Sign up for CNN’s Wonder Theory science newsletter. Explore the universe with news about fascinating discoveries, scientific breakthroughs and more. A decade-long search of the night sky has revealed a mysterious new type of star that astronomers have dubbed an “old smoker.” These previously hidden stellar objects are aging giant stars located near the heart… Read More »
South African Large Telescope. SAAO, Author provided South African astronomy began an important journey two decades ago when an initiative to attract and train future scientists in the field accepted its first cohort of students under the National Astrophysics and Space Sciences Programme. World-class facilities were established during this period; the most important of these… Read More »
South African astronomy began an important journey two decades ago when an initiative to attract and train future scientists in the field accepted its first cohort of students under the National Astrophysics and Space Sciences Programme. World-class facilities were established during this period; the most important of these are the South African Large Telescope (SALT)… Read More »
The central part of star cluster IC 348 as seen by JWST.NASA, ESA, CSA, STScI, K. Luhman (Penn State University) and C. Alves de Oliveira (ESA) NASA’s Webb telescope has detected what is likely the smallest brown dwarf ever observed. Brown dwarfs are some of the most unusual objects in the universe. They are not… Read More »
two supernovaeS It could be vital in revealing the expansion rate of the universe in a galaxy, and in a galaxy so distant that we see it as it was 10 billion years ago. This is a measurement that has created some tension in the scientific community. The galaxy and two supernovae were imaged by… Read More »
A version of this story appeared in CNN’s Wonder Theory science newsletter. To get it in your inbox, Sign up for free here. It’s impossible to know what Mars looked like billions of years ago, but a robotic explorer’s intrepid sleuthing is giving astronomers a glimpse into the past. NASA’s Perseverance rover celebrated its 1000th… Read More »
A version of this story appeared in CNN’s Wonder Theory science newsletter. To get it in your inbox, Sign up for free here. It’s impossible to know what Mars looked like billions of years ago, but a robotic explorer’s intrepid sleuthing is giving astronomers a glimpse into the past. NASA’s Perseverance rover celebrated its 1000th… Read More »
MAUNA KEA, Hawaii (AP) — Shane Palacat-Nelsen’s voice takes on a reverent tone as he tells the story of Poliahu, the snow goddess who Native Hawaiians believe lives at the summit of Mauna Kea, Hawaii’s highest point. The story tells of a chief who wanted to court Poliahu but was stopped by his attendants guarding… Read More »
MAUNA KEA, Hawaii (AP) — Shane Palacat-Nelsen’s voice takes on a reverent tone as he tells the story of Poliahu, the snow goddess who Native Hawaiians believe lives at the summit of Mauna Kea, Hawaii’s highest point. The story tells of a chief who wanted to court Poliahu but was stopped by his attendants guarding… Read More »