The Prototypical Blazar BL Lacertae Shows New Behavior
In 2020, astronomers spotted curious color changes and other new behavior from the first known blazar.
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Forming the Sun on a Molecular Cloud Filament
Can a model in which the solar system forms in a dense, filamentary gas cloud explain the radioactive atoms found in meteorites?
Serendipitous Supernovae
In an era of industrial-scale surveys of the night sky, sometimes unrelated projects happen to spot the same short-lived event with different tools. A new article published in The Astrophysical Journal describes a recent handful of these happy overlaps.
Using Spacecraft Signals to Measure Sulfur Species on Venus
Upcoming missions to Venus will seek trace amounts of sulfur-containing molecules that can help us study the planet’s sulfuric acid clouds and search for active volcanoes.
Investigating a Bright Flare in a Nearby Galaxy
Astronomers have seen an extraordinarily bright, long-lasting radio flare in the center of a nearby galaxy. Could this be evidence of a star being shredded by a supermassive black hole?
Searching for a Star That Survived a Supernova
Researchers have discovered a potential companion to a star that exploded 8,000 years ago. Its characteristics raise interesting questions about which stars are able to donate enough material to trigger a supernova.
The First Y+Y Binary: Cool Brown Dwarfs Come in Pairs
All scientists love to label and classify the natural world, but brown dwarfs resist such artificial labels and can’t be cleanly categorized as either a star or as a planet. Now with JWST though, astronomers are getting their best look yet at these enigmatic worlds.
TESS Detects Pulsating Stars in the Pleiades Cluster
Astronomers pair data from a planet-hunting spacecraft and a stellar-position plotter to track down pulsations in a nearby star cluster.
More Supernova Detections May Be on the Horizon with High-Energy Neutrinos
In rare cases, certain supernovae might produce high-energy neutrinos, allowing our neutrino detectors to track down exploding stars out to greater distances.
Could Some High-Redshift Galaxy Candidates Actually Be Supernovae?
Some high-redshift galaxy candidates in JWST images are curiously point-like. New research investigates whether these sources might be supernovae instead.