3I/ATLAS-Like Interstellar Objects Could Kick Start Planet Formation around High-Mass Stars
The discovery of 1I/Oumuamua, 2I/Borisov and 3I/ATLAS showed that significant numbers of interstellar objects populate interstellar space. Their…
Earth May Not Be So Special After All, New Study Finds
Illustration of exoplanet K2-18b. The planet is thought to have a thick gas envelope and no global ocean.…
Free-Floating Exoplanet Found Growing at Record Rate
Cha J11070768-7626326 (Cha 1107-7626 for short), a young, isolated exoplanet between 5 and 10 times the mass of…
Webb spots moon-forming disk around massive exoplanet
When giant planets are forming, they often gather swirling disks of gas and dust around them, called circumplanetary…
Webb Discovers Exomoon-Forming Circumplanetary Disk around Gas-Giant Exoplanet
Astronomers using the NASA/ESA/CSA James Webb Space Telescope have found the carbon-rich disk surrounding CT Cha b, a…
Webb Spots Cosmic Light Show on Rogue Planet
An artistic impression of SIMP-0136. Credit: Dr. Evert Nasedkin Using JWST, astronomers uncovered auroras, exotic clouds, and storms…
NASA Hits 6,000 Exoplanets. Some Are Stranger Than Sci-Fi
NASA’s exoplanet tally has climbed to 6,000, revealing bizarre and beautiful worlds far stranger than our own. (Artist’s…
Astronomers Capture First-Ever Photo of a Baby Planet Being Born in Darkness
In this artist’s illustration, infalling hydrogen gas causes the growing protoplanet WISPIT 2b to shine brightly in the…
Webb Telescope Spots Possible Signs of Atmosphere on “Goldilocks” Exoplanet
This artist’s concept portrays the seven rocky exoplanets within the TRAPPIST-1 system, located 40 light-years from Earth. Credit:…
A New Hope for Life? Webb Telescope Reveals First Clues From Potentially Habitable World
The Earth-size exoplanet TRAPPIST-1 e, depicted at the lower right, is silhouetted as it passes in front of…
A Long Skinny Rectangular Telescope Could Succeed Where the James Webb Fails and Uncover Habitable Worlds Nearby
Concept design for a rectangular space telescope, modeled after the Diffractive Interfero Coronagraph Exoplanet Resolver (DICER). Credit: Leaf…
Our Galaxy’s Sweet Spot for Life Is Bigger Than We Thought
New simulations suggest the Galactic Habitable Zone isn’t fixed: when stars migrate across the Milky Way, the odds…