How close can you get to a black hole? By Paul Sutter Physicists are figuring out how close you can get to a black hole before you are unlikely to escape. That threshold is called the innermost stable circular orbit (ISCO).
Fiery meteor that doomed the dinosaurs struck at 'deadliest possible' angle By Mindy Weisberger The asteroid that sealed the dinosaurs' fate at the end of the Cretaceous struck at an angle that was the worst-case scenario for life on Earth.
How heavy is the universe? Conflicting answers hint at new physics. By Anil Ananthaswamy Two entirely different ways of "weighing" the cosmos are producing disparate results. The discrepancy could be a sign that physicists will need to revise the standard model of cosmology.
Hydrogen ice? Unheard-of composition could explain 'Oumuamua's weirdness By Mike Wall The weirdness of our solar system's first known interstellar visitor stems from a very unusual composition, a new study suggests.
Sun unleashes biggest flare since 2017. Is our star waking up? By Mike Wall This morning (May 29), our star fired off its strongest flare since October 2017, an eruption spotted by NASA's sun-watching Solar Dynamics Observatory.
Proxima b, the closest exoplanet we know, may be even more Earth-like than we thought By Chelsea Gohd The closest alien planet to our solar system is even more Earth-like than scientists had thought, new observations suggest.
Meteor that blasted millions of trees in Siberia only 'grazed' Earth, new research says By Mindy Weisberger Scientists have a new explanation for an explosive cosmic event in 1908 that flattened trees for hundreds of miles in a remote Siberian forest.
A first-of-its-kind asteroid thrilled astronomers. But it was just a comet fraud. By Meghan Bartels For a week, it was a truly stunning crumb of the solar system — until scientists realized it was just a dirty hunk of ice with an identity crisis.
'Vigorous' magnetic field oddity spotted over South Atlantic By Stephanie Pappas European satellites are investigating the development of two distinct weak points within the South Atlantic Anomaly of Earth's magnetic field.
General Relativity passes the Ratio's Test By Daniel Garisto Using gravitational waves to approximate pi, physicists see no problem with Einstein's theory of general relativity.
Ancient 'ring of fire' galaxy found glaring at Earth across space and time By Rafi Letzter Eleven billion years ago, a hot, active, eyeball of a galaxy glared across space. It formed in a violent collision, and could help explain the Milky Way's spiral.
New Marsquake study could shatter theories on how Mars was born By Gemma Lavender A team of researchers at the University of Tokyo has revealed tantalizing details about Mars’ seismic activity for the very first time.
Satellite images show Typhoon Amphan's landfall in India, Bangladesh By Elizabeth Howell Satellites are keeping a careful watch on Typhoon Amphan during and after landfall near eastern India and Bangladesh Wednesday (May 20).
Massive disk galaxy could change our understanding of how galaxies are born By Chelsea Gohd A massive, rotating disk galaxy that first formed just 1.5 billion years after the Big Bang, could upend our understanding of galaxy formation, scientists suggest in a new study.
Ready, SETI, go: Is there a race to contact E.T.? By Leonard David Researchers using China's huge new FAST radio telescope are piecing together a technological strategy to carry out a major and sweeping search for extraterrestrial intelligence (SETI).
NASA plan to sample asteroid Bennu delayed by coronavirus pandemic By Meghan Bartels After delays from the coronavirus pandemic, NASA has picked a date for its spacecraft to snatch up a chunk of space rock to bring home.
NASA renames WFIRST space telescope after astronomer Nancy Grace Roman, the 'Mother of Hubble' By Hanneke Weitering NASA has renamed its Wide Field Infrared Survey Telescope (WFIRST) to honor the renowned astronomer Nancy Grace Roman, also known as the "mother of Hubble."
Baby exoplanet spotted growing around distant star (photo) By Mike Wall New imagery apparently pinpoints the spot where a baby planet is forming around the young star AB Aurigae, which lies 520 light-years from Earth.
Love isolation? NASA wants you to spend 8 months locked in a Russian lab By Chelsea Gohd Do you thrive in social isolation? NASA is looking for people to spend 8 months locked in a Russian lab for a new experiment.
Mud volcanoes may spew on Mars, scientists say By Mike Wall Some Mars volcanoes may erupt with mud rather than molten rock, a new study suggests.
