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Neither Star nor Planet: A Strange Brown Dwarf Puzzles Astronomers
Brown dwarfs such as “The Accident” are illuminating the murky borderlands that separate planets from stars.
Gas Giants’ Energy Crisis Solved After 50 Years
Jupiter and Saturn should be freezing cold. Instead, they’re hot. Researchers now know why.
Squishy Neutron Star Setback Dampens Hopes of Exotic Matter
Groundbreaking results show that neutron stars of different masses may have the same size — upending astrophysical models.
Quantum Double-Slit Experiment Offers Hope for Earth-Size Telescope
A new proposal would use quantum hard drives to combine the light of multiple telescopes, letting astronomers create incredibly high-resolution optical images.
How Radio Astronomy Reveals the Universe
Radio waves, longer and less energetic than visible light, give astronomers access to some of the most obscure physics in the cosmos.
Galaxy-Size Bubbles Discovered Towering Over the Milky Way
For decades, astronomers debated whether a particular smudge was close-by and small, or distant and huge. A new X-ray map supports the massive option.
Astronomers Get Their Wish, and a Cosmic Crisis Gets Worse
We don’t know why the universe appears to be expanding faster than it should. New ultra-precise distance measurements have only intensified the problem.
The New History of the Milky Way
Over the past two years, astronomers have rewritten the story of our galaxy.
Debate Erupts Over How ‘Forbidden’ Black Holes Grow
Once missing in action, middleweight black holes have finally been detected. Now researchers are trying to figure out how they grow from small ones.