China's Mars rover Zhurong finds possible shoreline of ancient Red Planet ocean By Sharmila Kuthunur published 17 November 24 Data from China's Zhurong rover has revealed what appears to be an ancient shoreline streaking through Mars' northern hemisphere.
Where do fast radio bursts come from? Astronomers tie mysterious eruptions to massive galaxies. By Sharmila Kuthunur published 15 November 24 Fast radio bursts — powerful and poorly understood cosmic eruptions — tend to occur in massive galaxies that host long-dead stars known as magnetars, a new study suggests.
Teeny tardigrades can survive space and lethal radiation. Scientists may finally know how. By Sharmila Kuthunur published 13 November 24 A new species of tardigrades with thousands of genes that become more active when exposed to radiation could help in devising better protection for astronauts on long missions.
NASA's Chandra X-ray telescope sees 'knots' blasting from nearby black hole jets By Sharmila Kuthunur published 10 November 24 A fresh analysis of decades-old X-ray black hole jet data has revealed bright, lumpy features with mysterious speed changes.
India targets 2028 for Chandrayaan-4 sample-return mission to moon's south pole By Sharmila Kuthunur published 4 November 24 India is eyeing a 2028 launch for its Chandrayaan-4 moon sample-return mission, followed by an uncrewed lunar lander and rover in collaboration with Japan.
Astronomers prepare for once-in-a-lifetime event: A 'new star' in the night sky By Sharmila Kuthunur published 4 October 24 A rare nova explosion will soon bring a "new star" to the night sky, and scientists are excited.
The bubbling surface of a distant star was captured on video for the 1st time ever By Sharmila Kuthunur published 17 September 24 Astronomers have gotten the first-ever detailed views of turbulent activity on a star other than our own sun.
Infamous 'Wow! signal' that hinted at aliens may actually be an exceptionally rare cosmic event By Sharmila Kuthunur published 10 September 24 The source of a supposed alien broadcast that made researchers go "Wow!" may instead have been the result of a remarkably rare cosmic event, a new study suggests.
Large patch of the Atlantic Ocean near the equator has been cooling at record speeds — and scientists can't figure out why By Sharmila Kuthunur published 28 August 24 Scientists are trying to decipher what drove the recent dramatic cooling of the tropical Atlantic, but so far few clues have emerged. "We are still scratching our heads as to what's actually happening," the researchers said.
Astronomers find black hole's favorite snack: 'The star appears to be living to die another day' By Sharmila Kuthunur published 21 August 24 Astronomers have pinned down a faraway black hole's snack schedule after watching it devour a star across years.
Intense solar storm opens '2-way highway' for charged particles, sparking rare auroras on the sun By Sharmila Kuthunur published 20 August 24 Last year, Earth spewed charged particles into the sun in a rare cosmic event that has surprised scientists.
Dinosaur-killing asteroid was a rare rock from beyond Jupiter, new study reveals By Sharmila Kuthunur published 15 August 24 Scientists have uncovered the "genetic fingerprint" of the dinosaur-killing Chicxulub impactor, potentially revealing the fateful rock's origins in the outer reaches of our solar system.
NASA's Parker Solar Probe finds fresh clues to decades-old mystery surrounding the sun By Sharmila Kuthunur published 13 August 24 NASA's Parker Solar Probe has found news clues in the longstanding mystery of why the sun's outer atmosphere, or corona, is so much hotter than our star's surface.
Saturn's planet-wide storms driven by seasonal heating, Cassini probe reveals By Sharmila Kuthunur published 23 June 24 Saturn pumps into space varying amounts of heat based on its seasons, which drives planet-wide storms, data from NASA's Cassini mission has revealed.
A telescope on Earth just took an unbelievable image of Jupiter's moon By Sharmila Kuthunur published 6 June 24 Astronomers using the Large Binocular Telescope in Arizona have taken a close-up picture of Jupiter's volcanic moon Io that rivals similar photos taken from space.
Mysterious 'puffy' planet may finally be explained by James Webb Space Telescope By Sharmila Kuthunur published 24 May 24 The exoplanet WASP-107 b is one of the least dense planets ever discovered. New James Webb telescope observations may reveal how the mysterious world got so 'puffy'.
Earth-size planet found orbiting nearby star that will outlive the sun by 100 billion years By Sharmila Kuthunur published 19 May 24 An Earth-size planet discovered around a nearby star offers astronomers their first chance for exoplanetary geology.
Strange, red-glowing planet may be 'melting from within,' scientists report By Sharmila Kuthunur published 14 May 24 Scientists have discovered a bizarre, red-glowing exoplanet named TOI-6713.01, which is loaded with active volcanoes and may be 'melting from within.'
Molecule responsible for robbing Venus of its water may finally have been identified By Sharmila Kuthunur published 8 May 24 A new water loss mechanism on Venus explains how the planet lost all its water, turning the planet from a potentially habitable world into the parched hellscape we know today.
Mars may have been more Earth-like than we thought, discovery of oxygen-rich rocks reveals By Sharmila Kuthunur published 6 May 24 Newfound rocks on Mars suggest the planet may have once sported an oxygen-rich atmosphere, making it more Earth-like and hospitable to life than previously thought.
Enormous explosion in 'Cigar Galaxy' reveals rare type of star never seen beyond the Milky Way By Sharmila Kuthunur published 24 April 24 An incredibly brief, ultrabright explosion has led astronomers to a newfound magnetic star outside the Milky Way, which could be the first of many extragalactic magnetars, according to new research.
Packs of dog-shaped robots could one day roam the moon — if they can find their footing on Earth first By Sharmila Kuthunur published 19 April 24 A dog-like, bio-inspired robot called Spirit is still learning to walk, but could one day be deployed on the moon to explore steep, potentially hazardous areas with a team of robot companions.
Venus is leaking carbon and oxygen, and scientists aren't totally sure why By Sharmila Kuthunur published 17 April 24 Observations of Venus taken with the BepiColombo space probe show that our cosmic neighbor is leaking significant amounts of carbon and oxygen from its atmosphere, and researchers can't totally explain why.
Gravitational waves reveal 1st-of-its-kind merger between neutron star and mystery object By Sharmila Kuthunur published 14 April 24 Ripples in space-time point to the merger of a neutron star with another mystery object. The object, which falls right within the mass-gap range, sheds light on a long-sought, murky realm.
There's a baby star 'sneezing' in the constellation Taurus — and it could solve a longstanding cosmic mystery By Sharmila Kuthunur published 12 April 24 In a rare observation, scientists found a baby star "sneezing" gas, dust and magnetic energy out of its disk. This behavior could help solve a longstanding mystery about how stars form without tearing themselves apart.