Black Hole Merger That ‘Shouldn’t’ Exist’

The black hole was bigger than expected, and while the answer was hiding in plain sight, it still rewrites what we thought was possible.

Blue Origin’s New Glenn Nails Second Flight

Jeff Bezos's Blue Origin successfully launched its New Glenn rocket on Thursday with NASA twin spacecraft destined for Mars aboard, and in a breakthrough, nailed the landing of its booster.

Astronomical First: Storm Seen Erupting on Another Sun

Astronomers have detected a storm on a star other than our Sun for the first time, discovering an explosion so violent it could have stripped away the atmosphere of any planets unlucky enough to be nearby.

Tiny Meteoroids Poses 'Silent Threat' to Future Moon Base

The Moon has no atmosphere, yet it faces an invisible bombardment more relentless than any terrestrial storm, a constant rain of micrometeoroids, tiny fragments of rock and metal traveling at speeds up to 70 kilometers per second.

Astronomers Found ancient ‘Heavy Water’ in Planet-Forming Disk

Astronomers have discovered traces of ancient “heavy water” around a young star, revealing that some of the water found in our Solar System and even on Earth could be older than the Sun itself.

Dark Object One Million Times the Mass of the Sun

Something massive is lurking in the darkness of space, a mysterious object with the weight of a million Suns but no light to give it away.

The Fastest-Spinning Black Holes Ever Detected

Gravitational waves from the birth of two newborn black holes caught the attention of scientists last year. Scientists have discovered something spectacular about the birth of one of the black holes.

Our Universe May Have Already Entered Decelerating Phase

A new study shows that the Universe has already entered a phase of decelerated expansion at the present epoch and that dark energy evolves with time much more rapidly than previously thought.

The Milky Way has a Colossal Wave Rippling Through It

Our home galaxy also has a colossal wave rippling through it, pulling and pushing an ocean of stars and cosmic dust in its wake.

Scientists Finally Solve 70-Year Mystery of Sun's 'Impossible Heat'

For decades, scientists have tried to understand how the Sun's corona (outer atmosphere) gets so blisteringly hot while its surface stays relatively balmy – and now a new study has delivered a big clue.

A Small World in the Outer Solar System Might Be Forming Rings

Astronomers found evidence of three rings around Chiron, which orbits the Sun between Uranus and Saturn.

Super-Earth 18 light-years away sparks hope for life in space

Astronomers have discovered another potentially habitable exoplanet orbiting a nearby star. The planet – GJ 251 c – is in the habitable zone of its red dwarf star. 

Building blocks of life found in neighboring galaxy

A team led by a University of Maryland astronomer detected large complex organic molecules in ices outside of the Milky Way for the first time, offering a glimpse into the chemistry of the early universe.

Saturn's moon Titan just broke one of chemistry’s oldest rules

Scientists from NASA and Chalmers University have discovered that incompatible substances can mix on Titan’s icy surface, breaking the “like dissolves like” rule of chemistry.

China Found Something Fascinating on the Far Side of the Moon

It’s the first time CI chondrite was observer on the Moon, suggesting that volatile-rich asteroids — which are very porous, with hydrated minerals making up to 20 percent of their mass — can make it all the way to the lunar surface.