SA Special Editions

Exceptionally massive and bright, the earliest stars changed the course of Cosmic history

Astronomers are on the verge of explaining the enigmatic variety of galaxies

Exploding stars seen across immense distances show that the cosmic expansion may be accelerating-a sign that an exotic new form of energy could be driving the universe apart

The Long-Derided Cosmological Constant-a Contrivance of Albert Einstein's-- may explain changes in the expansion rate of the universe

The universe has recently been commandeered by an invisible energy field, which is causing its expansion to accelerate outward Is it all over but the shouting?

Billions of years ago the universe was too hot for life to exist. Countless aeons from now, it will become so cold and empty that life, no matter how ingenious, will perish.

Conventional wisdom says the universe is infinite. But it could be finite, merely giving the illusion of infinity

The visible universe could lie on a membrane floating within a higher-dimensional space

The Microwave Anisotropy Probe will give cosmologists a much sharper picture of the early universe

Scientists may soon glimpse the universe's beginnings by studying the subtle ripples made by gravitational waves

This Century cosmologists will unravel the mystery of our universe's Birth-and perhaps prove the existence of other universes as well

Physicists have spent eight years and 365 million building a radically new kind of observatory to detect gravitational waves. but will it work? a trial run put it to the test

If the new cosmology fails, what's the backup plan?