Cosmology

An astrophotographer who snapped images of the cosmos from a driveway in Connecticut is taking center stage in a Brooklyn space art exhibit

Under the simplest assumptions, the measured mass of the Higgs could mean the universe is unstable and destined to fall apart. But don’t worry—it won’t happen for billions of eons

New data from the European Planck satellite indicate that the universe is 13.8 billion years old rather than a mere 13.7 billion years old. John Matson reports

The subject was nothing at the Isaac Asimov Memorial Debate at the American Museum of Natural History in New York City. Steve Mirsky reports

The Planck space telescope's picture of the cosmic microwave background sheds fresh light on the first instants following the birth of the universe, and suggests that it's about 80 million years older than previously thought

An incomplete version of Chile's ALMA telescope array found that star formation was in full swing earlier than had been thought. John Matson reports

A study of the star HD 140283, only about 190 light-years away from us, finds that it formed in short order after the big bang. John Matson reports

The upcoming cosmic spectacle should offer scientists a chance to test some of their theories about how black holes accrete mass

NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter used radar to find the underground Martian channels

Although unlikely, there is a small chance the Comet Siding Spring, an estimated eight to 50 kilometers in diameter, could collide with Mars in October 2014

All stars are born in groups but then slowly disperse into space. A new theory seeks to explain how these groups form and fall apart or, in rare cases, persist for hundreds of millions of years

Theoretical physicist and New York University professor Matthew Kleban answers viewer questions submitted to YouTube's Spacelab Channel