Universe Today

October 20, 2022October 20, 2022 by Carolyn Collins Petersen

Webb Sees a Cluster of Galaxies Feeding a Quasar

an artistic concept of a quasar — Concept image of a galactic quasar. Astronomers used the Event Horizon Telescope to study details at the heart of one like this called NRAO 530. Credit: ParallelVision, Pixabay

There’s a galaxy protocluster out there in the distant universe that’s waving some tantalizing clues about cosmic history at astronomers. First of all, it’s got an active galactic nucleus—a quasar—at its heart. That’s a black hole emitting huge amounts of radiation. But now, they’ve found at least three young galaxies sending massive amounts of cosmic food (gas and dust) into the maw of that black hole-powered engine. Those infant galaxies are massive and moving fast around each other. And, just to make things interesting, dark matter is probably involved in the action.

October 20, 2022October 24, 2022 by Matt Williams

A Monster Black Hole has Been Found Right in our Backyard (Astronomically Speaking)

The cross-hairs mark the location of the newly discovered monster black hole. Credit: Sloan Digital Sky Survey/S. Chakrabart et al.

Black holes are among the most awesome and mysterious objects in the known Universe. These gravitational behemoths form when massive stars undergo gravitational collapse at the end of their lifespans and shed their outer layers in a massive explosion (a supernova). Meanwhile, the stellar remnant becomes so dense that the curvature of spacetime becomes infinite in its vicinity and its gravity so intense that nothing (not even light) can escape its surface. This makes them impossible to observe using conventional optical telescopes that study objects in visible light.

As a result, astronomers typically search for black holes in non-visible wavelengths or by observing their effect on objects in their vicinity. After consulting the Gaia Data Release 3 (DR3), a team of astronomers led by the University of Alabama Huntsville (UAH) recently observed a black hole in our cosmic backyard. As they describe in their study, this monster black hole is roughly twelve times the mass of our Sun and located about 1,550 light-years from Earth. Because of its mass and relative proximity, this black hole presents opportunities for astrophysicists.

October 20, 2022October 20, 2022 by Anton Pozdnyakov

First 100 Days of James Webb. Everything You Need to Know

Exactly 100 days ago NASA revealed the first images from James Webb Space Telescope. Carina nebula, SMACS 0723, WASP-96b, Southern Ring Nebula and Stephan’s Quintet. Since then we have had a lot of great images, science papers and other releases from JWST. So here’s an overview of everything you need to know about James Webb’s discoveries in its first 100 days.

October 20, 2022October 20, 2022 by Brian Koberlein

Astronomers Chart the Influence of Dark Matter and Dark Energy on the Universe by Measuring Over 1,500 Supernovae

Artist view of a supernova explosion. Credit: NASA

In 2011, the Nobel Prize in physics was awarded to Perlmutter, Schmidt, and Reiss for their discovery that the universe is not just expanding, it is accelerating. The work supported the idea of a universe filled with dark energy and dark matter, and it was based on observations of distant supernovae. Particularly, Type Ia supernovae, which have consistent light curves we can use as standard candles to measure cosmic distances. Now a new study of more than 1,500 supernovae confirms dark energy and dark matter, but also raises questions about our cosmological models.

October 20, 2022October 20, 2022 by Nancy Atkinson

Curiosity Arrives in a Salty Region of Mars. Was it Left Over From a Dying Sea?

A Mastcam image from the Mars Science Laboratory Curiosity rover on Sol 3609 of its mission. Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS/Kevin M. Gill.

The Curiosity rover has now reached its primary target on Mount Sharp on Mars, the mountain in the middle of Gale Crater the rover has been climbing since 2014. This target is not the summit, but a region over 600 meters (2,000 feet) up the mountain that planetary geologists have long anticipated reaching.

Known as the “sulfate-bearing unit,” the region is a boundary between the rocks that saw a lot of water in their history and those that didn’t; a possible shoreline, if you will. That boundary is already providing insights into Mars’ transition from a wet planet to dry, filling in a key gap in the understanding of the planet’s history.

October 20, 2022October 17, 2022 by Paul M. Sutter

What’s the Best Shielding to Protect Astronauts on Mars?

Artist's concept for a possible colony on Mars. Credit: Ville Ericsson

New research shows that the best way to protect future Martian astronauts from deadly solar radiation is as simple as can be. For good shielding, they just need to put as much stuff between them and the sky as possible.

October 20, 2022October 20, 2022 by David Dickinson

Our Guide to Tuesday’s Partial Solar Eclipse for Europe

Europe, the Middle East, and northeast Africa will see the final partial solar eclipse of 2022 next Tuesday.

When it comes to eclipses, a close shave is better than nothing at all. Just such event happens this coming Tuesday on October 25th when the outer shadow of the Moon grazes the northern hemisphere of the Earth, resulting in a fine partial solar eclipse for Europe and surrounding regions.

October 19, 2022October 19, 2022 by Matt Williams

Astronomers Just saw the Most Powerful Gamma-ray Burst Ever Recorded

Artist’s impression of a gamma-ray burst. Credit: ESO/A. Roquette

Gamma-ray bursts (GRBs) are one of the most mysterious transient phenomena facing astronomers today. These incredibly energetic bursts are the most powerful electromagnetic events observed since the Big Bang and can last from a few milliseconds to many hours. Whereas longer bursts are thought to occur during supernovae, when massive stars undergo gravitational collapse and shed their outer layer to become black holes, shorter events have also been recorded when massive binary objects (black holes and neutron stars) merge.

These bursts are characterized by an initial flash of gamma rays and a longer-lived “afterglow” typically emitted in X-ray, ultraviolet, radio, and other longer wavelengths. In the early-morning hours on October 14th, 2022, two independent teams of astronomers using the Gemini South telescope observed the aftermath of a GRB designated GRB221009A. Located 2.4 billion light-years away in the Sagitta constellation, this event was perhaps the closes and most powerful explosion ever recorded and was likely triggered by a supernova that gave birth to a black hole.

October 19, 2022October 19, 2022 by Evan Gough

Here’s Webb’s View of the Pillars of Creation

The Pillars of Creation are set off in a kaleidoscope of color in NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope’s near-infrared-light view. Image Credit: NASA, ESA, CSA, STScI; Joseph DePasquale (STScI), Anton M. Koekemoer (STScI), Alyssa Pagan (STScI).

The James Webb Space Telescope is living up to expectations. When it was launched, NASA Administrator Bill Nelson said it would “… open up secrets of the universe that will be just stupendous, if not almost overwhelming.” Nelson’s statement rings true a few months into the telescope’s multi-year mission.

October 19, 2022October 19, 2022 by Matt Williams

The Asteroid That Killed the Dinosaurs Also Flooded the World's Coastlines With a Catastrophic Tsunami

Earth and possibly its Moon were hit by impactors that killed off the dinosaurs — Artistic rendition of the Chicxulub impactor striking ancient Earth, with Pterosaur observing. Could pieces of the same impact swarm have hit the Moon, too? Credit: NASA

For decades, scientists have theorized that a massive impact caused the Cretaceous-Paleogene extinction event. This event occurred about 66 million years ago and caused the mass extinction of about 75% of all plant and animal species on Earth (including the non-avian dinosaurs). With the discovery of the massive Chicxulub crater in the Yucatan Peninsula (southern Mexico) in the 1970s, scientists concluded that they’d found the impact responsible. Based on all the available data, the Chicxulub Impact event is believed to have been as powerful as 100,000 billion metric tons (110,231 U.S tons) of TNT.

This blast was more powerful than all the nuclear devices in the world combined and sent an estimated 25 trillion metric tons (~27.5 US tons) of hot dust, ash, and steam into the atmosphere, creating a global winter. But according to new research led by the University of Michigan, an international team of geologists has determined that the impact also created a global tsunami. According to their findings, this tsunami was 30,000 times more powerful than the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami, one of the largest and most devastating tsunamis on record.