Earth's Place in the Universe
- Space
Some white dwarf stars point to possible dark matter
Certain white-hot stars are cooling too fast for scientists to explain — unless they consider the presence of “axions.” These never-seen, but suspected particles could be shuttling away the extra energy from these cooling dwarf stars.
- Space
Sun’s nearest stellar neighbor may have Earth-like planet
A planet roughly the size of Earth orbits within the “Goldilocks” zone of the Proxima Centauri. Only 4.2 light-years away, this star is the one closest to our sun.
- Planets
Jupiter’s Great Red Spot is really, really hot
The Great Red Spot, a storm churning on Jupiter for at least 150 years, may be helping to keep the planet warm, a new study finds.
- Earth
Oxygen-rich air emerged super early, new data show
Scientists had thought animals were slow to emerge because they would have needed oxygen-rich air to breathe. A new study finds that plentiful oxygen may have developed early. So animals may have been late on the scene for another reason.
- Space
A new, nonexplosive source of black holes?
At least one black hole may have formed from the collapse of a cloud of gas, which is not the usual birthing scheme. This might even be how some of the earliest gargantuan black holes developed.
- Planets
New clues in search for Planet Nine
New details about Planet Nine, a hypothetical object on the edge of our solar system, might help scientists actually find it.
- Planets
That’s no moon: Earth’s tiny tagalong
A newly discovered asteroid appears to be orbiting Earth, like a new mini-moon. In fact, it’s really orbiting the sun.
- Space
By Jove! Juno-cam sends back first postcard
After a long and quiet trek through space, the Juno spacecraft showed it weathered the trip fine and is ready to get on with its business: probing what makes Jupiter tick.
- Space
Success! The Juno spacecraft is now orbiting Jupiter
After nearly five years, the probe has safely reached its target. Juno will spend 20 months in orbit around the planet so that scientists can probe the many mysteries of this gas giant.
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Teen makes sure bacteria stay hands-off
Germs are everywhere. One teen has designed a way to keep them from sticking to a surgeon’s gloves.
- Planets
Juno’s knocking on Jupiter’s door
The Juno spacecraft will peer into Jupiter’s clouds and fly in close to its monstrous auroras.
- Space
Scientists Say: Wormhole
Scientists have predicted the presence of tunnels in space that connect two points in space and time. They are named for the shape they resemble.
