Space
Explainer: Calculating a star’s age
Scientists can figure out a star's mass or composition pretty easily. Determining how old that star is, however, is a lot harder.
Space
More Stories in Space
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PlanetsPluto is no longer a planet — or is it?
In the 15 years since Pluto lost its status as a planet, some scientists continue to use whatever definition works best for them.
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SpaceHere’s an easier new way to weigh a black hole
The timing of flickers in the gas and dust of a black hole’s accretion disk correlates to its mass, a new study finds.
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EarthLet’s learn about meteor showers
Meteor showers happen when Earth’s orbit passes through trails of debris left behind by comets or asteroids.
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PlanetsJupiter’s intense auroras heat up its atmosphere
Jupiter’s hotter-than-expected upper atmosphere may be warmed by charged particles slamming into the air above the poles.
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SpaceExplainer: How auroras light up the sky
The northern and southern lights are considered natural wonders of the world. Here’s how these and related splendid sky glows form.
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SpaceLet’s learn about dark matter
Dark matter is only detectable by the gravitational pull it exerts on visible objects, like stars and galaxies.
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SpaceThis image may be the first look at exomoons in the making
These observations offer some of the best evidence yet that planets around other stars have moons, or exomoons.
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SpaceBorn in deep shadows? That could explain Jupiter’s strange makeup
Dust that blocked sunlight might have caused the gas giant to form in a deep freeze, a new study suggests.
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SpaceCosmic filaments may have the biggest spin in outer space
These rotating threads of dark matter and galaxies stretch millions of light-years. Scientists want to know how their spin begins.