Space

The double sunset that Luke Skywalker gazed upon in the film "Star Wars" might not be a fantasy. Astronomers using NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope have observed that planetary systems – dusty disks of asteroids, comets and possibly planets – ...

Article - News Staff - Apr 7 2007 - 1:32am

Mysterious Galactic Spiral Arms Explained?

Using a trio of space observatories, astronomers may have cracked a 45-year old mystery surrounding two ghostly spiral arms in the galaxy M106 (NGC 4258). The results, obtained by a team from the University of Maryland (USA), took advantage of the unique ...

Article - News Staff - Apr 14 2007 - 11:22pm

'Axis Of Evil' A Cause For Cosmic Concern

Some believe it is just a figment of overactive imaginations. But evidence is growing that the so-called "axis of evil" – a pattern apparently imprinted on the radiation left behind by the big bang – may be real, posing a threat to standard cosm ...

Article - News Staff - Apr 11 2007 - 12:43pm

NASA Aims To Clear Up Mystery Of Elusive Clouds At Edge Of Space

Earth's polar regions. These clouds have grown brighter and more prevalent in recent years and some scientists suggest that changes in these clouds may be the result of climate change. The first opportunity for launch is on Wednesday, April 25 from V ...

Article - News Staff - Apr 11 2007 - 3:07pm

Chandra Sees Remarkable Eclipse Of Black Hole

A remarkable eclipse of a supermassive black hole and the hot gas disk around it has been observed with NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory. This eclipse has allowed two key predictions about the effects of supermassive black holes to be tested. Just as ...

Article - News Staff - Apr 12 2007 - 12:15pm

The Search For Life On Other Planets

ESA's Darwin mission aims to discover extrasolar planets and examine their atmospheres for signs of life, particularly for the presence of certain life-related chemicals such as oxygen and carbon dioxide. The major technical challenge lies in disting ...

Article - News Staff - Apr 12 2007 - 12:30pm

Tsunamis In Space

Cluster is providing new insights into the working of a ‘space tsunami’ that plays a role in disrupting the calm and beautiful aurora, or northern lights, creating patterns of auroral dances in the sky. The image to the left is the typical appearance of t ...

Article - News Staff - Apr 12 2007 - 12:38pm

Hotter Than Expected Neutron Star Surfaces Help Explain Superburst Frequency

A new theoretical thermometer built from heavy-duty mathematics and computer code suggests that the surfaces of certain neutron stars run significantly hotter than previously expected. Hot enough, in fact, to at least partially answer an open question in ...

Article - News Staff - Apr 13 2007 - 11:00am

Searching For Life On Other Worlds

Giovanna Tinetti is an expert on detecting signs of life across interstellar space. She has worked at JPL, Caltech and the Institut d’Astrophysique de Paris, and has just won an Aurora Fellowship to pursue her research on biosignatures at University Col ...

Article - Douglas Blane - Mar 19 2008 - 9:56pm

Astrophysicists Provide The Eyes For New Gamma Ray Telescope System

There's a "First Light Fiesta" in the works at Mt. Hopkins near Amado, Ariz. And Iowa State University astrophysicists will be among those enjoying the celebration of a new telescope system and all the science it will produce. Iowa State Un ...

Article - News Staff - Apr 19 2007 - 10:59am