How old is planet Earth? By Briley Lewis published 23 October 24 How old is Earth? Our planet's age is known from a variety of sources, from rocks on our own planet to ones from the moon.
Mysterious 'magic' islands that come and go on Saturn's moon Titan finally have an explanation By Briley Lewis published 10 January 24 Bright spots that appear and vanish on Saturn's moon Titan have a seemingly simple explanation — they're floating chunks of frozen organic material.
Mercury may have a 'potentially habitable' region below its surface, salty glaciers suggest By Briley Lewis published 5 December 23 Salty glaciers discovered in craters near Mercury's north pole may have the right conditions for extreme forms of life, new research suggests.
Mysterious 'lunar swirls' that perplexed scientists for decades may be close to an explanation By Briley Lewis published 14 November 23 No one knows what causes lunar swirls, but new evidence shows they may be tied to certain elevations on the moon's surface.
The oldest continents in the Milky Way may be 5 billion years older than Earth's By Briley Lewis published 9 November 23 Several exoplanets at the edge of our galaxy could have formed continents — and advanced life — 5 billion years earlier than Earth, new research suggests.
Pluto may have an ice-spewing 'supervolcano' the size of Yellowstone, New Horizons data reveals By Briley Lewis published 2 November 23 Kiladze Caldera, formerly called Kiladze crater, may be a supervolcano that erupted fairly recently, spewing ice across the surface of Pluto.
Soar through the 'Labyrinth of Night' — a Martian canyon the size of Italy — in thrilling new satellite video By Briley Lewis published 18 October 23 See Mars' geology up close, thanks to decades of stunning images from the Mars Express satellite, in a new visualization of Noctis Labyrinthus, the 'Labyrinth of Night'.
Mysterious 'fountain of youth' near Milky Way's central black hole is full of newborn stars that shouldn't exist By Briley Lewis published 16 October 23 New James Webb Space Telescope observations might be able to explain why clusters of young stars keep turning up near the Milky Way’s central black hole.
Mercury is still shrinking after billions of years, and scientists can see its 'wrinkles' By Briley Lewis published 7 October 23 The smallest planet in our solar system is getting smaller as heat escapes its core and fresh cracks open on its surface, new research finds.
Mathematicians find 12,000 new solutions to 'unsolvable' 3-body problem By Briley Lewis published 15 September 23 Calculating the way three things orbit each other is notoriously tricky — but a new study may reveal 12,000 new ways to make it work.
How many planets are in the universe? By Briley Lewis published 8 September 23 We currently know of 5,502 planets beyond the solar system, but we've only found the tiniest fraction of the planets astronomers think lie elsewhere in the universe.
James Webb telescope reveals the universe may have far fewer active black holes than we thought By Briley Lewis published 1 September 23 Almost every galaxy in the universe has a supermassive black hole at its center. So why is it so hard to find young black holes actively feeding?
A black hole 'assassin' ripped a star to shreds and left its guts strewn about the galaxy By Briley Lewis published 26 August 23 Astronomers studied the remains of a massive star ripped apart by a black hole in an epic astro-forensic murder investigation.
James Webb telescope discovers carbon compounds crucial to life in star system 1,000 light-years from Earth By Briley Lewis published 28 June 23 An infant star system contains the basic building block for organic chemistry, new James Webb Space Telescope images reveal.
Aliens might be using a nearby supernova to get our attention, new study suggests By Briley Lewis published 21 June 23 SN 2023ixf is the closest supernova to Earth in more than a decade — and the perfect excuse for intelligent aliens to get our attention, new SETI research suggests.
Scientists discovered a crucial element for life gushing out of Saturn's icy ocean moon By Briley Lewis published 14 June 23 Astronomers have confirmed the presence of phosphates — a crucial ingredient for life — in a plume of icy water gushing out of Saturn's moon Enceladus.
Dying stars build humongous 'cocoons' that shake the fabric of space-time By Briley Lewis published 7 June 23 New simulations show that dying stars release enormous "cocoons" of gas that may rattle with space-time ripples called gravitational waves.
There may be hundreds of millions of habitable planets in the Milky Way, new study suggests By Briley Lewis published 1 June 23 A new analysis of Kepler data shows that one-third of small stars called M dwarfs may have the potential to host life.
What is the speed of light? By Briley Lewis published 30 May 23 Light is faster than anything else in the known universe, though its speed can change depending on what it's passing through.
What's the difference between outer space and deep space? By Briley Lewis published 24 May 23 Space, outer space, and deep space — which is further out, and which is the real final frontier?
James Webb telescope discovers ancient 'water world' in nearby star system By Briley Lewis published 15 May 23 The James Webb Space Telescope took its first close look at a "mini-Neptune" — the most common type of planet beyond our solar system — and found signs of water.
Scientists discover closest star-shredding black hole to Earth ever seen By Briley Lewis published 2 May 23 Astronomers comparing maps of the universe uncovered the nearest example of a black hole devouring a star ever detected.
1st-ever close-up photo of Mars' moon Deimos reveals the Red Planet's violent past By Briley Lewis published 26 April 23 A satellite from the United Arab Emirates revealed that Mars' moon Deimos is made of the same material as the Red Planet itself, hinting at an ancient collision.
How to watch Europe launch its alien-hunting JUICE satellite live on Thursday By Briley Lewis published 12 April 23 The European Space Agency is sending a probe called JUICE to Jupiter's moons — and we've got all the info you need to watch the launch.
Bizarre object 10 million times brighter than the sun defies physics, NASA says By Briley Lewis published 11 April 23 A bizarre 'ultraluminous X-ray source' shines millions of times brighter than the sun, breaking a physical law called the Eddington limit, a new study finds.