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Illustration of gravity and the fabric of space-time.

What If Space-Time Were 'Chunky'? It Would Forever Change the Nature of Reality.

By Paul Sutter

An ambitious new fleet of spacecraft could reveal whether space-time is smooth or chunky, and in doing so the ultimate nature of reality.

The spiral galaxy NGC 772, seen here in a new image from the Hubble Space Telescope, bears some striking similarities to the Milky Way galaxy that we call home, with its spiral arms, glowing core and dark dust lanes. But there are some key differences between NGC 772 and the Milky Way. For one, NGC 772 lacks the kind of bar-shaped structure of stars like the one that stretches across the center of the Milky Way. NGC 772 is classified as a peculiar, unbarred spiral galaxy, which means that it is "somewhat odd in size, shape or composition," according to NASA. Located about 130 million light-years away from Earth in the constellation Aries, NGC 772 is about twice the size of the Milky Way.

Pictures from Space! Our Image of the Day

By Space.com Staff

The centers of massive galaxy clusters are super hot (red), while bright structures show diffuse gas from the intergalactic medium shock heating at the boundary between cosmic voids and filaments. 

Physicists Just Created the Most Detailed Simulation of the Universe in History

By Tim Childers

An international team of scientists has created the most detailed large-scale model of the universe to date, a simulation they call TNG50.

Astronaut Jessica Meir enjoys some freshly harvested mizuna mustard greens on the International Space Station on Oct. 30, 2019.

Astronauts Enjoy Space Veggies and Look to the Future of Cosmic Salads

By Chelsea Gohd

With a new harvest of greens in space, astronauts advance space-based agriculture.

Mars's larger moon, Phobos, is a cratered, asteroid-like object.

What Does It Take to Be a Moon?

By Adam Mann

When is a moon not a moon — and does it matter?

An image of the gamma-ray burst GRB 190114C based on data gathered by NASA's Hubble Space Telescope on Feb. 11 and March 12, 2019.

The Most Powerful Explosions in the Universe Emit Way More Energy Than Anyone Thought

By Charles Q. Choi

Gamma-ray bursts, the most powerful kinds of explosions known in the universe, can generate even more energetic light beams than astronomers previously realized, according to a set of new studies.

A comparison between the brightness of the giant planet in HR 5183 at closest approach compared with Venus.

Earth-Like Planets with Giant 'Wrecking Ball' Neighbors Can Host Life After All

By Charles Q. Choi

A giant planet wildly careening around a star may not prevent an Earth-size planet from staying in a stable orbit friendly to life as we know it, a new study finds.

The first global geologic map of Saturn's largest moon, Titan.

New Map of Saturn's Moon Titan Reveals a Liquid-Filled World

By Elizabeth Howell

A new geologic map of Saturn's large moon Titan reveals just how much liquid this world holds.

An image of craters on the surface of Venus produced by NASA's Magellan mission, which ended in 1994.

Scientists Want NASA to Send a Flagship Mission to Venus

By Meghan Bartels

NASA has asked a team of scientists to figure out what they could learn from sending a major mission to Venus and how such a mission might work.

Quantum bubbles and multiverses.

Objective Reality Doesn't Exist, Quantum Experiment Shows

By Alessandro Fedrizzi, Massimiliano Proietti

A quantum experiment raises deeply philosophical questions about the fundamental nature of reality.

A visible-light image of the star Mira, captured by the UK Schmidt Telescope in Australia, via the Digitized Sky Survey, a program affiliated with the Hubble team.

Mira, the Pulsing 'Wonderful Star,' Flashes into Sight This Week

By Joe Rao

This week, the variable star Mira reaches its highest point, roughly halfway up in the southern sky at around 10 p.m. local time.

Arecibo Observatory gathered radar data of Mercury from July 19 to 24, 2019.

A Radar Station in Puerto Rico Can See Ice on Mercury

By Meghan Bartels

There are no hurricanes on Mercury, but there is plenty of water ice — and observing that ice can help scientists deal with the lingering effects of a very terrestrial hurricane.

Illustration of supernova

Mysterious Gravitational Wave Sparks Days-Long Hunt — But It Was Just a Glitch

By Rafi Letzter

This wasn't what anyone was hoping for.

This visualization shows an accretion disk surrounding a supermassive black hole.

Giant 'Pac-Man' Black Holes May Grow by Gobbling Other Black Holes

By Elizabeth Howell

Like the famous video game superhero Pac-Man, black holes may grow by gobbling up feasts — in their case, other black holes.

an artist's illustration of the big bang

We May Finally Understand the Moments Before the Big Bang

By Tim Childers

An artist's illustration of a plume of water vapor emanating from Jupiter's moon Europa.

The Weird Plumes of Jupiter's Moon Europa Are Spewing Water Vapor

By Mike Wall

The Jupiter moon Europa's elusive and enigmatic water-vapor plumes do indeed seem to be real.

Artists' depictions of lunar lander designs from commercial companies Astrobotic, Intuitive Machines and Orbit Beyond. NASA selected the trio of companies to ferry their first science and technology payloads to the moon's surface as part of the Artemis program, the agency's plan to land humans on the moon in 2024.

NASA to Unveil New Private Moon Lander Partners Today. How to Listen In

By Tariq Malik

NASA will unveil its newest commercial partners to build private moon landers for trips to the moon today (Nov. 18) and you can follow the announcement live online.

A simulated image of a black hole.

Take a Fun Trip into a Black Hole: What's It Like Inside?

By Paul Sutter

You're about to take a dip into the inky blackness of a giant black hole and see what's on the other side of that enigmatic event horizon. What will you find inside? Read on, brave explorer.

Memorial Sloan Kettering exercise physiologist Dan Townend conducts a cardiopulmonary exercise test to assess cardiorespiratory fitness on a patient.

Astronaut Spaceflight Training May Help Cancer Patients During, After Treatment

By Samantha Mathewson

The workout routine astronauts use to prepare for space may also benefit cancer patients by reducing the long-term side effects of medical care.

The Hubble Space Telescope recently captured 12 mirror images of the distant, gravitationally-lensed Sunburst Arc. The galaxy can be seen here in this "kaleidoscope" image distributed across four arcs (the elongated lines).

This Is How Light May Have Escaped from the Earliest Galaxies, Turning the Universe Transparent

By Yasemin Saplakoglu

An intervening cluster of galaxies acts like a cosmic microscope and bends and magnifies light from a distant galaxy.