s Open University. Follow him on Twitter @sciencef1rst.
Latest articles by Robert Lea
![A view of bright green northern lights above a snowy landscape with a lake.](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/E6vx4a5h4X95uNNL5bMacZ-320-80.jpeg)
How auroras on Earth, Saturn and Jupiter could help forecast risky space weather
By Robert Lea published
Scientists have investigated the different factors shaping celestial light-shows over Earth, Saturn and Jupiter. The resulting framework could help predict risky space weather.
![A blue scene of space with lots of stars, many of which sparkly quite brightly in the center. Streams of gas and other material can be seen as well.](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/zjxd5DK7C7cxwvGFLFvrtQ-320-80.png)
Massive, magnetic stars beyond the Milky Way detected for the 1st time
By Robert Lea published
Astronomers have detected giant, magnetic stars outside the Milky Way for the first time. These infant stars in the Magellanic Clouds could reveal details of early stellar evolution.
![A blue scene with hazy bits of gas. In the middle-left of the image, there's a very sparkly blue area.](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/gzmYHfRd5aUtiGQiUmx3D9-320-80.png)
Elusive medium-size black holes may form in dense 'birthing nests'
By Robert Lea published
A new simulation has shown elusive intermediate-mass black holes may form in dense globular clusters of millions of tightly packed stars, thanks to a chaotic collision chain.
![JADES-GS-z14-0 the earliest and most distant galaxy ever seen by humanity in a NIRCam image captured by the JWST](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/fob62G9gWDk73fnkXGF9NF-320-80.png)
James Webb Space Telescope spots the most distant galaxy ever seen (image)
By Robert Lea published
The most distant JADES-GS-z14-0 is a massive and bright galactic record breaker that existed just 300 million years after the Big Bang.
![A dark scene of space has illustrations of a bunch of black circles with hazy white rings around each one.](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/24X8SRAY6mzsEzXMGiiPAL-320-80.png)
If the Big Bang created miniature black holes, where are they?
By Robert Lea published
Primordial black holes born from density fluctuations dating back to the Big Bang have been frustratingly elusive, but a new quantum clue has been discovered.
![a mottled brown planet orbits a fiery orange star. thousands of stars dot the background](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/YEhiymzd9FgARVnXVBrv6-320-80.png)
Real-life 'Star Trek' planet was actually just an illusion caused by a 'jittery' star
By Robert Lea published
Just like the fictional planet of Vulcan was wiped out in Star Trek, new research has destroyed the real-life version of Spock's homeworld, albeit in a less violent fashion.
![A Euclid image of the Perseus cluster of galaxies bathed in a gentle, soft blue light emanating from orphan stars. These orphan stars are dispersed throughout the cluster, extending up to 2 million light-years from its centre.](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/ELBLanrpcWBkutDhFmKYEP-320-80.png)
Euclid space telescope finds 1.5 trillion orphan stars wandering the Perseus cluster (images)
By Robert Lea published
The Euclid telescope has allowed astronomers to discover a staggering 1.5 trillion orphan stars torn from their own galaxies to wander the Perseus cluster alone.
![Six Euclid images are shown. The first two are starry and galactic-spotted sections of space. The third is a gassy nebula that exhibits a small hook-shaped feature toward the top left. The fourth is a patchy, pink and orange section of space, the fifth is a blobby and hazy area against the backdrop of space and the final one is an individual spiral galaxy.](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/CaLquFPytWRbh3vswPz8Dd-320-80.png)
Scientists pick their favorite Euclid 'dark universe' telescope images: 'The best is still to come'
By Robert Lea published
The European Space Agency has now released ten images from its dark universe detective spacecraft, Euclid. We asked scientists from various fields to pick their favorite Euclid image thus far.
![Lots of different exoplanet illustrations neatly organized in a grid pattern. They're all the same size, but different colors.](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/8JJK6yxe3GxpmupR6y2JPg-320-80.png)
Massive new NASA exoplanet catalog unveils 126 extreme and exotic worlds
By Robert Lea published
A new catalog of the masses and widths of 126 new exoplanets showcases the extreme and exotic nature of worlds beyond the solar system.
![A red orb toward the top left of the screen and an Earth-looking world toward the bottom right.](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/3kFZeeVoNk3vy3HmLrgrF7-320-80.png)
NASA space telescope finds Earth-size exoplanet that's 'not a bad place' to hunt for life
By Robert Lea published
NASA exoplanet-hunter TESS has found a temperate, Earth-size world in the habitable zone of its red dwarf star. This planet could make waves in the search for life.
![a pink and purple spiral in space blasts out a white line from its center](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/Yy4LLmSLPRRXa6TMdSZ36J-320-80.jpg)
'Death Star' black holes caught blasting powerful beams at multiple targets: Watch out Alderaan! (video)
By Robert Lea published
Supermassive black holes that are blasting out beams of high-energy particles killing star formation in their galaxies are shifting targets like real-life Death Stars.
![A blobby and hazy reddish orange structure in space. Lots of sparkling stars are scattered throughout the image.](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/QAxamUgaKycHYLkWfNoFWo-320-80.png)
The Euclid 'dark universe detective' telescope has revealed new images of the cosmos — and they are remarkable
By Robert Lea last updated
A new set of images has been released from Europe's "dark universe detective" Euclid, and they show that the space telescope is set to change the game for astronomy.
![A collage of Euclid's starry first full-color images.](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/YEPxYbtRjdTZoJVNwbstCQ-320-80.png)
Euclid 'dark universe' telescope team will unveil new full-color images today (May 23): How to watch live
By Robert Lea last updated
With the Euclid space telescope set to deliver a new batch of images on Thursday (May 23), we're looking back at the dark universe detective's achievements thus far.
![(Left) An image of the sun emitting a bright solar flare (right) the sun's magnetic fields over an image of our star captured by NASA’s Solar Dynamics Observatory](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/6R4oeNbw6bvd4R4b8s8oDF-320-80.png)
Scientists find weird link between a solar mystery and feeding black holes
By Robert Lea published
The solar dynamo that drives sunspots and solar flares could be located near the surface of the sun scientists find, solving a 400-year-old solar mystery and providing a weird link to black holes.
![In the background, a vibrant pink accretion disk is seen swirling around a black hole's singularity. A trail of orange matter trails behind. An inset in the top right shows a diagram of a black circle spinning.](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/PapRqFV7GZaBW8JtUBPzz-320-80.png)
Churning spacetime and destroyed stars help reveal how fast supermassive black holes spin
By Robert Lea published
Black holes are such a drag! Especially for the guts of stars they've destroyed and the fabric of spacetime they pull along with them.
![A collage of several galaxy images. The one on the left takes up nearly half of the screen and showcases a diagonal, edge-on view of a hazy realm.](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/sq7urUuNeoixorXM7c4JZn-320-80.png)
Amateur astronomer finds 5 fascinating new galaxies — and they're now named after him
By Robert Lea published
Giuseppe Donatiello is an amateur astronomer with a unique distinction: discoverer of 11 galaxies, nine with his name.
![An illustration of a red and yellow run in the top left of the screen. Three worlds are seen toward the right of the screen, two of which have leaking atmospheres.](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/q246x5XRGgB2zQUg5nmAaB-320-80.png)
Stars give tiny planets a gravitational 'squeeze' to strip away their atmospheres
By Robert Lea published
Modeling distant planets has revealed that tidal forces generated by their parent stars can combine with intense radiation bombardment and strip away their atmospheres.
![An illustration shows the atmosphere of the Jupiter-sized exoplanet V1298 Tau b being stripped away transforming it into a super-Earth sized world](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/pAw5rHLogC6rT6YX8UX87M-320-80.png)
Young 'cotton candy' exoplanet the size of Jupiter may be shrinking into a super-Earth
By Robert Lea published
Astronomers have found that one of the lightest exoplanets ever seen, the young 'cotton candy' world V1298 Tau b, may be shrinking from the size of Jupiter to the width of a super-Earth.
![A black ball in the center of the screen looks to be falling into a warped spacetime diagram.](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/yC4992gs4hMwWQZMm2yiEX-320-80.png)
Right again, Einstein! Scientists find where matter 'waterfalls' into black holes
By Robert Lea published
Einstein was right! Scientists found the first-ever evidence of "plunging regions" of spacetime where matter inexorably falls into black holes, as predicted by general relativity.
![An ESA camera in Spain captures a bright fireball as it erupts over Portugal on May 18](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/qzBVNcLF2bqPcYCPyxjVL4-320-80.png)
Bright green fireball lights up the skies over Portugal and Spain (photos)
By Robert Lea published
On the evening of Saturday (May 18) a bright fireball lit up the skies over Portugal and Spain in stunning green and blue as it streaked through Earth's atmosphere.
![Three images of regionsof the Orion Nebula captured by the JWST showing the familar star forming region in a vibrant new light](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/G4rDXvhgveBTgXQzrxcEVM-320-80.png)
James Webb Space Telescope sees Orion Nebula in a stunning new light (images)
By Robert Lea published
The Orion Nebula may be a familiar astronomical sight over Earth but that hasn't stopped the James Webb Space Telescope from seeing this star-forming region in a stunning new light.
![A brownish orb in the background and a white spacecraft with long solar panel wings in the foreground.](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/FEVZNWRw93LyxJCkccPAU4-320-80.jpg)
Japanese-European spacecraft bound for Mercury weakened by thruster glitch
By Robert Lea published
The thrusters of Mercury-bound spacecraft BepiColombo are operating at less than full capacity, and operators are racing to find a solution.
![Three panels are shown showing an increasingly small area of the PRIMER galaxy field. The first image shows a large field of galaxies on the black background of space. The second image shows a smaller region from this field, revealing the galaxies in closer detail, appearing in a variety of shapes and colours. The final image shows the ZS7 galaxy system, revealing the ionised hydrogen emission in orange and the doubly ionised oxygen](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/KzWit8hSNhaQbGrGJpquij-320-80.png)
James Webb Space Telescope spots most distant and oldest black hole collision ever seen (video)
By Robert Lea published
The James Webb Space Telescope has detected a merger between two supermassive black holes so distant it proceeded just 740 million years after the Big Bang.