ESOnews

A Solar System in the making? Two planets spotted forming in disc around young star Astronomers have observed two planets forming in the disc around a young star named WISPIT 2. Having previously detected one planet, the team have now employed European Southern Observatory (ESO) telescopes to confirm the presence of another. These observations, and the unique structure of the disc around the star, indicate that the WISPIT 2 system could resemble a young Solar System. ESO News Feed Go to SourceRead More →

Largest image of its kind shows hidden chemistry at the heart of the Milky Way Astronomers have captured the central region of our Milky Way in a striking new image, unveiling a complex network of filaments of cosmic gas in unprecedented detail. Obtained with the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA), this rich dataset — the largest ALMA image to date — will allow astronomers to probe the lives of stars in the most extreme region of our galaxy, next to the supermassive black hole at its centre. ESO News Feed Go to SourceRead More →

AES Andes announces cancellation of INNA, the industrial complex planned near Paranal ESO News Feed Go to SourceRead More →

Astronomers surprised by mysterious shock wave around dead star Gas and dust flowing from stars can, under the right conditions, clash with a star’s surroundings and create a shock wave. Now, astronomers using the European Southern Observatory’s Very Large Telescope (ESO’s VLT) have imaged a beautiful shock wave around a dead star — a discovery that has left them puzzled. According to all known mechanisms, the small, dead star RXJ0528+2838 should not have such structure around it. This discovery, as enigmatic as it’s stunning, challenges our understanding of how dead stars interact with their surroundings. ESO News Feed Go to SourceRead More →

Construction begins on the first and largest gamma-ray observatory in Chile Yesterday, a groundbreaking ceremony for the CTAO’s southern array facility took place at the European Southern Observatory’s (ESO’s) Paranal site in Chile, marking the beginning of construction of the telescope foundations. The CTAO, or Cherenkov Telescope Array Observatory, will be the world’s largest and most powerful gamma-ray observatory, providing new insights into the high-energy Universe. Its southern array will be the first gamma-ray observatory to be built in Chile. ESO News Feed Go to SourceRead More →

Unique shape of star’s explosion revealed just a day after detection Swift observations with the European Southern Observatory’s Very Large Telescope (ESO’s VLT) have revealed the explosive death of a star just as the blast was breaking through the star’s surface. For the first time, astronomers unveiled the shape of the explosion at its earliest, fleeting stage. This brief initial phase wouldn’t have been observable a day later and helps address a whole set of questions about how massive stars go supernova. ESO News Feed Go to SourceRead More →

Laser trial run kickstarts new era of interferometry Last week, four lasers were projected into the skies above the European Southern Observatory’s (ESO’s) Paranal site in Chile. The lasers are each used to create an artificial star, which astronomers use to measure and then correct the blur caused by Earth’s atmosphere. The striking launch of these lasers, one from each of the eight-metre telescopes at Paranal, is a significant milestone of the GRAVITY+ project — a large and complex upgrade to ESO’s Very Large Telescope Interferometer (VLTI). GRAVITY+ unlocks a greater observing power and a much wider sky coverage for the VLTI than previously possible.Read More →

New image captures spooky bat signal in the sky A spooky bat has been spotted flying over the European Southern Observatory’s (ESO’s) Paranal site in Chile, right in time for Halloween. Thanks to its wide field of view, the VLT Survey Telescope (VST) was able to capture this large cloud of cosmic gas and dust, whose mesmerising appearance resembles the silhouette of a bat. ESO News Feed Go to SourceRead More →

Andreas Kaufer appointed as next ESO Director General The Council of the European Southern Observatory (ESO) has appointed Andreas Kaufer to be the new ESO Director General. Kaufer, who is currently ESO Director of Operations, will succeed Xavier Barcons, who will remain as Director General until the end of August 2026. ESO News Feed Go to SourceRead More →

Six billion tonnes a second: Rogue planet found growing at record rate Astronomers have identified an enormous ‘growth spurt’ in a so-called rogue planet. Unlike the planets in our Solar System, these objects do not orbit stars, free-floating on their own instead. The new observations, made with the European Southern Observatory’s Very Large Telescope (ESO’s VLT), reveal that this free-floating planet is eating up gas and dust from its surroundings at a rate of six billion tonnes a second. This is the strongest growth rate ever recorded for a rogue planet, or a planet of any kind, providing valuable insights into how they form andRead More →

Can Hayabusa2 touchdown? New study reveals space mission’s target asteroid is tinier and faster than thought Astronomers have used observatories around the world, including the European Southern Observatory’s Very Large Telescope (ESO’s VLT), to study the asteroid 1998 KY26, revealing it to be almost three times smaller and spinning much faster than previously thought. The asteroid is the 2031 target for Japan’s Hayabusa2 extended mission. The new observations offer key information for the mission’s operations at the asteroid, just six years out from the spacecraft’s encounter with 1998 KY26. ESO News Feed Go to SourceRead More →

Astronomers spot mysterious gamma-ray explosion, unlike any detected before Astronomers have detected an explosion of gamma rays that repeated several times over the course of a day, an event unlike anything ever witnessed before. The source of the powerful radiation was discovered to be outside our galaxy, its location pinpointed by the European Southern Observatory’s Very Large Telescope (VLT). Gamma-ray bursts (GRBs) are the most powerful explosions in the Universe, normally caused by the catastrophic destruction of stars. But no known scenario can completely explain this new GRB, whose true nature remains a mystery. ESO News Feed Go to SourceRead More →

Astronomers witness newborn planet sculpting the dust around it Astronomers may have caught a still-forming planet in action, carving out an intricate pattern in the gas and dust that surrounds its young host star. Using ESO’s Very Large Telescope (VLT), they observed a planetary disc with prominent spiral arms, finding clear signs of a planet nestled in its inner regions. This is the first time astronomers have detected a planet candidate embedded inside a disc spiral. ESO News Feed Go to SourceRead More →

For the first time, astronomers witness the dawn of a new solar system International researchers have, for the first time, pinpointed the moment when planets began to form around a star beyond the Sun. Using the ALMA telescope, in which the European Southern Observatory (ESO) is a partner, and the James Webb Space Telescope, they have observed the creation of the first specks of planet-forming material — hot minerals just beginning to solidify. This finding marks the first time a planetary system has been identified at such an early stage in its formation and opens a window to the past of our own Solar System.Read More →

Double detonation: new image shows remains of star destroyed by pair of explosions For the first time, astronomers have obtained visual evidence that a star met its end by detonating twice. By studying the centuries-old remains of supernova SNR 0509-67.5 with the European Southern Observatory’s Very Large Telescope (ESO’s VLT), they have found patterns that confirm its star suffered a pair of explosive blasts. Published today, this discovery shows some of the most important explosions in the Universe in a new light. ESO News Feed Go to SourceRead More →

Astronomers capture most detailed thousand-colour image of a galaxy Astronomers have created a galactic masterpiece: an ultra-detailed image that reveals previously unseen features in the Sculptor Galaxy. Using the European Southern Observatory’s Very Large Telescope (ESO’s VLT), they observed this nearby galaxy in thousands of colours simultaneously. By capturing vast amounts of data at every single location, they created a galaxy-wide snapshot of the lives of stars within Sculptor. ESO News Feed Go to SourceRead More →

‘Cosmic joust’: astronomers observe pair of galaxies in deep-space battle Astronomers have witnessed for the first time a violent cosmic collision in which one galaxy pierces another with intense radiation. Their results, published today in Nature, show that this radiation dampens the wounded galaxy’s ability to form new stars. This new study combined observations from both the European Southern Observatory’s Very Large Telescope (ESO’s VLT) and the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA), revealing all the gory details of this galactic battle. ESO News Feed Go to SourceRead More →

“Big surprise”: astronomers find planet in perpendicular orbit around pair of stars Astronomers have found a planet that orbits at an angle of 90 degrees around a rare pair of peculiar stars. This is the first time we have strong evidence for one of these ‘polar planets’ orbiting a stellar pair. The surprise discovery was made using the European Southern Observatory’s Very Large Telescope (VLT). ESO News Feed Go to SourceRead More →

Oxygen discovered in most distant known galaxy Two different teams of astronomers have detected oxygen in the most distant known galaxy, JADES-GS-z14-0. The discovery, reported in two separate studies, was made possible thanks to the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA), in which the European Southern Observatory (ESO) is a partner. This record-breaking detection is making astronomers rethink how quickly galaxies formed in the early Universe. ESO News Feed Go to SourceRead More →

New ESO analysis confirms severe damage from industrial complex planned near Paranal An in-depth technical analysis by the European Southern Observatory (ESO) has evaluated the impact of the INNA megaproject on the facilities at the Paranal Observatory, Chile — and the results are alarming. The analysis reveals that INNA would increase light pollution above the Very Large Telescope (VLT) by at least 35% and by more than 50% above the south site of the Cherenkov Telescope Array Observatory (CTAO-South). INNA would also increase air turbulence in the area, further degrading conditions for astronomical observations, while vibrations from the project could seriously impair the functioning ofRead More →