Space

The Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) has captured the first ever image of the snow line in an infant solar system. Say what? On our planet, snow lines form at high altitudes where…

Why do we value gold? It's not strong, it's not pretty, it's rare but in the 21st century, given enough energy we can turn lead into gold, the way alchemists once only dreamed about. It's not just…

On July 16th, 2013, at 12:09 a.m. EDT, the sun erupted with an Earth-directed coronal mass ejection, sending billions of tons of particles into space. These particles cannot travel through the…

In 2011 the Very Large Telescope (VLT) discovered a gas cloud with several times the mass of the Earth accelerating towards the black hole at the center of the Milky Way.   The cloud is now so…

If the Sun's outer atmosphere - corona - is so hot, why does it always look so cool? The Sun's visible surface is 'only' 10,000 degrees Fahrenheit, but as you move outward the temperature shoots…

A new moon, designated S/2004 N 1, has been discovered orbiting the distant blue-green planet Neptune, the 14th known to be circling the giant planet. S/2004 N 1 is estimated to be no more than 12…

For the first time, astronomers have measured the true colour of a planet in orbit around another star, and it is cobalt blue. This blue however, is probably the colour of a continuous rain of liquid…

One day, perhaps, brave astronauts will set forth to colonize the planet Mars. However human colonies can't be sterilized in the way a rover can be, so they may conflict with the desires of…

How did numerous small, glassy spherules become embedded within specimens of the largest class of meteorites, the chondrites? British mineralogist Henry Sorby first described these spherules, called…

The International Astronomical Union, which declared itself the arbiter of names for the entire universe, is in hot water with "Star Trek" fans. A social media campaign, including endorsements by…