Astronomy, features and articles | Educational Science

Sep 19, 2023

Green comet Nishimura survives its superheated slingshot around the sun. Will we get another chance to see it?

A recently discovered green comet, named Nishimura, has survived its close encounter with the sun and begun its journey back into the outer reaches of the solar system. Once gone, it won't return for around 430 years. But it could be visible over the next few weeks, depending on where...

Sep 28, 2023

See green comet Nishimura's tail get whipped away by powerful solar storm as it slingshots around the sun

The recently discovered green comet Nishimura has been body slammed by a potential coronal mass ejection (CME) after surviving a close encounter with the sun. The unexpected collision, which briefly blew away the comet's tail, was caught on camera by a NASA spacecraft. In footage captured by NASA's Solar Terrestrial...

Oct 16, 2023

City-size comet racing toward Earth regrows 'horns' after massive volcanic eruption

An enormous volcanic comet the size of a small city has violently exploded for the second time in four months as it hurtles toward the sun. And just like the previous eruption, the cloud of ice and gas emitted what looked like a gigantic pair of horns. The comet, named...

Nov 7, 2023

Volcanic 'devil comet' racing toward Earth resprouts its horns after erupting again

A volcanic devil comet that is racing toward Earth erupted again on Halloween, causing it to regrow its distinctive horns. The latest outburst, which was the second within a month and the third since July, is a reminder that the comet is becoming more volcanically active as it continues its...

Nov 14, 2023

'Bouncing' comets may be delivering the seeds of life to alien planets, new study finds

The origin of life is one of the greatest scientific mysteries in the universe. Currently, there are two prevailing theories as to how it happened on Earth: The ingredients for life emerged from a primordial soup on our planet, or the molecules necessary for life were seeded here from elsewhere...

Nov 21, 2023

City-size 'devil comet' headed for Earth loses its iconic horns and turns green after latest volcanic eruption

The massive volcanic devil comet, that is racing toward the sun may have lost the distinctive horns that earned it its sinister nickname. Last week, after the comet's latest and most violent outburst yet, its trademark head spikes did not appear as they did after previous eruptions. But astronomers have...

Dec 8, 2023

Halley's Comet has begun its return journey to Earth

After zooming away from Earth for nearly 40 years, Halley's Comet has finally turned tail and started heading back our way — setting the stage for a spectacular close-up in 2061. On Saturday, Dec. 9, the famous comet was predicted to reach its farthest point from the sun, also known...

Jan 19, 2024

Explosive, green 'devil comet' photobombs ethereal nebula as it races toward Earth

Stunning new photos show the volcanic devil comet zooming in front of a striking crimson nebula as it races toward Earth. The green-colored comet, which is long overdue for another eruption, will make its closest approach to our planet later this year. The explosive icy object, named Comet 12P/Pons–Brooks (12P),...

Mar 8, 2024

Watch the exploding green 'devil comet' zoom past the Andromeda Galaxy in a stunning livestream this week

An explosive, green comet racing toward Earth is currently zooming past the nearby Andromeda galaxy in the night sky, setting the stage for some stunning photographs. You can also watch the comet fly past our spiralling galactic neighbor in real time, thanks to an upcoming livestream. Comet 12P/Pons Brooks (12P),...

Jan 18, 2024

Mysterious deep-space object could be the smallest black hole ever discovered — or the heaviest neutron star

Astronomers have spotted a mysterious cosmic object that could be the lightest black hole or the heaviest neutron star ever discovered — or something completely new to science. The unknown object, discovered 40,000 light-years away inside a dense globule of stars named NGC 1851, was detected through the rapid flashes...

Jan 19, 2024

Cosmic strings can break — and when they do, they shake the universe

How do you cut a quantum string the size of the universe? New research shows how the chaos of the Big Bang could have done it, and how those cuts could have led to a cosmos filled with rippling gravitational waves. Cosmic strings are the hypothetical leftovers from the earliest...

Jan 25, 2024

Right again, Einstein: New snapshot of 1st black hole to be photographed confirms relativity

In 2019, a team of scientists from the Event Horizon Telescope (EHT) Collaboration were the first to capture a close-up of a black hole. Now, five years later, the team has released a new image of the black hole at the center of the galaxy Virgo A, dubbed Messier 87...

Jan 26, 2024

Scientists may finally know where the biggest, oldest black holes in the universe came from

How do you build a giant black hole in the early universe? Start with the explosions of lots of little ones, a counterintuitive new preprint study proposes. Numerous observations, especially with the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST), have revealed ironclad evidence that the young universe was populated by incredibly massive...

Feb 2, 2024

More than 900,000 stars, galaxies and black holes revealed in most detailed X-ray map of the universe ever

Astronomers have unveiled the largest and most detailed X-ray map of the universe ever created. The newly released data reveal the light of more than 700,000 monster black holes, a mysterious bridge of gas connecting distant galaxies, and hundreds of thousands of other exotic deep-space objects. The massive new X-ray...

Feb 5, 2024

Event Horizon Telescope spies gargantuan energy jets erupting from nearby supermassive black hole

Astronomers have observed a supermassive black hole in Earth's cosmic backyard as it blasts out jets of matter at near-light speeds. These outflows tell the tale of a battle for supremacy between magnetism and gravity. The discovery could help scientists better understand how black holes feed on matter and eject...