Astronomy
284 articles-
The Mystery of the Cosmic Radio Globs
What violent galaxy smashups may have wrought across the universe. -
A Movie Camera for the Cosmos
The Rubin observatory will allow scientists to see how the cosmos has evolved over time. -
The Weirdest Stuff We’ve Sent into Orbit
15 human space oddities. -
The Myths and Lore of the Milky Way
Writing stories in the stars is deeply human. -
Jupiter’s Incredible Shrinking Spot
Earth’s meteorology could explain what’s behind the great red whorl’s waning. -
The Moss That Could Terraform Mars
A superhero plant that could thrive on the Red Planet. -
The Stars Foretell Our Doom
Post-apocalyptic star systems could reveal the fate of our own. -
Life Lessons from Hell-House Venus
How our inhospitable neighbor can help us find life elsewhere. -
A Cosmic Glitch in Gravity
Is gravity weaker over distances of billions of light-years? -
Discovering the First Other Earths
Inside the hunt for habitable planets.
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Nine Rebel Astronomy Theories That Went Dark
Bright ideas from astronomy’s biggest stars haven’t always worked out.
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Doubts Grow About the Biosignature Approach to Alien-Hunting
Recent controversies bode ill for the effort to detect life on other planets by analyzing the gases in their atmospheres.
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Could Modified Gravity Kill Planet Nine?
A controversial theory can explain phenomena attributed to the mystery planet.
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Inside an Exploded Star
Cassiopeia A gets a close-up. -
The Thorny Ethics of Making Alien Planets Habitable
Terraforming Mars could risk exterminating the very lifeforms we dream of discovering. -
My 3 Greatest Revelations
The author on writing her book, Our Moon, about the power of our satellite to guide evolution and human curiosity. -
The Violent Birth of the Moon
Did a colossal collision with a doomed planet give us our satellite? -
The Enlightening Beauty of an Einstein Ring
What a trippy gravitational phenomenon can tell us about the universe.