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How aspen leaves could save Mars rovers
Aspen trees - fondly called Quakies by some - have trembling, quivering leaves. Now those leaves have inspired an energy-harvesting mechanism that might rescue dust-laden rovers on Mars.
March 22, 2019
Astronomers clock super-fast pulsar speeding through space
The runaway pulsar escaped the blast wave of the supernova that formed it, astronomers say, and is hurtling through space so fast it could travel from Earth to the moon in just 6 minutes.
March 22, 2019
A jet stream in Europa’s ocean?
Jupiter's moon Europa likely has a subsurface ocean, possibly salty, with volcanic vents on its ocean floor. A new study suggests it might also have an oceanic jet stream, comparable to the Gulf Stream back here on Earth.
March 19, 2019
Astronomers discover 83 more supermassive black holes
Astronomers used a cutting-edge camera mounted on one of the world's largest telescopes to discover 83 new quasars - powered by central, supermassive black holes - in the very early universe.
March 18, 2019
Storm in a cosmic teacup
Nicknamed the Teacup because of its shape, this quasar is causing a cosmic storm in a distant galaxy. The source of the squall is a supermassive black hole buried at a galaxy's center.
March 18, 2019
Mining the moon
How can the cost of space travel – to and from the moon and possibly to Mars - be reduced? One approach is to mine the moon for necessary resources.
March 18, 2019
Goldilocks stars: Just right for habitable planets
Which stars are the most likely to have habitable planets? A new study suggest that K stars - between the dimmest M-type red dwarfs and sunlike stars - might provide the sweet spot for life.
March 17, 2019
Hyper-runaway star fled Milky Way disk
University of Michigan astronomers say a hyper-runaway star didn't originate from the galaxy's center, as previously believed. Instead, they say, a cluster of young stars booted it from the galaxy's disk.
March 15, 2019
See the Opportunity rover’s last image
Opportunity - nicknamed "Oppy" - was active on Mars from 2004 until June, 2018, when a planet-wide dust storm covered it. Its final image is a panorama, acquired from Opportunity's final resting place in Mars' Perseverance Valley.
March 15, 2019
Woot! 4,001 exoplanets and counting
The Exoplanet Team, led by the Observatoire de Paris, announced this week that the list of known exoplanets - planets orbiting distant stars - has grown to 4,001!
March 13, 2019
