April 20, 2017April 20, 2017 by Cody

Asteroid Day is June 30, 2017

What Created This Strange Iron Bar In The Ring Nebula? January 20, 2026
The Ring Nebula is a well-studied planetary nebula about 2,570 light-years away. Nnew observations of the nebula with a new instrument have revealed a previously unseen component. The William Herschel Telescope used its WEAVE instrument to detect a massive 'iron bar' inside the nebula's inner layer.
The 2030 Race for a Moon Reactor January 20, 2026
The US’s federally funded space program has been struggling of late. With the recent cancellation of the Mars Sample Return mission, and mass layoffs / resignations taking place at NASA, the general sense of a lack of morale at the agency is palpable, even from a distance. Jared Isaacman, the billionaire software entrepreneur and rocket […]
The Alien Hunter's Shopping List January 20, 2026
We recently discussed the different types of worlds that the Habitable Worlds Observatory (HWO) is expected to find that might have noticeable biosignatures. However, no matter how good the instrumentation on board the observatory is, the data it collects will be useless if scientists don’t know how to interpret it. A paper explaining what data […]
Astronomers Find that Black Holes "Seesaw" Between Ejecting Material as Winds or Jets January 19, 2026
Astronomers at the University of Warwick have discovered that black holes don’t just consume matter—they manage it, choosing whether to blast it into space as high-speed jets or sweep it away in vast winds.
Toxic Hydrogen Cyanide And Its Role In The Origins Of Life January 19, 2026
Hydrogen Cyanide, which is toxic, may have played an important role in the emergence of life. Its unique properties, especially in frigid environments in space, may have helped generate the complex molecules necessary for life to appear.