milky way
Nearby Supernovae Exploded Just a few Million Years Ago, Leading to a Wave of Star Formation Around the Sun
The Sun isn't the only star in this galactic neighbourhood. Other stars also call this neighbourhood home. But what's the…
An Incredible View Into the Heart of the Small Magellanic Cloud
The Small Magellanic Cloud (SMC) is over 200,000 light-years away, yet it's still one of our galaxy's closest neighbours in…
Best Image Ever Taken of Stars Buzzing Around the Milky Way’s Supermassive Black Hole
The GRAVITY collaboration just released the clearest images ever of the stars that orbit the supermassive black hole in the…
Once New Horizons was out Beyond Pluto, it Could Finally Measure the Brightness of the Milky Way
The New Horizons spacecraft has been speeding away from Earth since it launched in 2006. Scientists using the Alice UV…
A Black Hole has been Found Lurking Just Outside the Milky Way
Astronomers have found a smaller, stellar-mass black hole lurking in a nearby satellite galaxy of our own Milky Way. The…
The Large Magellanic Cloud Stole one of its Globular Clusters
Astronomers have known for years that galaxies are cannibalistic. Massive galaxies like our own Milky Way have gained mass by…
What’s Causing the Mysterious Radio Waves Coming From the Center of the Milky Way?
The center of the Milky Way is a mysterious place. Astronomers think there's a supermassive black hole there, though it…
A Magnetic Tunnel Surrounds the Earth
What if our eyes could see radio waves? If we could, we might be able to look up into the…
The Milky Way Hasn’t Been Evenly Mixed
Gas from the intergalactic medium constantly rains down on galaxies, fueling continued star formation. New research has shown that this…
The Milky Way’s Central bar Spin-Rate is Slowing Down Thanks to Dark Matter
If it were't for an enormous halo of dark matter enveloping our galaxy, the spin-rate of our central bar should…