The nights surrounding Aug. 29 are a great time to spot the stars of the famous ‘Summer Triangle’ asterism, bisected by the glowing band of the Milky Way, with an early-setting crescent moon providing a perfect setting for the stellar hunt. Celestron Nature DX 12×56 (Image credit: Jason Parnell-Brookes) If you’re looking for an affordable pair of binoculars for stargazing, …
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QUICK FACTS Where is it? Lake Van, Turkey [38.91395038, 43.12483070] What’s in the photo? Rare plumes of mostly inorganic matter swirling in an alkaline lake Who took the photo? NASA astronaut Kate Rubins, on board the International Space Station When was it taken? Sept. 12, 2016 This stunning astronaut photo shows a series of milky swirls that appeared in the …
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A new analysis argues that the Milky Way’s central black hole, Sagittarius A*, spins at maximum velocity with its axis aimed almost directly at Earth. The result emerges from a machine learning read of the Event Horizon Telescope data that pulls out subtle signals from ordinary methods left on the table. Those signals sit on top of a …
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IN A NUTSHELL 🌌 Astronomers discovered a massive molecular cloud in the Milky Way, weighing as much as 160,000 suns. 🔭 The Green Bank Telescope played a key role in identifying this cloud, located 23,000 light-years away. ⭐ Giant Molecular Clouds are essential for understanding star formation and galactic evolution. 🛰️ Future observations could reveal more about the mechanisms behind …
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The dark skies surrounding this weekend’s new moon phase present an excellent opportunity to spot a trio of star clusters and stellar alignments embedded in the glowing band of the Milky Way. Star clusters are collections of gravitationally bound stellar bodies that formed from the same cloud of interstellar material. They can range in size from dozens, to thousands of …
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IN A NUTSHELL 🌌 Astronomers discovered the Midpoint cloud, a vast structure within the Milky Way, revealing new insights into star formation. 🔭 The Green Bank Telescope was instrumental in identifying this Giant Molecular Cloud located in an underexplored region of the galaxy. 🌠 The cloud’s dense gas clumps and masers indicate active star-forming regions, contributing to our understanding of …
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New observations of a pair of colliding spiral galaxies hint at what might be in store for the Milky Way and the Andromeda galaxy if and when they collide. The findings, described in July in the journal Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society, may also help to solve a puzzle plaguing the standard model of cosmology. The two colliding …
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When you buy through links on our articles, Future and its syndication partners may earn a commission. Ursa Major III, a faint star cluster over 30,000 light-years away, may be bound by hidden black holes instead of dark matter. | Credit: CFHT/UNIONS/S.Gwyn A ghostly object orbiting the Milky Way has left astronomers questioning its composition: Is it a dark-matter-dominated dwarf …
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A ghostly object orbiting the Milky Way has left astronomers questioning its composition: Is it a dark-matter-dominated dwarf galaxy or a star cluster bound by a hidden swarm of black holes? Ursa Major III/Unions 1 (UMa3/U1), the faintest known satellite of our galaxy, orbits the Milky Way at a distance of more than 30,000 light-years. It is a compact stellar …
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IN A NUTSHELL 🌌 Astronomers discovered the Midpoint cloud, a Giant Molecular Cloud spanning 650 trillion miles. 🔭 The Green Bank Telescope played a crucial role in identifying this vast structure within the Milky Way. 🌠 The cloud contains dense gas clumps and masers, indicating active star formation. 🚀 Researchers suggest the cloud is vital for transporting matter from the …
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