I’m off to see Mom

I’m leaving on a jet plane, don’t know when I’ll be back again … stay tuned.

Astronomers Using MeerKAT Spot a Cosmic Laser Halfway Across the Universe March 5, 2026
Astronomers using the MeerKAT radio telescope in South Africa have discovered the most distant hydroxyl megamaser ever detected. It is located in a violently merging galaxy more than 8 billion light-years away, opening a new radio astronomy frontier.
Phew! NASA Rules Out Asteroid Smashup on the Moon in 2032 March 5, 2026
Here’s one less thing to worry about — or to look forward to: NASA has ruled out any chance that an asteroid called 2024 YR4 will hit the moon in 2032.
Scientists Publish the First Direct Measurement of Space Debris Pollution March 5, 2026
Back in February 2025, a SpaceX rocket that had delivered 22 Starlink satellites to orbit had a malfunction. It failed to execute a planned deorbit burn and drifted for 18 days in orbit before beginning an uncontrolled descent about 100km off the west coast of Ireland. Some parts of the rocket landed in Poland, and […]
Illinois and UChicago Physicists Develop a New Method for Measuring Cosmic Expansion March 5, 2026
A team of astrophysicists, cosmologists, and physicists has developed a novel way to compute the Hubble constant using gravitational waves. As our capability to observe gravitational waves improves in the future, this new method could be used to make even more accurate measurements of the Hubble constant, bringing scientists closer to resolving the Hubble tension.
What Goes On Inside A Massive Star Before It Explodes As A Supernova? March 4, 2026
When people think of supernova explosions, they're most-often thinking of Type II core-collapse supernovae, where a massive star becomes a red supergiant before collapsing on itself and exploding. New research uncovers what's going on inside the star before it explodes, and explains why SNe light curves can be different from one another.