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Chemistry in the turbulent interstellar medium Over 200 molecules have been discovered in space, some (like Buckminsterfullerene) very complex with carbon atoms. Besides being intrinsically interesting, these molecules radiate away heat, helping giant clouds of interstellar material cool and contract to form new stars. Moreover, astronomers use the radiation from these molecules to study the local conditions, for example, as planets form in disks around young stars. phys.org Go to SourceRead More →

Image: Hubble eyes an emitting galaxy For this image, the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope turned its powerful eye toward an emission-line galaxy called NGC 3749. phys.org Go to SourceRead More →

New model will help predict several solar phenomena An international group of scientists, in cooperation with a research scientist from Skoltech, has developed a model to describe changes in solar plasma. This will help comprehend solar dynamics and gives clues to understanding how to predict space weather events. The results have been published in the Astrophysical Journal. phys.org Go to SourceRead More →

The simultaneous merging of giant galaxies An international research team led by scientists from Göttingen and Potsdam proved for the first time that the galaxy NGC 6240 contains three supermassive black holes. The unique observations, published in the journal Astronomy & Astrophysics, show the black holes close to each other in the core of the galaxy. The study points to simultaneous merging processes during the formation of the largest galaxies in the universe. phys.org Go to SourceRead More →

New ‘warm Jupiter’ exoplanet discovered An international team of astronomers reports the discovery of a new “warm Jupiter” alien world transiting a main sequence late F-type star on an eccentric orbit. The newfound exoplanet, designated TOI-677 b, is about 20 percent bigger and more massive than Jupiter. The finding is detailed in a paper published November 13 on arXiv.org. phys.org Go to SourceRead More →

NASA’s Fermi, swift missions enable a new era in gamma-ray science A pair of distant explosions discovered by NASA’s Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope and Neil Gehrels Swift Observatory have produced the highest-energy light yet seen from these events, called gamma-ray bursts (GRBs). The record-setting detections, made by two different ground-based observatories, provide new insights into the mechanisms driving gamma-ray bursts. phys.org Go to SourceRead More →

Hubble studies gamma-ray burst with the highest energy ever seen New observations from the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope have investigated the nature of the gamma-ray burst GRB 190114C. phys.org Go to SourceRead More →

First detection of the cosmic monster explosions with ground-based gamma-ray telescopes The strongest explosions in the universe produce even more energetic radiation than previously known: Using specialized telescopes, two international teams have registered the highest energy gamma rays ever measured from so-called gamma-ray bursts, reaching about 100 billion times as much energy as visible light. The scientists of the H.E.S.S. and MAGIC telescopes present their observations in independent publications in the journal Nature. These are the first detections of gamma-ray bursts with ground-based gamma-ray telescopes. DESY plays a major role in both observatories, which are operated under the leadership of the Max Planck Society. phys.orgRead More →

Breaking the limits: Discovery of the highest-energy photons from a gamma-ray burst Gamma-ray bursts (GRBs) are brief and extremely powerful cosmic explosions, suddenly appearing in the sky, about once per day. They are thought to result from the collapse of massive stars or the merging of neutron stars in distant galaxies. They commence with an initial, very bright flash, called the prompt emission, with a duration ranging from a fraction of a second to hundreds of seconds. The prompt emission is accompanied by the so-called afterglow, a less brighter but longer-lasting emission over a broad range of wavelengths that fades with time. The first GRBRead More →

Astronomers investigate stellar content of the open cluster NGC 330 Using the Multi-Unit Spectroscopic Explorer (MUSE) at the Very Large Telescope (VLT) in Chile, astronomers have conducted a spectroscopic study of the young open cluster NGC 330. Results of the research, published on arXiv.org, provide more details about the cluster’s stellar content. phys.org Go to SourceRead More →

Outback telescope captures Milky Way center, discovers remnants of dead stars A radio telescope in the Western Australian outback has captured a spectacular new view of the center of the Milky Way galaxy. The image from the Murchison Widefield Array (MWA) telescope shows what our galaxy would look like if human eyes could see radio waves. phys.org Go to SourceRead More →

Caught in the act: MeerKAT telescope spies stellar flare Scientists using the MeerKAT radio telescope have discovered a unique and previously-unseen flare of radio emission from a binary star in our galaxy. phys.org Go to SourceRead More →