Tag Archives: Astrophysics

Nobel Prize in Physics honors the discovery of a supermassive compact object at the heart of the Milky Way

Posted on December 1, 2020 by

By tracking the orbits of stars close to the galactic center, Reinhard Genzel and Andrea Ghez ruled out all possibilities besides a black hole. Continue reading →

Image | Posted on December 1, 2020 by | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Ion Recoil from Photon Beam Observed

Posted on June 22, 2020 by

Experiments confirm that photonionized molecules get a backward kick, as predicted by theory.  Continue reading →

Image | Posted on June 22, 2020 by | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Three Helium-Ammonia Compounds Found for Icy Planets

Posted on April 10, 2020 by

Stable compounds made from helium and ammonia are predicted to form at the extreme pressures found inside Neptune and Uranus.  Continue reading →

Image | Posted on April 10, 2020 by | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Rare nuclear transition provides evidence for stellar explosion mechanism

Posted on March 2, 2020 by

With its higher-than-expected propensity to capture electrons, neon could drive some stars’ thermonuclear death.  Continue reading →

Image | Posted on March 2, 2020 by | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Rare nuclear transition provides evidence for supernova mechanism

Posted on January 31, 2020 by

With its higher-than-expected propensity to capture electrons, neon could drive some stars’ thermonuclear death. Continue reading →

Image | Posted on January 31, 2020 by | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Mapping the Remains of Supernovae

Posted on December 18, 2019 by

A new tool provides detailed, 3-D chemical view of exploded star systems. Continue reading →

Image | Posted on December 18, 2019 by | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Physical cosmology wins a share of the Nobel Prize in Physics

Posted on December 1, 2019 by

James Peebles developed a mathematical framework that describes how the universe evolved. Decades of empirical evidence later, it still holds up. Continue reading →

Image | Posted on December 1, 2019 by | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Iron-rich object closely orbits a white dwarf

Posted on June 2, 2019 by

The newly discovered object could be the core of a planet that survived the transition of its host star into a red giant. Continue reading →

Image | Posted on June 2, 2019 by | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

A glimpse of a planetary system’s final stages

Posted on April 19, 2019 by

Detailed spectroscopy measurements may help astronomers discover bodies orbiting white dwarfs. Continue reading →

Image | Posted on April 19, 2019 by | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

Satellites glimpse the microphysics of magnetic reconnection

Posted on February 1, 2019 by

In situ measurements capture a nonturbulent, efficient reconnection event on Earth’s nightside. Continue reading →

Image | Posted on February 1, 2019 by | Tagged , , | Leave a comment