Astrophysics1357 articles archived since 1845

Astronomers Skeptical Over "Planet X" Claims

Two controversial new studies suggest the discovery of large objects at the outer reaches of the solar system

Can Time Travelers Reach the Past via Wormholes?

Astronauts already skip ahead in time, but the laws of physics seem to forbid going backward—or do they?

Super Spiral Galaxies Amaze Astronomers

A new breed of giants raises questions about how the biggest galaxies arise

A Tale of 2 Habitable Planets

New study explores how life on one exoplanet could spread to its neighbor

Confirmed: Black Holes are Magnetism-Powered Eating Machines

The long list of unanswered questions about black holes contains one particularly surprising item: How do they eat? Unlike many of the riddles that black holes pose, this one seems so simple: What do you mean we don’t know how things fall into a black hole?...

Superstars of the First Galaxies

Emerging evidence suggests that the first starlight to shine after the big bang’s flash came from distant suns that ranged from very large to incredibly huge

The Black Hole at the Beginning of Time

Is the big bang, and all that came from it, a holographic mirage from another dimension?

5 Reasons to Thank Your Lucky Constants This Thanksgiving

As you dig into those mashed potatoes, be grateful the universe’s physical constants are so precise that a slight variation in any one would render that drumstick—and even your existence—impossible...

Einstein's Unfinished Dream: Marrying Relativity to the Quantum World

On the centennial of the theory of general relativity, senior Fermilab scientist Don Lincoln reflects on Einstein's quest to understand the quantum world

Better Than Sci-Fi

The Case of the Disappearing Quasars

A dozen quasars in the early universe appear to have shut down in just a few years, baffling astronomers

Birth of Planets! Formation of Alien Worlds Photographed for First Time

Scientists photograph a gas-giant exoplanet forming around a young star that lies about 450 light-years from Earth

Graphic: A World of Exoplanet Discoveries

What we know about alien worlds—and what’s coming next

Mysterious Glow at Milky Way's Center Could Be Dark Matter or Hidden Pulsars

Astronomers get closer to an explanation for the unexpected abundance of gamma rays at the core of our galaxy...

Book Review: Dark Matter and the Dinosaurs

Recommendations from Scientific American

The Failure of Phobos

A new explanation for the strange grooves on the surface of the martian moon Phobos suggests that the entire satellite already shows signs of how it will eventually be destroyed.

Pandemonium! Motion of Pluto's Moons Perplexes Scientists

New Horizons reveals the orbits of Pluto's four smallest moons to be even more chaotic than expected

Astronomers May Have Witnessed 2 Black Hole Births

Stars that disappear rather than explode could signal a black hole’s beginnings

Hunting for Dark Energy [Slide Show]

The Dark Energy Survey is an ambitious project to figure out why the expansion of the universe is speeding up

"Halloween Asteroid" Will Fly Near Earth Saturday

Asteroid TB145 will make a near pass of our planet, offering astronomers a chance for an up-close radar view of its surface