The black hole death problem

Black holes are not as black as we once thought. They are theorized to die a slow death by evaporation, emitting energy known as Hawking radiation. But the mechanism for evaporation is not well understood. Then again, no one has ever even directly detected a black hole.

Nanocrystallized "Glass" Could Shield Spacecraft From UV Radiation

This nanocrystallized glass effectively absorbs UV rays and can withstand radiation for long periods of time.

Scientists have discovered the largest known solar system

Astronomers have found the largest known solar system, linking together a star and what was thought to be a free-floating 'lonely planet' in orbit some 1 trillion (1 million million) kilometres away from its sun.

NanoRacks project could be a giant leap for commercial space

A Webster company could soon receive NASA's blessing to build an airlock for the International Space Station that would launch small satellites and test experiments outside the station, while potentially providing an avenue for retrieving and repairing broken equipment.

Monstrous cloud boomerangs back to our galaxy

New Hubble telescope observations suggest that a high-velocity gas cloud was launched from the outer regions of our own galaxy around 70 million years ago. Now, the cloud is on a return collision course and is expected to plow into the Milky Way's disk in about 30 million years.

Curiosity Is Using Sweet New Tools to Explore Martian Sand Dunes

Curiosity is busy poking and prodding the Bagnold Dunes, learning some new tricks in the first-ever interplanetary fieldwork on a sand dune. And of course it looks absolutely stunning while doing it in this latest sand dune selfie.

Forget Blue Origin vs. SpaceX - the real battle is between old and new ideas

Friday’s launch of the New Shepard rocket in West Texas renewed the tired debate about whether Blue Origin or SpaceX has achieved more in the reusable spaceflight game.

Black Hole Suns Could Support Weird Forms of Complex Life

Someone hug Interstellar’s science advisor. Just like in the film, a new study finds that a black hole with exactly the right temperature could serve as a cold sun and even support complex lifeforms.

New study zeros in on plate tectonics' start date: Analysis of trace elements places the onset of plate tectonics about 3 billion years ago

A new study suggests that plate tectonics -- the dynamic processes that formed Earth's mountains, volcanoes and continents -- began about 3 billion years ago. By analyzing trace element ratios that correlate to magnesium content in ancient Earth's crust, the researchers provide first-order geochemical evidence for when plate tectonics first got underway.

Pluto: Impact craters indicate heart-shaped Sputnik Planum is only 10 million years old

Pluto's heart-shaped Sputnik Planum region is only 10 million years old — far younger than the rest of the dwarf planet, according to a new study.

" Exploration is in our nature. We began as wanderers, and we are wanderers still. We have lingered long enough on the shores of the cosmic ocean. We are ready at last to set sail for the stars "
- Carl Sagan, Cosmos -

Searching for Another Earth Around a Neighboring Star

Are there Earth-like planets in a neighboring star system? A new campaign called “Pale Red Dot” aims to show the public in real-time how to push astronomy to its limits to possibly find out.

New theory of secondary inflation expands options for avoiding an excess of dark matter

A new theory suggests a shorter secondary inflationary period that could account for the amount of dark matter estimated to exist throughout the cosmos.

Signs of second largest black hole in the Milky Way: Possible missing link in black hole evolution

Astronomers using the Nobeyama 45-m Radio Telescope have detected signs of an invisible black hole with a mass of 100 thousand times the mass of the Sun around the center of the Milky Way.

Brightest-ever supernova still baffles astronomers

Origin of exploding star that is twice as luminous as any other remains unclear. Seven months after it was first spotted, a puzzle still hangs over the origin of the brightest supernova ever seen.