Astronomers have recently identified a new exoplanet, HD 137010b, orbiting the nearby K dwarf star HD 137010, following the detection of a single shallow transit in archived data from NASA’s Kepler Expansion K2 mission.
HD 137010b is estimated to be 6% larger than Earth, with surface temperatures akin to those of Mars, possibly dipping below -70 degrees Celsius. Image credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/Keith Miller, California Institute of Technology and IPAC.
HD 137010 is classified as a K3.5V dwarf star located approximately 146 light-years away in the constellation Libra.
This star’s age ranges between 4.8 billion and 10 billion years, and its low magnetic activity reflects its status as an old, relatively calm star.
Commonly referenced as BD-19 4097, HIC 75398, 2MASS J15242123-1944215, or TYC 6179-1111-1, HD 137010 has an apparent magnitude of 10.1 and is recognized as one of the brightest stars hosting an Earth-sized planet in temperate orbits.
The new exoplanet, designated HD 137010b, was observed during K2 Campaign 15 when NASA’s Kepler Space Telescope monitored its parent star for about three months in 2017.
“Most Earth-sized planets discovered in the habitable zone orbit red dwarfs, which are smaller and dimmer than the Sun,” explains lead author Astronomer Alexander Venner from the University of Southern Queensland.
“Concerns arise regarding these planets losing their atmospheres due to intense radiation from their host stars, rendering them uninhabitable for known life forms.”
“However, HD 137010b’s star shares characteristics more closely aligned with the Sun, increasing the likelihood that a stable atmosphere could be retained, according to current theoretical models.”
In their study, Venner and colleagues analyzed K2 data, light curves from nearby stars, archival images, and radial velocity measurements to clarify the nature of the transit signal, which lasted roughly 10 hours.
These evaluations strongly suggest that the observed transit is astrophysical and not a result of background interference, eclipsing binaries, or solar-system debris.
Astronomers have determined that the planet’s radius is approximately 1.06 times that of Earth based on the transit depth.
Considering the transit’s duration and the star’s properties, the orbital period of HD 137010b is estimated to be around 355 days.
At its distance from the host star, HD 137010b is estimated to receive about 29% of the stellar flux that Earth obtains from the Sun, placing it near the outskirts of the star’s habitable zone.
“If HD 137010b has an atmosphere similar to that of Earth or Mars, it could experience temperatures colder than Antarctica,” noted Dr. Venner.
“However, if the atmosphere thickens, conditions could warm up sufficiently for liquid water to exist, creating a potentially viable environment for life.”
“Current astronomical instruments are unable to fully characterize this newly discovered planet, but it stands out as a primary candidate for future radial velocity tools aimed at detecting Earth-like analogs.”
“Upcoming space missions, like NASA’s Habitable World Observatory, could also provide images of HD 137010b.”
This discovery is detailed in the following article: paper published in Astrophysics Journal Letters.
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Alexander Venner and others. 2026. A cool Earth-sized planet candidate orbiting a K2 magnitude K-dwarf star. APJL 997, L38; doi: 10.3847/2041-8213/adf06f
Illustration of a Failed Supernova Explosion Forming a Black Hole
NASA, ESA, and P. Jeffries (STScI)
A massive star in the Andromeda galaxy has seemingly vanished instead of exploding, resulting in the formation of a black hole in a peculiar manner.
Typically, black holes originate from stars that explode as supernovas. However, they can also emerge from stars that collapse due to their own gravity, directly creating black holes without the explosive phase.
In 2024, Kisharai De from Columbia University, along with his team, investigated the case of M31-2014-DS1, an exceptionally bright star located in the Andromeda galaxy, approximately 20 times the mass of our Sun. The star exhibited an initial brightening in 2014, followed by a significant dimming from 2017 to 2020. This behavior aligned with predictions for a supernova that would fail to result in a black hole, yet no direct evidence of the black hole was observed, such as X-ray emissions.
Currently, De and his colleagues are utilizing the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) and Chandra X-ray Observatory to study M31-2014-DS1. They have detected a faint red object at the star’s previous location, which is only about 8% brighter than the original star and enveloped in rapidly expanding dust. This finding aligns with the expected characteristics of a supernova that fails to produce a black hole. However, De and his team have refrained from commenting further, as their research has not yet undergone peer review.
Another group studying the same JWST data, including Emma Beasor from Liverpool John Moores University, UK, suggested that the case for M31-2014-DS1 failing to explode may also indicate a stellar merger, which could result in small explosions followed by dimming and dust formation.
“Predictions for the appearance of a failed supernova significantly overlap with what we might expect from a collision of two stars creating vast amounts of dust,” Beasor explained.
However, both scenarios are rare, she noted, as it is uncommon to observe such drastic color changes in a star.
“No matter the explanation, it’s fascinating that the visible star has essentially vanished,” stated Gerald Gilmore from Cambridge University. “For years, the search for extinct massive stars has produced ambiguous outcomes, but now, advancements in multi-wavelength time-domain astronomy are paving the way for clarity.”
The definitive method for confirming black hole formation is through the identification of X-ray emissions, Gilmore noted, which are currently absent at the M31-2014-DS1 location. Nevertheless, if advanced telescopes like JWST can analyze the remnants of dimmed stars, we could soon uncover what occurred. “We are on the verge of discovering at least one of the ultimate fates of a massive star, which is intriguingly akin to the Cheshire Cat’s disappearance,” he remarked.
Image of SN Eos supernova taken by the James Webb Space Telescope
Astronomers have identified a colossal star’s explosion shortly after the universe emerged from the Cosmic Dark Ages, offering insights into the birth and demise of the first stars.
When a star exhausts its fuel, it explodes in a spectacular event known as a supernova. While nearby supernovae are exceedingly bright, the light from ancient explosions takes billions of years to reach Earth, fading into invisibility by the time it arrives.
This is why astronomers typically detect distant supernovae only during exceptional circumstances, such as Type Ic supernovae, which are the remnants of stars stripped of their outer gas and producing intense gamma-ray bursts. However, the more common Type II supernova, the predominant explosion observed in our galaxy, occurs when a massive star depletes its fuel but remains too faint for casual observation.
Notably, David Coulter, a professor at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, Maryland, and his team utilized the James Webb Space Telescope to discover a Type II supernova named SN Eos, dating back to when the universe was only 1 billion years old.
Fortunately, the supernova’s explosion took place behind a vast galaxy cluster, whose potent gravity amplified the light, rendering SN Eos dozens of times brighter than it would typically appear, facilitating detailed studies.
Researchers meticulously analyzed the light spectrum from SN Eos, confirming it as the oldest supernova detected via spectroscopy. Their findings denote it as a Type II supernova, attesting to its origins from a massive star.
Additionally, evidence suggests that the progenitor star contained remarkably low quantities of elements beyond hydrogen and helium—less than 10% of the elemental abundance present in the Sun. This aligns with theories about the early universe, where multiple stellar generations hadn’t existed long enough to create heavier elements.
“This allows us to quickly identify the type of stellar population in that region. [This star] exploded,” stated Or Graul from the University of Portsmouth, UK. “Massive stars tend to explode shortly after their formation. In cosmological terms, a million years is a brief interval, making them indicators of ongoing star formation within their respective galaxies.”
Light from such vast distances is typically emitted by small galaxies, allowing astronomers to infer the average characteristics of the stars within these galaxies. However, studying individual stars at these distances tends to be unfeasible. As noted by Matt Nicholl of Queen’s University, Belfast, UK, “This discovery provides us with exquisite data on an individual star. [Distance] has kept us from observing an isolated supernova here, but the data confirms this star’s uniqueness compared to others in the local universe.”
This observation occurred just a few hundred million years following the Era of Reionization, a pivotal period in the universe’s history. During this time, light from the inaugural stars began ionizing neutral hydrogen gas, transitioning it into translucent ionized hydrogen. This relates to SN Eos, as it serves as a supernova from a time we would expect to see.
“This discovery closely coincides with the reionization era when the universe emerged from darkness, permitting photons to travel freely once more and allowing us to observe,” said Graul.
Recent multi-year observations from the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope, along with data from the Fred Lawrence Whipple and Roque de los Muchachos Observatories, have unveiled how a faint companion star, identified as Siwalha, has carved a path through the vast atmosphere of Betelgeuse. These findings illuminate long-standing mysteries regarding stellar evolution and advance our understanding of large-scale stellar dynamics.
Artist’s concept depicting the red supergiant star Betelgeuse alongside its orbiting companion. Image credit: NASA/ESA/Elizabeth Wheatley, STScI/Andrea Dupree, CfA.
Betelgeuse, an impressive 8-million-year-old red supergiant star, is prominently situated on the shoulder of the Orion constellation, approximately 724 light-years away from Earth.
With a radius roughly 1,400 times that of the Sun, Betelgeuse stands as one of the largest known stars in the universe.
Commonly referred to as Alpha Orionis or Alpha Ori, Betelgeuse is not just renowned for its size but also for its brightness, radiating more light than 100,000 suns combined.
As Betelgeuse nears the end of its life cycle, its impending explosion is expected to be so luminous that it will be visible in daylight for several weeks.
Astronomers have been meticulously monitoring variations in Betelgeuse’s brightness and surface characteristics for decades to uncover the underlying causes of its behavior.
Interest peaked in 2020 when Betelgeuse seemed to exhibit unusual “sneezing” behavior, suddenly dimming unexpectedly.
Two key periods of fluctuations have intrigued scientists: a short 400-day cycle, likely linked to the star’s own pulsations, and a longer 2,100-day period that remains more elusive.
Researchers have theorized various explanations for these fluctuations, including large convective cells, dust clouds, magnetic activities, and the possible presence of hidden companion stars.
A recent comprehensive study suggests that the longer secondary period is best explained by a low-mass companion star that orbits deep within Betelgeuse’s atmosphere. While some scientists reported possible detections, solid evidence was previously lacking—until now.
For the first time, astronomers have gathered compelling evidence that a companion star is indeed influencing the supergiant star’s atmosphere.
Data changes in the spectra of stars—colors of light emitted by different elements—and shifts in the gas’s speed and direction in the outer atmosphere confirm the presence of denser material and wake effects.
This peculiar signature appears soon after the companion star transits in front of Betelgeuse approximately every six years, further endorsing the theoretical model.
Dr. Andrea Dupree, an astronomer at Harvard University & Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics, commented, “It’s akin to a boat sailing through water; the companion star induces a ripple in Betelgeuse’s atmosphere that is directly observable in the data.”
“For the first time, we are witnessing definitive signs of this wake or gas signature, validating that Betelgeuse does indeed harbor a hidden companion that influences its observable characteristics and behavior.”
Astronomers utilizing ESO’s Very Large Telescope (VLT) have captured stunning shock waves surrounding the white dwarf star 1RXS J052832.5+283824 (commonly known as RXJ0528+2838). This extraordinary phenomenon challenges existing astrophysical models and has the potential to transform our understanding of stellar evolution.
Image credit: ESO / Iłkiewicz et al. showcasing the shockwave around the white dwarf RXJ0528+2838, captured by the MUSE instrument of ESO’s VLT.
Located approximately 730 light-years away in the constellation Auriga, RXJ0528+2838 orbits the center of the Milky Way, similar to our Sun and other stars.
According to Dr. Noel Castro-Segura from the University of Warwick, “As the white dwarf traverses space, it interacts with interstellar gas, causing a type of shock wave known as a bow shock, which resembles a wave building up in front of a moving ship.”
Interestingly, while bow shocks are typically produced by material expelled from the star, the mechanisms observed in RXJ0528+2838 remain unexplained.
RXJ0528+2838 is part of a binary system, with a sun-like companion star. In such systems, gas is often transferred to the white dwarf, creating an accretion disk. However, this disk appears absent, leading to questions about the source of the observed outflow and the surrounding nebula.
Dr. Simone Scaringi from Durham University expressed: “The fact that a seemingly quiet, diskless system could produce such an impressive nebula was a remarkable surprise.”
Astronomers initially identified an unusual nebula around RXJ0528+2838 through images captured by the Isaac Newton Telescope in Spain, prompting further investigation with the MUSE instrument at VLT.
The size and shape of the bow shock indicate that the white dwarf has been generating significant outflows for over 1,000 years.
Although the exact mechanism for such a prolonged outflow from a diskless white dwarf is still under investigation, scientists speculate that RXJ0528+2838 possesses a strong magnetic field, evidenced by MUSE data.
This magnetic field may funnel material directly from the companion star to the white dwarf, bypassing the formation of an accretion disk.
Dr. Christian Ikiewicz from the Nicolaus Copernicus Astronomical Center remarked, “Our findings indicate that diskless systems can still produce powerful outflows, revealing complex interactions that challenge traditional binary star models.”
While the detected magnetic field can sustain a bow shock for hundreds of years, it only partially accounts for the phenomena observed.
“We’ve uncovered something unprecedented and unexpectedly remarkable,” Dr. Scaringi noted.
For further reading on this groundbreaking discovery, refer to the published paper in the journal Nature Astronomy.
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K. Iwkiewicz et al. Persistent bow shock in a diskless magnetized accreting white dwarf. Nat Astron, published online on January 12, 2026. doi: 10.1038/s41550-025-02748-8
Astronomers reveal new insights into the factors influencing star formation efficiency in the densest regions of galaxies through Caffeine research.
GAL316: A massive star-forming region. Image credit: ESO / M. Matten / André et al. / VVV.
In this groundbreaking study, astronomer Michael Mattern from the University of Paris-Saclay and his team meticulously mapped dense gas across 49 giant star-forming complexes located approximately 3,000 parsecs away within our galaxy’s disk.
“Creating stars is a challenging endeavor, and the process lacks efficiency,” the astronomers stated.
“Current understanding indicates that a certain minimum density of gas and dust is necessary for stars to form.”
“Only about 1 to 2 percent of the gas and dust in these regions is utilized in the ignition of a star.”
“Could denser regions exhibit higher efficiency in star formation?”
“We are examining GAL316, one of the remarkable stellar nurseries we observed, to explore this question,” they elaborated.
The ongoing CAFFEINE survey employs the ArTéMiS camera on the Atacama Pathfinder Experiment (APEX), a state-of-the-art radio telescope situated on the Chajnantor Plateau.
“APEX, managed by the Max Planck Institute for Radio Astronomy, has successfully captured the faint emissions of cold gas clouds, visible as blue glows in GAL316 images,” the researchers revealed.
“This glow overlays a starry backdrop, successfully recorded by ESO’s VISTA telescope.”
They discovered that as gas density increases past a specific threshold, the efficiency of star formation – the conversion rate of gas into stars – does not proportionately escalate.
This observation contradicts existing models that suggest a continual rise in star formation with density increases.
Conversely, the efficiency remains nearly constant in extremely dense gas, reinforcing the notion that stars primarily form within filamentous structures in clouds, a process dictated by the fragmentation of these filaments into protostar cores.
The findings suggest a potential gas density threshold for efficient star formation, bolstering the hypothesis that the physics of dense filaments governs star formation, rather than turbulence or feedback from nascent stars alone.
This research represents one of the most thorough efforts to date in connecting the physical structure of dense gas with star formation efficiency, paving the way for future observations and simulations that aim to elucidate the emergence of Sun-like stars from interstellar clouds.
“Our results indicate that the densest regions observed in this Caffeine study show similar efficiencies in star production compared to other stellar nurseries, provided they exceed the minimum density,” the scientists remarked.
Their findings are detailed in a published paper in the journal Astronomy and Astrophysics.
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M. Mattern et al. 2024. Investigating star formation efficiency in dense gas: Initial results from the CAFFEINE survey utilizing ArTéMiS. A&A 688, A163; doi: 10.1051/0004-6361/202449908
A long-lost star, discovered by the legendary astronomer Edward Emerson Barnard in 1892, has been astonishingly rediscovered in its original location.
Barnard was not just any astronomer; he made significant contributions to the field, including the discovery of Jupiter’s fifth moon, Amalthea, in 1892—nearly three centuries after Galileo’s initial discoveries. Recently, his observations have gained renewed interest due to a puzzling article he published in 1906, titled “Unexplained Observations.”
On a particular morning, Barnard noted a star near Venus while using his telescope to search for its satellite. He estimated its brightness to be around 7th magnitude on the astronomical scale, where fainter objects bear higher numbers. Typically, under dark skies, stars of magnitude 6 are the faintest visible to the human eye.
Beneath the stars at the Bonner Cathedral, which cataloged all stars brighter than magnitude 9.5, Barnard’s 7th magnitude star was conspicuously absent. Instead, the only celestial body he found nearby was a significantly dimmer 11th magnitude star—about 100 times less bright.
Could it have been a large asteroid? “Ceres, Pallas, Juno, and Vesta were elsewhere,” he surmised. Some theorized that the 11th magnitude star he eventually observed in that region might have temporarily brightened. Other scientists speculated that Barnard could have been deceived by a “ghost” image of Venus through the telescope. The mystery lingered until late December 2024 when a dedicated group of astronomers sought to unravel it.
“In a weekly Zoom meeting dubbed ‘Asteroid Lunch,’ I brought it up,” says Tim Hunter.
Hunter, an Arizona-based amateur astronomer and co-founder of the International Dark Sky Association, along with both amateur and professional astronomers, evaluated all previous hypotheses and found flaws in them.
As doubts began to consume the group, Roger Ceragioli, an optical engineer from the University of Arizona, revisited the ghost theory by observing Venus at dawn using a vintage telescope similar to Barnard’s. Much to his surprise, although Venus was not positioned where Barnard had seen it, “the star emerged clearly in my field of view,” he noted. This led him to theorize that the star must be bright enough to be visible at dawn, even though the star map revealed it to be only 8th magnitude and therefore relatively faint.
The group’s conclusive findings suggested that Barnard’s purported 7th magnitude star was indeed the 11th magnitude star noted later—appearing brighter due to the dawn light. Using a 36-inch telescope at the Lick Observatory in California, Barnard first spotted this star alongside Venus, but no equally bright stars were visible in the area.
Understanding Star brightness measurement was a specialized skill in Barnard’s era. It had only been refined by astronomers focusing on variable stars, which Barnard had not formally studied. Thus, his mistake was rather excusable, as Ceragioli suggests.
Hunter affirms Barnard’s legacy remains intact, saying, “We’re all big fans of Barnard. It’s a minor error in an impressive career.”
Chile: The World Capital of Astronomy
Discover the astronomical wonders of Chile, home to the world’s most advanced observatory and unrivaled stargazing opportunities under some of the clearest skies on Earth.
IRAS 23077+6707: A Turbulent Protoplanetary Disk – Located approximately 1,000 light-years away, this young star exhibits an unexpectedly chaotic and turbulent surrounding protoplanetary disk, with material fragments extending farther than what astronomers have previously observed in similar systems. For more details, check the study here.
This Hubble image showcases the protoplanetary disk surrounding IRAS 23077+6707. Image credit: NASA / ESA / STScI / K. Monsch, CfA / J. DePasquale, STScI.
Protoplanetary disks, rich in dust and gas, form around young stars and serve as primary locations for planet formation.
The disk surrounding IRAS 23077+6707 spans approximately 644 billion km (400 billion miles), making it about 40 times the diameter of our solar system, reaching to the outer Kuiper belt.
This vast disk obscures the star, which scientists suggest could be a massive star or potentially a binary star system.
Not only is this disk the largest known for planet formation, but its unique characteristics also make it exceptionally rare.
“It’s uncommon to capture such fine detail in protoplanetary disks. The new Hubble images suggest that planetary nurseries might be much more dynamic and chaotic than we previously thought,” explained Dr. Christina Monsch, an astronomer at Harvard University and the Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics.
“Observing this disk nearly head-on reveals its delicate upper layers and asymmetrical features,” she added.
Both the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope and the NASA/ESA/CSA James Webb Space Telescope have glimpsed similar structures, but IRAS 23077+6707 allows for unmatched visibility of its substructure in visible light.
This unique perspective makes it an exceptional laboratory for studying planet formation and the environments in which it occurs.
Edge-on, these disks resemble hamburgers, with bright upper and lower layers of glowing dust and gas, separated by a dark central lane.
In addition to its significant height, the new images reveal that vertical filament-like structures only appear on one side of the disk, indicating an uneven distribution of material.
“We were astonished by how asymmetric this disk appeared,” noted Dr. Joshua Bennett Lovell from the Harvard University & Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics.
“Hubble provides us with an exceptional view of the chaotic processes involved in the formation of disks and new planets. This process remains poorly understood, but these insights allow for fresh study opportunities.”
All planetary systems originate from a disk of gas and dust surrounding young stars. Over time, gas is absorbed by the star while planets form from the remaining material.
IRAS 23077+6707 might act as an extended analog to the early Solar System, with an estimated disk mass between 10 to 30 times that of Jupiter, providing sufficient material for multiple gas giant planets.
This and other discoveries make IRAS 23077+6707 an extraordinary case for examining planetary system formation.
“Theoretically, IRAS 23077+6707 could support a vast planetary system,” Dr. Monch stated.
“While planet formation may differ in such expansive conditions, the fundamental processes are likely akin to those in smaller systems.”
“At this point, we have more questions than answers, but these new images serve as a valuable foundation for understanding how planets evolve in diverse environments.”
Christina Monche et al. 2025. Hubble reveals the complex multiscale structure of the edge-on protoplanetary disk IRAS 23077+6707. APJ in press. arXiv: 2510.11819
Composite image of Fomalhaut’s dust belt (center hidden). The inset displays dust cloud cs1 taken in 2012 together with dust cloud cs2 from 2023.
NASA, ESA, Paul Karas/University of California, Berkeley
Around the star Fomalhaut, asteroids are involved in collisions that generate massive dust clouds. This is the first time astronomers are witnessing these events, offering insights into the early days of our solar system.
Fomalhaut has had its share of unusual findings. In 2008, Paul Kalas, based on observations from the Hubble Space Telescope in 2004 and 2005, reported a potential giant planet orbiting the young star. Over the years, however, the nature of this peculiar object, dubbed Fomalhaut b, has sparked heated debates. It could either be a planet slightly larger than Jupiter or simply a cloud of debris.
Now, Kalas and his team have revisited Fomalhaut using Hubble. “In 2023, we utilized the same equipment as before, and Fomalhaut b was undetectable. It was effectively gone,” says Kalas, “What appeared was a new Fomalhaut b.”
This new bright feature, named Fomalhaut CS2 (short for “circumstellar light source”), cannot be a planet, as it would have been identified earlier. The leading theory is that it represents a dust cloud resulting from the collision of two large asteroids or planetesimals, each approximately 60 kilometers in diameter. The disappearance of Fomalhaut b implies that it may have been a similar dust cloud all along.
“These sources exhibit noise and instability, so we’re still far from drawing definitive conclusions,” notes David Kipping at Columbia University. “Yet, all existing evidence aligns well with a broader narrative of collisions between protoplanets in nascent systems.”
Interestingly, it’s unexpected to observe such a significant break twice. “The hypothesis suggests that we shouldn’t witness such impacts more than once every 100,000 years, if not even more infrequently. And yet, for some unexplained reason, we seem to observe it twice within 20 years,” Kalas explains. “Fomalhaut lights up like a holiday tree and it’s astounding.”
This might indicate that collisions among planetesimals are occurring more frequently than previously thought, particularly around relatively young stars like Fomalhaut. Kalas and his team plan to conduct further observations over the next three years utilizing both Hubble and the more powerful James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) to track the behavior of Fomalhaut CS2 and attempt to pick up faint signals from Fomalhaut b.
This presents a rare opportunity to witness these collisions first-hand. “To comprehend these violent phenomena, we no longer need to rely solely on theoretical models; we can observe them in real time,” Kalas states. Further observations may enlighten us not only about young planetary systems generally but also about our own early solar system’s position in the cosmic landscape.
“We have long pondered whether the collisions that formed our moon are typical of what occurs throughout the universe, and now we have strong evidence suggesting they are indeed common,” Kipping remarked. “Perhaps we are not as unique as some may assume.”
Exploring the Mysteries of the Universe: Cheshire, England
Join a weekend with some of science’s brightest minds as you delve into the mysteries of the universe, featuring a tour of the renowned Lovell Telescope.
Astronomers have utilized data gathered from a network of space and terrestrial telescopes to identify AT 2024wpp, the most radiant blue light transient (LFBOT) ever recorded. These uncommon, ephemeral, and exceedingly luminous outbursts have perplexed scientists for a decade, but the extraordinary brightness and comprehensive multiwavelength data from AT 2024wpp indicate that they cannot be attributed to typical stellar explosions such as supernovae. Instead, recent observations reveal that AT 2024wpp was generated by an extreme tidal disruption event, where a black hole, with a mass approximately 100 times that of the Sun, dismantles a massive companion star over the course of just a few days, converting a significant portion of the star’s mass into energy.
This composite image contains X-ray and optical data for the LFBOT event at 2024wpp. Image credits: NASA / CXC / University of California, Berkeley / Nayana others. / Legacy Survey / DECaLS / BASS / MzLS / SAO / P. Edmonds / N. Walk.
LFBOTs derive their name from their intense brightness, being visible from hundreds of millions to billions of light years away, and their ephemeral nature, lasting merely a few days.
They emit high-energy light across the blue spectrum into ultraviolet and X-rays.
The inaugural observation was made in 2014, but the first LFBOT with sufficient data for analysis was recorded in 2018, termed AT 2018cow, in accordance with standard naming conventions.
Researchers nicknamed it “cow”, alongside other LFBOTs dubbed “tongue-twisted koala” (ZTF18abvkwla), “Tasmanian devil” (AT 2022tsd), and “finch” (AT 2023fhn). AT 2024wpp is likely to be known as Wasp.
Researchers determined that AT 2024wpp was not a supernova after assessing the energy output of the phenomenon.
The energy was found to be 100 times greater than that produced by typical supernovae.
The emitted energy must convert roughly 10% of the Sun’s rest mass into energy over a brief period of weeks.
Specifically, observations from Gemini South disclosed excess near-infrared radiation emitted by a luminous source.
This marks the second instance astronomers have witnessed such an occurrence, with the first being AT 2018cow, which seemingly doesn’t occur in regular stellar explosions.
These observations establish near-infrared excess as a defining characteristic of FBOT, yet no model can adequately explain it.
“The energy released by these bursts is so immense that it cannot be accounted for by a nuclear collapse or any typical stellar explosion,” stated Nathalie LeBaron, a graduate student at the University of California, Berkeley.
“The main takeaway from AT 2024wpp is that the model we initially proposed is incorrect. This is definitely not an ordinary exploding star.”
Scientists suggest that the intense high-energy light emitted during this extreme tidal disruption stems from the black hole binary system’s prolonged parasitic behavior.
As they piece together this history, it appears the black hole has been gradually siphoning material from its companion star, enveloping itself in a ring of material too distant to be consumed.
Subsequently, when the companion star ventured too near and was shredded, the new material became ensnared in a rotating accretion disk, colliding with pre-existing material and releasing X-rays, ultraviolet light, and blue radiation.
Much of the gas from the companion star ended up spiraling toward the black hole’s poles, where it was expelled as material jets.
Authors calculated that the jet was traveling at about 40% the speed of light and emitted radio waves upon interacting with surrounding gas.
Similar to most LFBOTs, AT 2024wpp is situated in a galaxy characterized by active star formation, making the presence of large stars likely.
Located 1.1 billion light years away, AT 2024wpp is 5 to 10 times more brilliant than AT 2018cow.
The companion star that was torn apart was estimated to be over 10 times the mass of the Sun.
“It may have been what is referred to as a Wolf-Rayet star, a very hot evolved star that has depleted much of its hydrogen,” remarked the astronomers.
“This would account for the weak hydrogen emission observed from AT 2024wpp.”
Natalie LeBaron others. 2025. Brightest known fast blue light transient AT 2024wpp: unprecedented evolution and properties from ultraviolet to near-infrared. APJL in press. arXiv: 2509.00951
AJ Nayana others. 2025. Brightest known fast blue light transient AT 2024wpp: unprecedented evolution and properties in X-rays and radio. APJL in press. arXiv: 2509.00952
Artist’s Impression of Population III Stars in the Early Universe
Noir Lab/NSF/AURA/J. da Silva/Space Engine/M. Zamani
The James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) offers astronomers a unique opportunity to explore distant galaxies that exist far beyond the early Universe. Some of these galaxies exhibit chemical signatures that may suggest the presence of exotic supermassive stars, possibly weighing up to 10,000 times that of our Sun.
These enormous stars are puzzling, as our current understanding suggests that stars in the nearby universe generally have a maximum size limit. “Our models for galaxy evolution are predicated on the assumption that stars cannot exceed around 120 solar masses,” explains Devesh Nandal at the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics, Massachusetts. “While we had theorized about stars potentially larger than this, there were no observational data to validate it.”
That all changed recently. Nandal and his team analyzed JWST observations of a distant galaxy dubbed GS 3073, discovering its chemical signature contained an unexpectedly high concentration of nitrogen. Though elevated nitrogen levels have also been noted in several other remote galaxies,
For most galaxies, nitrogen concentrations aren’t high enough to cause ambiguity and can be attributed to certain classes of relatively ordinary stars or other cosmic phenomena. However, this isn’t the case for GS 3073, as Nandal asserts that the nitrogen levels are simply too elevated.
There exists a hypothetical category of protostar referred to as a Population III star, which models indicate can grow to considerable sizes. Simulations suggest that if these stars form, they would produce significantly more nitrogen than typical stars. Nandal and his co-researchers concluded that only a handful of Population III stars—ranging from 1,000 to 10,000 solar masses—could account for the excess nitrogen observed in GS 3073. “Our research provides the most compelling evidence yet for the existence of Population III supermassive stars in the early universe,” he declares.
However, some scholars challenge whether only supermassive Population III stars can account for this data, or if they do so accurately. “Population III should be linked with an environment where elements heavier than helium are scarce,” notes Roberto Maiorino of Cambridge University. “Conversely, GS 3073 is a fairly chemically mature galaxy, which makes it seem ill-suited for the types of environments typically associated with Population III.”
On the other hand, John Regan from Maynooth University in Ireland suggests that this may simply be an unusual galaxy. “When we look back at the early universe, what we see are incredibly strange, exotic galaxies. It’s challenging to assert that we shouldn’t expect the formation of supermassive stars simply because it’s peculiar; you just claimed these galaxies are quite bizarre,” he states.
If these colossal stars truly exist, they may unlock mysteries related to the formation of supermassive black holes in the universe’s distant past. Should they originate from supermassive stars instead of conventional stars, we could gain critical insights into how these black holes achieved their immense sizes in what appears to be a relatively brief time frame.
Confirming the existence of supermassive stars in GS 3073 and other nitrogen-rich galaxies from the early Universe is complex, and additional discoveries of these chemical signatures may be necessary. “It’s quite challenging to bolster the argument for their existence; establishing definitive signatures is difficult,” Regan lamented. “Nonetheless, this indication is incredibly robust.”
The universe has undergone significant changes. Examining the contrasts between the universe as we perceive it today and its origin nearly 14 billion years ago is a crucial area of study for astrophysicists and cosmologists. Their focus is primarily on the first billion years following the Big Bang, when the first stars and galaxies began to emerge, marking the dawn of the universe. This was the initial phase when celestial objects began to emit light on their own rather than merely reflecting the remnants of the Big Bang, and it was also the first occurrence when elements heavier than helium started forming via nuclear fusion in stars.
In a recent study, a group of scientists utilized computer simulations to explore what star clusters looked like during the dawn of the universe. Their objective was to create models of star and galaxy formation that could be confirmed by new observations made by the JWST. This approach will enhance astronomers’ understanding of galaxy formation in the early universe, particularly the influence of galaxies on dark matter, which remains enigmatic, during the birth of the first stars from cosmic dust.
The research employed a cosmological simulation code called Arepo to recreate the dawn of the universe within a three-dimensional box measuring 1.9 megaparsecs on each side. This size converts to 60 quintillion kilometers or 40 quintillion miles. Within this box, the simulation contained 450 million particles representing early elemental matter, including hydrogen, helium, various isotopes, ions, and molecules that formed together. Additionally, it incorporated particles simulating known dark matter, which is affected by gravity but does not interact with other forces. When these aggregates of particles coalesced and surpassed a specific mass threshold known as jeans mass, the code indicated the formation of a star.
The team aimed to identify where the simulated stars and particles formed structures like star clusters, galaxies, and galaxy clusters. They implemented a method to group particles that were sufficiently adjacent to be considered connected, utilizing a friend of friends algorithm. By executing multiple iterations of this algorithm in the simulated universe—some focused on dark matter and others on ordinary matter such as stars, dust, and gas—the researchers sought to ascertain the arrangement of matter in the early universe.
The resulting simulated clusters were found to have dimensions comparable to actual clusters observed by astronomers in the early universe. However, no real clusters with metal-rich stars matching those in the simulations have yet been identified. Furthermore, the number of stars present in the simulated cluster was consistent with previous observations of distant star clusters recorded by the JWST. Many simulated star clusters were unstable, indicating they were not fully bound by their internal gravity. The team also found that as stable star clusters began merging into larger structures, such as galaxies, they became unstable once more.
An unexpected finding emerged from the study. The friend-of-a-friend algorithm produced varying results when assessing dark matter versus ordinary matter. The discrepancy reached up to 50%, implying that an algorithm targeting dark matter might detect only half the objects identified by an algorithm focused on regular matter. This variance depended on the mass of the identified star clusters or galaxies, particularly evident for objects within a moderate size range of 10,000 to 100,000 solar masses and very low masses around 1,000 solar masses.
The researchers could not ascertain the reasons behind this phenomenon, suggesting their simulations might be overly simplistic for accurately representing all conditions present during the universe’s dawn. Notably, they mentioned the absence of newly formed stars ejecting materials into space in their simulations. Consequently, they proposed treating their discovery as an upper limit on the frequency of star-like and, by extension, star-containing objects forming in the early universe. Their results might illustrate instances in nature where star formation occurs extremely efficiently, yet sorting out the roles of all involved processes remains necessary.
The conclusion drawn was that cosmic dawn clusters could have coalesced to create the foundations of modern galaxies or possibly evolved into the luminous cores of later galaxies. Additionally, the simulated clusters appeared to be strong candidates for forming medium-sizedblack holes, the remnants of which may be detectable with deep-space telescopes.
The Pleiades star cluster, also referred to as the Seven Sisters and Messier 45, is an open star cluster situated around 440 light-years away from Earth in the Taurus constellation. It forms the central core of a larger network that includes several known star clusters scattered over 600 parsecs (1,950 light-years). This network is known as the Greater Pleiades Complex and comprises at least 3,091 stars.
Pleiades star cluster. Image credit: NASA / ESA / AURA / California Institute of Technology / Palomar Observatory.
Stars originate from clouds of dust and gas. Clumps of this material come together and eventually collapse under their gravity, creating the hot core that becomes a star.
Star formation typically occurs in bursts, with numerous stars being born in rapid succession.
A collection of stars that form from the same molecular cloud is known as a star cluster.
These stars remain gravitationally bound to one another for thousands of years.
Over tens to hundreds of millions of years, the materials that birthed them are expelled by cosmic winds, radiation, and various astrophysical phenomena.
As this occurs, individual stars can merge into their host galaxies, making it complex to ascertain their relationships and trace their origins, especially after more than 100 million years have elapsed.
In a recent study, Dr. Luke Buuma from the Carnegie Institution for Science Observatory and his colleagues concentrated on the Pleiades star cluster.
Utilizing data from NASA’s TESS mission, ESA’s Gaia spacecraft, and the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS), they discovered that this cluster is the core of a broader structure of related stars spanning over 1,950 light-years.
“We refer to this as the Greater Pleiades Complex,” Dr. Bouma stated.
“It includes at least three known groups of stars, and likely two additional ones.”
“We confirmed that most members of this structure have origins in the same gigantic stellar nursery.”
A key aspect of their methodology is that a star’s rotation rate decreases with age.
The study utilized a combination of TESS’s stellar rotation data (made to detect exoplanets) and Gaia’s stellar motion observations (designed for mapping the Milky Way).
With this information, they developed a new method based on rotation to identify stars that share common origins.
“For the first time, by amalgamating data from Gaia, TESS, and SDSS, we confidently identified a new member of the Pleiades cluster,” reported Dr. Buma.
“Data from each mission alone was not enough to reveal the full scope of the structure.”
“However, when we integrated stellar motions from Gaia, rotations from TESS, and chemical data from SDSS, a coherent picture took shape.”
“It’s akin to piecing together a jigsaw puzzle, where every dataset provides a different piece of a larger whole.”
Besides their comparable ages, the authors highlighted that the stars in the Greater Pleiades cluster share similar chemical compositions and were once much closer to one another.
The fifth generation of SDSS data was employed for the chemical abundance analysis.
“The Pleiades star cluster has been pivotal in human observations of stars since ancient times,” Dr. Buma remarked.
“This research marks a significant advancement in understanding the changes in the Pleiades star cluster since its formation 100 million years ago.”
The researchers believe their findings carry broad implications.
The Pleiades is not merely an astrophysical benchmark for young stars and exoplanets but also a significant cultural symbol, referenced in the Old Testament and Talmud, celebrated as Matariki in New Zealand, and represented on the Subaru logo in Japan.
Professor Andrew Mann of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill stated, “We are starting to understand that many stars near the Sun belong to extensive star clusters with intricate structures.”
“Our study provides a novel method to uncover these hidden connections.”
A paper detailing the survey results has been published this week in the Astrophysical Journal.
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Andrew W. Boyle et al. 2025. Missing Sister Found: TESS and Gaia Reveal Dissolving Pleiades Complex. APJ 994, 24; doi: 10.3847/1538-4357/ae0724
Artist’s impression of a coronal mass ejection in a star
Olena Shumahalo/Collingham et al.
Astronomers have successfully identified the first clear evidence of a coronal mass ejection (CME) from a star outside of our solar system. This CME, a plasma cloud from a star located 130 light-years away, was observed using radio telescopes here on Earth.
Coronal mass ejections happen when solar storms propel bubbles of magnetized plasma into space. While such eruptions from our Sun can create auroras on Earth, they can also be powerful enough to disrupt the atmosphere of Venus, which lacks a protective magnetic field.
For decades, scientists have detected signs of CMEs in far-off stars, but until now, they were unable to confirm that this material truly escapes the star’s gravitational and magnetic grip, rather than simply being temporarily displaced and then drawn back in.
Joseph Cullingham and his team at the Netherlands Institute for Radio Astronomy discovered these emissions utilizing the Low Frequency Array (LOFAR) radio telescope. The bursts, or radio waves, emitted by CMEs can only be captured when the ejection travels fully away from its origin, which is StKM 1-1262.
This research group also employed the XMM-Newton space-based X-ray telescope to assess the temperature, rotation, and luminosity of the host star.
Cullingham emphasized that this new evidence conclusively affirms prior speculations that CMEs indeed occur in distant stars. “Some will say we’ve seen indications for the last 30 years, and they’re right, but we’ve never been able to prove it definitively,” he remarked. “We are discussing mass being expelled and lost from the star, which has been a topic of ongoing debate.”
The radiation from these ejecta could pose a significant threat to potential life forms nearby. According to researcher Anthony Yates from Durham University in the UK, it is crucial to integrate insights on the frequency and intensity of CMEs from distant stars into models assessing the habitability of exoplanets. “If exoplanets were to exist, the repercussions for life there could be devastating,” he added.
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A supermassive black hole in the process of engulfing a massive star
California Institute of Technology/R. Hurt (IPAC)
Astronomers have made an astounding discovery of the brightest flare ever observed from a supermassive black hole. This flare was so intense that it can only be attributed to a tidal disruption event (TDE), where a colossal star was torn apart by a distant galaxy’s black hole, unleashing an extraordinary burst of energy that is still resonating.
Originating from an active galactic nucleus (AGN) — a supermassive black hole at the core of a galaxy consuming matter — this event is approximately 20 billion light-years from Earth, marking it as one of the most distant TDEs recorded. Notably, many TDEs remain undetected in AGNs due to the fluctuating brightness near these active black holes, which obscures the distinction between a TDE and other phenomena.
“For the last 60 years, we have understood AGNs to be highly volatile, but we lacked clarity about their variability,” explains Matthew Graham from the California Institute of Technology. “Currently, we are aware of millions of AGNs, yet their variability remains largely a mystery.” The event, dubbed “Superman” due to its remarkable brightness, holds the potential to unravel some of these cosmic enigmas.
Initially identified in 2018, astronomers speculated that Superman might merely be a bright explosion from a relatively nearby galaxy. It wasn’t until 2023 that subsequent observations unveiled its true distance and revealed that its brightness was significantly more intense than initially estimated.
This first flare enhanced AGN visibility to over 40 times greater and was 30 times more powerful than any other flare recorded from AGN. Graham and his research team concluded that the most plausible explanation is the disintegration of a massive star, possibly over 30 times the mass of the Sun.
All active supermassive black holes are surrounded by a region of infalling material known as an accretion disk. The matter density in this area is expected to yield substantial stars, although they have never been directly observed. “If our interpretation of this as a TDE is correct, it substantiates our hypothesis regarding the existence of these massive stars in such environments,” noted Graham.
“We once believed that active supermassive black holes simply housed gas disks that meandered about. However, this scenario is much more dynamic and active,” he adds. By examining the fading Superman, we may uncover a deeper understanding of its environment.
Moreover, it may lead to the establishment of a model for TDEs in AGNs, enhancing future detection efforts. “When a potential TDE is identified in an AGN, it remains uncertain whether it is merely an active galactic nucleus or if a true TDE is occurring, so having such unambiguous evidence is invaluable,” states Vivian Baldassare from Washington State University. “This will greatly aid in revealing future TDEs and understanding various AGN variability sources.”
On Earth, we may not often realize it, but the sun regularly ejects massive clumps of plasma into space known as coronal mass ejections (CMEs). Astronomers, utilizing the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope along with ground-based telescopes in Japan and South Korea, have begun to detect signs of multi-temperature CMEs. EK Draconis, a young G-type main sequence star, is located 112 light-years away in the northern constellation Draco.
Artist’s depiction of the coronal mass ejection from EK Draconis. Image provided by: National Astronomical Observatory of Japan
“Researchers believe that CMEs may have significantly impacted the development of life on Earth, given that the Sun was quite active in its early days,” stated Kosuke Namegata, an astronomer at Kyoto University, along with his colleagues.
“Historically, studies have indicated that young stars similar to our Sun often produce intense flares that surpass the largest solar flares recorded in contemporary times.”
“The massive CMEs from the early Sun could have drastically influenced the primordial conditions on Earth, Mars, and Venus.”
“Nevertheless, the extent to which these youthful stellar explosions produce solar-like CMEs remains uncertain.”
“Recent years have seen the detection of cold plasma in CMEs via ground-based optical methods.”
“However, the high speeds and frequent occurrences of significant CMEs predicted in earlier studies have yet to be confirmed.”
In their investigation, the authors concentrated on EK Draconis, a youthful solar analog estimated to be between 50 million and 125 million years old.
Commonly referred to as EK Dra and HD 129333, the star shares effective temperature, radius, and mass characteristics that make it an excellent analog for the early Sun.
“Hubble captured far-ultraviolet emission lines sensitive to high-temperature plasma, while three ground-based telescopes simultaneously recorded hydrogen alpha lines tracking cooler gas,” the astronomers explained.
“These synergistic multi-wavelength spectroscopic observations enabled us to observe both the hot and cold components of the eruption instantaneously.”
This research presents the first evidence of a multitemperature CME originating from EK Draconis.
“Our findings indicate that high-temperature plasma at around 100,000 K was ejected at speeds ranging from 300 to 550 km/s, followed approximately 10 minutes later by a lower-temperature gas around 10,000 K ejected at a speed of 70 km/s,” the astronomers reported.
“The hotter plasma contained significantly more energy than the cooler plasma. This implies that frequent intense CMEs in the past may have sparked strong shocks and high-energy particles capable of eroding or chemically altering the early atmospheres of planets.”
“Theoretical and experimental research suggests that robust CMEs and high-energy particles could play a key role in generating biomolecules and greenhouse gases vital for the emergence and sustainability of life on early planets.”
“Consequently, this discovery carries substantial implications for understanding the habitability of planets and the conditions under which life may have arisen on Earth—and potentially elsewhere.”
The team’s study was published in the journal Nature Astronomy.
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Namekata K. et al. Signs of multi-temperature coronal mass ejections identified in a young solar analog. Nat Astron published online on October 27, 2025. doi: 10.1038/s41550-025-02691-8
A researcher suggests that the binary star system TOI-2267 is likely home to two warm Earth-sized exoplanets and an additional candidate. A new paper published in the journal Astronomy and Astrophysics discusses these findings.
Artist’s impression of the binary star system TOI-2267. Image credit: Mario Sucerquia, Grenoble-Alpes University.
The system, known as G 222-3 or TIC 459837008, consists of the M5 type star TOI-2267A and the M6 type star TOI-2267B, which are separated by approximately 8 astronomical units.
Located about 22 parsecs (73.5 light-years) from the Sun in the constellation Cepheus, TOI-2267 presents a fascinating planetary arrangement.
Dr. Sebastian Zuniga Fernández, an astronomer at the University of Liege, stated, “Our analysis shows a distinct planetary configuration: two planets orbiting one star and a third planet orbiting its companion star.”
This discovery makes TOI-2267 the first known binary star system to host planets that transit around both stars.
Dr. Francisco Pozuelos from the Andalucía Astronomical Institute remarked, “Our findings set several records, making this star system the most compact and coolest known planet-planet pair, and it is the first observed instance of a planet transiting both components.”
Astronomers utilized the SPECULOOS and TRAPPIST telescopes along with their proprietary detection software, SHERLOCK, to identify the three planetary signals.
“Uncovering three Earth-sized planets within such a compact binary star system is an exceptional opportunity,” Dr. Zuniga-Fernández noted.
“This will enable us to scrutinize the limits of planet formation models in complex environments and deepen our understanding of the variety of planetary structures in our galaxy.”
The two confirmed planets, TOI-2267b and TOI-2267c, have orbital periods of 2.28 days and 3.49 days, respectively.
The authors currently cannot determine which star in the binary system the planets orbit.
When orbiting TOI-2267A, TOI-2267b and TOI-2267c exhibit radii of 1 and 1.14 Earth sizes, while their radii become 1.22 and 1.36 Earth radii when orbiting TOI-2267B.
Furthermore, researchers detected a third strong signal with a period of 2.03 days, which is still classified as a planetary candidate, having sizes of 0.95 or 1.13 Earth radii depending on whether it orbits TOI-2267A or TOI-2267B.
Dr. Pozuelos added, “This system serves as a genuine natural laboratory for exploring how rocky planets can form and persist under extreme mechanical conditions that were previously thought to endanger their stability.”
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S. Zuniga-Fernandez et al. 2025. Two warm Earth-sized exoplanets and an Earth-sized candidate planet in the M5V-M6V binary star system TOI-2267. A&A 702, A85; doi: 10.1051/0004-6361/202554419
This orange dot represents a gamma-ray burst, thought to indicate an extraordinary event.
ESO/A. Levan, A. Martin-Carrillo et al.
A black hole that has consumed a star appears to have avenged itself by devouring the star from within, generating a gamma-ray burst located approximately 9 billion light-years from Earth.
This burst, known as GRB 250702B, was initially identified by NASA’s Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope in July. Such bursts are brilliant flashes of light due to jets produced by high-energy occurrences, like massive stars collapsing into black holes or the merging of neutron stars, and generally last only a few minutes.
However, GRB 250702B lasted an astonishing 25,000 seconds, equating to about 7 hours, which makes it the longest gamma-ray burst on record. Researchers have struggled to account for this phenomenon, but Eliza Knights and her team at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center propose an unusual and rare scenario.
“The only [model] providing a natural explanation for the characteristics observed in GRB 250702B involves a stellar-mass black hole falling into the star,” the researchers mentioned in their published study.
In a typical long gamma-ray burst, a massive star collapses to create a black hole and emits a jet during its demise. In this situation, however, the research team posits the inverse. An existing black hole spiraled into a companion star, whose outer layers had expanded during its later stages, resulting in the black hole losing angular momentum and descending toward the star’s center.
The black hole then incinerated the star from the inside, producing a powerful jet perceived as GRB 250702B, potentially causing a faint supernova, although it remained too dim for detection at this distance by the James Webb Space Telescope.
This theory is beneficial for understanding the mechanisms behind ultra-long bursts. Hendrik van Eerten from the University of Bath, UK, remarks, “The arguments presented in this paper are very persuasive.”
Knights and her team hope that, with the help of telescopes like the Vera Rubin Observatory in Chile, we may observe more such events in the future. Meanwhile, van Eerten describes the gamma-ray burst as “absurd.”
A supernova may have directed cosmic rays towards Earth
Muratart/Shutterstock
Approximately 10 million years ago, a volatile star might have unleashed cosmic rays toward Earth, and astronomers are currently narrowing down the potential culprits behind this cosmic event.
Earlier this year, Dominique Koll of Helmholtz Zentrum Dresden-Rossendorf and his colleagues in Germany discovered a spike in radioactive beryllium trapped in five kilometers of sediment in the Pacific Ocean, dating back over 10 million years. This form of beryllium is generated exclusively when cosmic rays collide with the Earth’s atmosphere, leading Koll and his team to hypothesize that a supernova explosion might be the origin of this event.
Nonetheless, alternative explanations cannot be dismissed. These include the Sun’s magnetic influence on Earth at that time and the possibility of ocean currents from Earth’s poles contributing to beryllium deposition, areas where cosmic rays and beryllium production are typically more intense.
Now, Efrem Maconi from the University of Vienna and his team have pinpointed two likely supernova candidates using data obtained from the Gaia space telescope.
By examining the trajectories of roughly 2,700 stars near our Sun over the past 20 million years and assessing their potential to produce supernovae, Macconi and his colleagues determined that there is a 70% probability of such events occurring among these star clusters.
Researchers have identified two possible progenitors for the explosion. The most probable one, located about 200 light years away, is a relatively young cluster named ASCC 20, while the cluster OCSN 61, situated further away, is also a potential source.
Additional support for the supernova theory is that 10 million years ago, our solar system was engulfed in a bustling region of the galaxy, surrounded by extensive clouds of gas, dust, and stars known as the Radcliffe waves.
“This is a promising indication that warrants further investigation,” says Koll. “If [Maconi] were to claim we could fully eliminate this possibility, I would happily accept that as a solid conclusion. However, in this instance, it certainly remains intriguing.”
Further modeling of stellar movements will be necessary to ascertain whether these stars indeed played a role, yet this hypothesis aligns well with other findings in Earth’s geological history. Unlike cosmic rays that travel close to the speed of light, dust moves much slower, making it plausible that beryllium spikes resulted from cosmic rays from a supernova initially impacting Earth.
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A stunning new image captured by the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope reveals a star cluster known as N11, located within the expansive Magellanic Cloud.
This Hubble image depicts star cluster N11. Image credits: NASA/ESA/Hubble/C. Murray/J. Maíz Apellániz.
“This scene is part of the large Magellanic Cloud, a dwarf galaxy situated approximately 160,000 light years from the constellations Dorado and Mensa,” the Hubble astronomer stated.
“With a mass equivalent to 10-20% of that of the Milky Way, the large Magellanic Cloud is the most substantial of the numerous small galaxies orbiting our galaxy.”
“These large Magellanic Clouds host various significant stellar nursery regions where gas clouds, like those portrayed in this image, converge to form new stars.”
This latest Hubble image illustrates a segment of N11, the second-largest star-forming region within the large Magellanic Cloud.
“The Tarantula Nebula, which ranks as the largest and most active star-forming region in the large Magellanic Clouds, is a frequent target for Hubble,” the astronomer noted.
“We observe bright young stars illuminating gas clouds and sculpting masses of dust using their powerful ultraviolet rays.”
“This image represents observations spaced about 20 years apart, highlighting Hubble’s enduring legacy,” they added.
“The initial observations took place between 2002 and 2003 and provided exceptional sensitivity and resolution with the new technology at the time, the Advanced Camera for Surveys.
“We directed Hubble towards the N11 Star Cluster and accomplished something unprecedented: cataloging all the stars in our young cluster, from those with 10% to 100 times the mass of the Sun.”
“The subsequent observations utilized Hubble’s latest instruments, specifically the Wide Field Camera 3.
“These new images emphasized the cluster-filled dusty clouds, offering a fresh perspective on cosmic dust.”
A multitude of objects inhabit space, from tiny dust grains to enormous black holes. However, the focus of astronomers is primarily on these objects’ formations, held together by gravity. At the smaller scale are planets and their moons; planetary system. Then there are stars and their respective planets, forming a planetary system. Beyond that, we encounter stars, black holes, along with gas and dust in between, referred to as a galaxy. On a grander scale, the assembly of very large objects that creates larger patterns throughout the universe is termed structure. An example of such a structure is a galaxy cluster, composed of hundreds to thousands of galaxies.
Astronomers are keen to understand the influence that being part of a larger structure, such as a galaxy cluster, has on its individual objects, especially as these structures evolve over time. One research team investigated what transpires when a galaxy encounters the Abel 496 cluster, which harbors a mass approximately 400 trillion times that of the Sun and is relatively nearby, at about 140 megaparsecs or approximately 455 million light-years away from Earth.
Their goal was to study how the galaxy evolved after joining the cluster. They observed 22 galaxies within Abel 496 to identify any differences in star formation rates post-infall. Specifically, they aimed to pinpoint the last billion years, focusing on when the cluster’s regular star-forming galaxies ceased creating new stars.
The research team merged two distinct types of data regarding light emissions from the observed galaxies. The first is the long-wavelength emissions from neutral hydrogen atoms present in the interstellar dust; H I, pronounced “H One”. Analyzing these emissions helps determine how much the galaxy is being influenced by its neighboring galaxies and how much gas remains for star formation. These H I emissions were observed using the National Radio Astronomy Observatory’s Very Large Array.
The second dataset comprised short-wavelength emissions from recently formed stars, which have a mass between two to five times that of the Sun. These stars are short-lived, averaging a lifespan of less than 1 billion years. Researchers utilized luminosity patterns from these ultraviolet measurements to calculate the star formation frequency within the galaxies. These observations were conducted using the Ultra Violet Imaging Telescope aboard the AstroSat Satellite.
By combining this data, the team could delineate the history of each galaxy, assessing how long star-forming gas reserves persist and when star formation starts being influenced by the presence of other galaxies. The spatial positioning of each galaxy within the cluster was also examined to understand how the process of falling into the cluster altered their evolutionary trajectories.
The researchers found that galaxies located at the cluster’s edge experience star formation rates perceived as undisturbed, consistent with the Main Sequence. Additionally, it was noted that over half of the 22 galaxies under study reside at the center of the cluster, closely bound by gravitational forces and subject to secondary effects. Nevertheless, none of these central galaxies have fallen into the cluster for the past hundreds of millions of years, implying that they have not yet reached the region closest to the actual center of the cluster.
The team developed a five-stage evolutionary model for galaxies falling into clusters. Initially, galaxies begin their descent into clusters and continue their standard main sequence star formation, termed pre-trigger. In the second stage, other galaxies within the cluster disrupt the neutral hydrogen of the falling galaxies, triggering increased star formation.
The third stage sees a significant disturbance of the galaxy’s neutral hydrogen, escalating star formation to peak levels, designated as star formation peak. Next, during the fourth stage, the emissions of newly formed stars decline, though the galaxies are still quite disturbed, referred to as star-forming fading. The researchers estimate that these first four stages could span hundreds of millions of years. In the fifth stage, the depletion of neutral hydrogen leads star formation rates to fall below the pre-trigger main sequence, termed extinction.
In conclusion, the researchers asserted that their methodology successfully reconstructed the evolutionary history of galaxy clusters. However, they encouraged future teams to develop accurate measurement methods for both star formation and neutral gas within distant galaxies. They recommended utilizing larger samples of galaxies within clusters for more robust statistical analyses and investigating multiple clusters across various local environments to gain deeper insights into how galaxies evolve within vast structures.
In a recent study, Professor Jonathan Tan, an astrophysicist from the University of Virginia and Chalmers Institute of Technology, suggests that the population III.1 supermassive star is the precursor to the ultra-high-massive black holes observed in the early universe. The intense high-energy photons emitted by the star ionized the surrounding hydrogen gas, creating a natural intergalactic medium that extended over millions of light-years. This process led to the formation of ultra-high massive black holes that caused a flash ionization, effectively ending the “dark age” of the universe.
An artist’s impression of the star field from population III that would have been visible hundreds of millions of years post-Big Bang. Image credits: noirlab/nsf/aura/J. da silva/SpaceEngine.
These black holes, residing at the centers of most large galaxies, including our Milky Way, typically possess masses millions or even billions of times greater than that of the Sun.
Their formation has sparked considerable debate, particularly with the NASA/ESA/CSA James Webb Space Telescope uncovering numerous such black holes located far away that date back to the universe’s early days.
Professor Tan’s theory, referred to as “Pop III.1,” posits that all supermassive black holes originate from the first stars, termed debris Population III.1 stars, which grow to enormous sizes due to energy from a dark matter annihilation process. This theory aligns with many of Webb’s latest discoveries.
In his publication, Tan presents another prediction that may illuminate our understanding of the universe’s origins.
“Our model indicates that the ultra-large star progenitors of black holes ionize the surrounding hydrogen gas extremely quickly, signaling their emergence with a bright flash that permeates all space,” stated Professor Tan.
“Notably, this additional stage of ionization occurs at a significantly faster rate than seen in typical galaxies, potentially addressing recent challenges and discrepancies in cosmology.”
“This was an unexpected connection we identified during the development of the POP III.1 model, but it could have substantial significance.”
“Professor Tan has crafted a sophisticated model that elucidates the two-stage process of star formation and ionization in the early universe,” commented Professor Richard Ellis, a distinguished observational cosmologist from the University of London.
“The initial star, created from a brief, brilliant flash of light, may have since vanished. Thus, what we observed with Webb could represent a subsequent phase. The universe continues to amaze us with its surprises.”
A magnetar, a type of neutron star, can be the source of fast radio bursts
Science Photo Library/Alamy
A peculiar burst of light from the early universe aids astronomers in mapping elusive gases found between galaxies, much like flashlights in dark spaces.
The Fast Radio Burst (FRB) is an extremely brief yet potent burst of radio frequency emissions that has puzzled astronomers since its discovery in 2007. Currently, we know of only a few thousand instances in the universe, leaving much still to be understood about them, especially as most originate from galaxies neighboring the Milky Way.
Now, Manisha Kaleb from the University of Sydney, Australia, along with her research team, has identified a remarkably distant FRB, tracing back to a galaxy that existed merely 3 billion years post-Big Bang.
Kaleb and her collaborators first detected a burst designated 20240304B using the South African Meerkat Radio Telescope in March 2024, corroborating their findings with observations from the James Webb Space Telescope. They determined that the burst originated from a small, faint galaxy that appeared relatively youthful, characterized by rapid star formation.
“This discovery is extraordinarily distant,” stated Jason Hessel from the University of Amsterdam, Netherlands. The FRB 20240304B is from an epoch in the universe’s timeline known as the ‘midday’ of the universe, a period when the rate of new star formation peaks. This hints that during the galaxy’s formative years, this FRB—and possibly others—may have stemmed from a young star that underwent a supernova and collapsed into a magnetar, according to Hessel.
A key reason astronomers focus on FRBs lies in their ability to shine a light on ionized gases and lost electrons from radiation emitted by stars, which constitute most of the universe’s matter. Understanding its distribution is crucial for unraveling how larger structures—such as stars and galaxies—form. However, like the FRB, this gas remains largely invisible unless illuminated by a light source.
“This luminous flash reveals all the ionized material between us and the origin of the flash, allowing us to map both the gas and the magnetic fields amidst the stars and galaxies,” Hessel added.
The discovery of FRB 20240304B implies that the universe’s first stars were actively ionizing their surroundings, which can help establish a timeline of when these stars first ignited, according to Anastasia Fialkov from Cambridge University. The insights gleaned will only enhance with the detection of even more distant FRBs.
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This began as a project involving my daughter and her friend. Being part of the smartphone generation, they were both 14 at the time and eager to explore their relationship with mobile devices. According to Ofcom’s 2022 research, nine out of ten children owned a smartphone by age 11, and by age 12, 91% were using video platforms, messaging apps, and social media. I discussed the negative perceptions surrounding mobile phones, teenagers, and screens with them. They shared that social media can both enhance confidence and diminish it.
I asked if I could take a photo. I didn’t provide much direction; instead of capturing them in a typical portrait style, I simply observed their interactions. The energy was vibrant: they moved swiftly, danced to short music clips, filmed one another, laughed, scrolled, chatted, took selfies, and rehearsed TikTok dances. I struggled to keep pace with their excitement. This image, titled TikTok, emerged from our session. I quickly directed Lucy to glance at me, capturing the moment just before they transitioned to the next activity. As a portrait photographer, you develop an instinct for certain shots, and I felt this one was special.
While editing, I reflected on how girls utilize their phones for visual communication, as theorized by Nathan Jurgenson, who refers to it as “Social Photography.” This concept emphasizes that photos are more about social interaction than mere objects, moving away from traditional photography’s intent of documentation or archiving, focusing instead on sharing moments visually.
Spending time with the girls revealed the darker aspects of mobile usage. I showcased this project as a continuing exhibition in Oxford, working with focus groups of teenage girls who shared their experiences regarding online sexism and sexual harassment. Some of the stories I learned were quite shocking. The final work incorporates photographs alongside handwritten testimonials.
To deepen my research, I explored the writings of activists Laura Bates and Soma Sarah. Initially, the project title was inconsequential, but as it evolved, I changed it to a catchy phrase from a TikTok soundbite my daughter had shared with me. This shift evoked feelings of protectiveness and annoyance as a mother and a feminist. Although the title may be discomforting, it serves to capture attention and foster awareness.
This photo embodies multiple layers of meaning. It is beautiful and captivating, capturing a remarkable moment that celebrates the joy of girls in their generation, and reflects the essence of their world. These teenage years are fleeting, and the joy they share is essential to witness in a safe environment.
Additionally, the image invites viewers to notice the dynamic gaze between the three girls. Lucy not only looks directly at the camera but also interacts with the viewer through her expression and stance. As a mother and a photographer, my perspective evolves with ongoing research. The viewers’ perceptions may mirror their experiences as teenagers, which introduces a fascinating tension into the conversation surrounding this subject.
The girl in my mind is now 17 years old. Much has happened in the world since that photo was taken, including the rise of figures like Andrew Tate, who gained notoriety even as our children were already aware of him. Recently, themes addressed in Netflix series have sparked broader societal discussions.
Just this week, my mom reached out to discuss “short skirts.” The conflict between my role as a mother and a woman often feels intricate. As a protective instinct kicks in, I question why women shouldn’t wear what they choose. Sadly, young women today face risks merely by possessing a smartphone, in a world that remains unfamiliar to us parents.
Phillippa James’ Resume
Photo: Philippa James
Born: Bus, 1978 Trained: Kent (2000) in Art and Moving Image; Falmouth Photography MA (2023) Influences: “The inspiration from Rineke Dijkstra, Miranda July, Lynne Ramsay, Tracey Emin, Abigail Heyman, Cindy Sherman, Samantha Morton, Catherine McCormack, Robert Altman’s film Short Cuts, and Lisa Taddeo’s book.” Career Highlight: “Last year, I was honored to be selected for the Taylor Wessing Portrait Award and exhibited at the National Portrait Gallery, with funding from the Arts Council England to further develop my practice. I also received LensCulture’s Emerging Talent Award. Career Low Point: “In 2020, I faced public backlash for including trans women in my first personal project, 100 Women in Oxford, which led to protests against the exhibition. This experience taught me invaluable lessons about responsibility, expression, and the emotional impact of capturing real people.” Top Tip: “Stay committed to your work, reflect on your creations, and keep producing. Photography may seem easy, but it’s challenging; consistency is key.”
What might the artistic concept of a gas giant in orbit around Alpha Centauri A resemble?
ESA/Webb Copyright: NASA, ESA, CSA, STSCI, R.
A massive planet comparable to Saturn is potentially identified orbiting a sun-like star in our nearest stellar system, Alpha Centauri.
Located just four light-years from Earth, Alpha Centauri is the closest star system to us, comprising three stars: Alpha Centauri A, Alpha Centauri B, and the Red Dwarf Star Proxima Centauri. Scientists have long speculated that planets akin to those in our solar system could exist in such systems, and whether planets can reside at distances similar to our Sun’s “habitable zone” around binary stars has been a matter of intrigue. “These stars are very bright, relatively close, and move quickly across the sky,” mentions Charles Baichman from Caltech in a statement.
Recent observations gathered by the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) mid-infrared instrument suggest that a gas giant possibly as substantial as Saturn is orbiting the sun-like star, Alpha Centauri A. This discovery has come as a surprise. “Webb was specifically designed to identify the most distant galaxies, not exoplanets,” remarked Beichman, underscoring that such an identification must be meticulously coordinated through numerous observations, evaluations, and computer simulations, which “can yield remarkable insights.”
While previous methodologies for detecting planets relied on indirect measurements, the JWST executed a “more ambitious” approach by actually gathering light from potential planets, according to Alan Boss of Carnegie Science in Washington, DC, who was not involved in this particular study. Nevertheless, visibility of the potential planets was lost in subsequent observations.
“We’re encountering a case of a disappearing planet!” exclaimed Aniket Sanghi, also at Caltech, in a statement. The research team ran simulations of millions of possible trajectories to solve this conundrum, determining that “in half of the possible simulated orbits, the planet would have been too close to the star, making it undetectable by Webb in both February and April 2025,” he said.
As a gas giant, this planet wouldn’t support life as we know it. However, if this finding is validated, it could significantly enhance our understanding of planet formation around stars. “The mere existence of two closely situated stars within a stellar system will challenge our comprehension of how planets form, survive, and evolve under such chaotic circumstances,” Sangi pointed out. “This is also crucial for Earth, as it is our closest neighbor, beside the giant planets in our solar system, with a temperature and age somewhat akin to Earth.”
This revelation has been documented in two accepted papers for publication in Astrophysics Letters.
The newly identified Stephenson 2 DFK 52, an extraordinary red supergiant, is situated within the expansive stellar cluster RSGC2.
This image showcases the red supergiant star Stephenson 2 DFK 52 and its surroundings. Image credits: Alma / ESO / NAOJ / NRAO / Siebert et al.
RSGC2 is a cluster containing at least 26 red supergiants located at the base of the Milky Way’s diagonal crux spiral arm, approximately 5,800 parsecs (18,917 light-years) away.
Also referred to as Stephenson 2, this cluster is an active site for recent star formation where the arms intersect with galaxy bulges.
A team of astronomers led by Mark Siebert from Chalmers University of Technology observed the RSGC2 star using the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA).
“What we catch in this image of Stephenson 2 DFK 52 is indeed a supermassive red star that is shedding clouds of gas and dust as it approaches the end of its lifecycle,” they explained.
“Such nebulae are typically found around supermassive stars; however, this particular cloud presents an intriguing mystery for astronomers.”
“This cloud of ejected material is the most expansive discovered around a giant star, spanning an impressive 1.4 light-years.”
“Stephenson 2 DFK 52 is quite similar to Betelgeuse, another renowned red supergiant, so we anticipated observing a comparable cloud surrounding it.”
“If Stephenson 2 DFK 52 is as close to us as Betelgeuse, the surrounding cloud would appear about one-third the size of the full moon.”
Recent observations from ALMA have enabled astronomers to quantify the mass of material enveloping the star and analyze its velocity.
“Regions moving towards us appear in blue, while those receding are represented in red,” they stated.
“The data suggests that the star experienced a significant mass loss event about 4,000 years ago, followed by a slow-down in its current mass loss rate.”
The team estimates that Stephenson 2 DFK 52 has a mass between 10-15 solar masses and has already lost 5-10% of its mass.
“The rapid expulsion of such materials within a brief time frame poses a mystery,” the researchers commented.
“Could an unusual interaction with a companion star be responsible? Why does the cloud exhibit such a complex shape?”
“Understanding why Stephenson 2 DFK 52 has expelled so much material can illuminate insights into its eventual fate.
Mark A. Sheebert et al. 2025. Discovery of the extraordinary red supergiant Stephenson 2 DFK 52 within the expansive stellar cluster RSGC2. A&A in press; Arxiv: 2507.11609
A dying star is shedding a massive sphere of dust and gas approximately half the size of our solar system. Astronomers are puzzled by this phenomenon as there’s no known process capable of producing such an extensive amount of material from a single star.
Red supergiants are the universe’s largest stars, representing the final stages of a massive star that has exhausted most of its fuel before it eventually goes supernova. During this brief phase, the star expands rapidly, releasing copious amounts of gas and dust and forming bubbles around it.
Mark Siebert from the Chalmers Institute of Technology in Sweden and his colleagues found that the red supergiant star DFK 52 possesses the largest known environment for such celestial bodies, creating a bubble 50,000 times wider than the distance between Earth and the Sun. Curiously, these stars are relatively dim, suggesting they have less energy than what would typically be needed to generate such a vast debris field. “I can’t ascertain how I can disperse so much material in that timeframe,” Siebert remarks.
Previously, DFK 52 had been observed by various telescopes, allowing astronomers to conclude that it expelled a normal quantity of gas. However, when Siebert and his team used the Atacama Large Millimeter Array (ALMA) in Chile, they detected light at longer wavelengths from older, much cooler materials.
“It reveals an extensive environment around DFK 52 with a very complex geometry that’s not entirely understood yet,” Siebert explains. “We don’t grasp the precise structure, but we acknowledge its immense scale.”
Similar to the intricate flow of bubbles throughout the structure, Siebert and his team observed ring-like formations at the core of the overall sphere, expanding at approximately 30 kilometers per second. They estimate that this activity likely stemmed from a significant event that occurred around 4,000 years ago, potentially key to understanding how the star generated so much material.
Location of DFK 52 observed by the Spitzer Space Telescope
NASA/JPL-CALTECH/IPAC
A potential explanation for the extensive environment is that these stars may have briefly increased in brightness and then dramatically faded, although red supergiants are not typically known for such fluctuations, according to Siebert. Alternatively, another star may be orbiting a larger star, stripping material from DFK 52, but this would likely result in a more symmetrical bubble, Siebert asserts. “It is evident that some additional energy sources must contribute to this phenomenon, but we remain uncertain about what they are,” he comments.
“The explosion won’t alter the star’s overall evolution, but it may significantly influence the future appearances of supernovas,” says Emma Beads from John Moores University, Liverpool, UK. “This is an intriguing development that enhances our understanding of unusual supernovae.”
World Capital of Astronomy: Chile
Discover the astronomical wonders of Chile. Visit some of the world’s most advanced observatories and experience the pristine night sky.
To celebrate the remarkable advancements in science during the third year, astronomers have utilized the NASA/ESA/CSA James Webb Space Telescope to capture images of the Cat’s Paw Nebula.
This web image depicts the Cat’s Paw Nebula, a significant star-forming region located 5,500 light years from the constellation Scorpio. Image credits: NASA/ESA/CSA/STSCI.
The Cat’s Paw Nebula resides in the southern constellation of Scorpio and is approximately 5,500 light years from Earth.
First identified in 1837 by British astronomer John Herschel, this dynamic star-forming region spans an estimated 80 to 90 light years.
Also known as NGC 6334 or the Bear Claw Nebula, it is one of the most vibrant stellar nurseries in the night sky, producing thousands of young, hot stars that emit light not visible from our perspective.
Recent images captured by Webb’s NIRCam instrument reveal structural details and functionalities previously unseen.
“Massive young stars are actively interacting with nearby gas and dust, and their bright stellar light produces a luminous, hazy glow, represented in blue,” Webb astronomers stated.
“This scenario illustrates a transient period where a destructive young star plays a significant role in the broader narrative of the region, characterized by relatively short lifespans and high luminosity.”
“Due to the dynamic activities of these massive stars, the local star formation process will eventually come to a halt.”
“We begin with a central area identified as the ‘opera house’ because of its hierarchical circulatory structure,” they noted.
“The principal sources of the blue glow in this area are likely positioned towards the bottom, obscured by dense brown dust, interspersed with light from bright, yellowish stars or nearby sources.”
“Beneath the orange-brown dust lies a bright yellow star displaying distinct diffraction spikes.”
“This giant star is sculpting its surrounding environment but has not managed to push gas and dust away sufficiently nor create a compact shell of surrounding material.”
“Take note of smaller regions, such as the tuning fork-shaped area adjacent to the opera house, which contains fewer stars.”
“These seemingly vacant zones are still in the process of forming stars, indicating the presence of dense filaments of dust that obscure the light of background stars.”
At the center of the image, small, fiery red masses can be seen scattered within the brown dust.
“These glowing red sources highlight areas where large-scale star formation is occurring, albeit in a less visible manner,” the researchers explained.
“Some of the blue-white stars, particularly in the lower left area, appear more sharply resolved than others.”
“This sharper appearance is attributed to the material between the star and the telescope being diffused by the star’s radiation.”
Near the bottom of this area is a compact dust filament.
“These small dust aggregates have managed to survive the intense radiation, indicating they are dense enough to give rise to protostars.”
The small yellow section on the right marks the location of a massive star still in its formative stages, managing to shine through the intervening material.
Numerous small yellow stars are scattered across the scene, displaying distinct diffraction spikes.
“The bright blue-white stars prominently feature in the foreground of this web image, with some possibly being part of the larger Cat’s Paw Nebula region.”
A particularly striking feature of this web image is the bright red-orange oval shape located in the top right corner.
The low concentration of background stars indicates it is a dense area where the star-forming process has only recently commenced.
Several visible stars are distributed throughout the region, contributing to the illumination of central materials.
Some of the developing stars have left behind traces of their existence, such as the shock wave visible in the lower left area.
The Hot-Jupiter exoplanet HIP 67522b revolves around its star, HIP 67522, frequently triggering flares from the star’s surface, which seem to heat and penetrate the planet’s atmosphere.
Artistic impression of the HIP 67522 young planetary system. Image credit: J. Fohlmeister, AIP.
HIP 67522 is a G0 star located approximately 417 light-years away in the constellation Centaurus.
This star is part of the Scorpius-Centaurus Stellar Association and is also known as HD 120411, 2Mass J13500627-4050090, and TYC 7794-2268-1.
At about 17 million years old, HIP 67522 is home to two young exoplanets.
The inner planet, HIP 67522b, completes an orbit around the star every seven days and has a diameter roughly ten times that of Earth, making it similar in size to Jupiter.
Using five years of data from NASA’s TESS and ESA’s CHEOPS telescopes, astronomer Ekaterina Ilin and her team studied the HIP 67522 system in detail.
They uncovered that the planet and its host star share a powerful yet destructive connection.
Although not completely understood, the planet becomes ensnared in the star’s magnetic field, resulting in eruptions on the star’s surface that transfer energy back to the planet.
When combined with other high-energy radiation from the star, these flares appear to significantly enhance the rapid inflation of the planet’s atmosphere.
This indicates that the planet might not remain within the size range of Jupiter for much longer.
Continuous exposure to intense radiation can lead to atmospheric loss over time.
In about 100 million years, this could change the planet into a hot Neptune state or even result in more severe atmospheric reductions, with sub-Neptunes commonly observed in our galaxies, but lacking smaller planetary types than Neptune in our solar system.
“We found the first definitive evidence of the interaction between the flare star and the planet, demonstrating that the planet induces energy eruptions in the host star,” remarked Dr. Ilin, lead author of a paper published in the journal Nature.
“What is particularly thrilling is that this interaction persists for at least three years, allowing for in-depth study.”
“Such planetary interactions have long been anticipated, but these observations were made possible with this extensive spatial telescope dataset,” stated Dr. Katja Poppenhäger, an astronomer at Leibniz-Institut für Astrophysik Potsdam and Potsdam University.
“The planets are essentially subjected to intense bursts of radiation and particles from these induced flares,” explained Astron astronomer Dr. Harish Vedantum.
“The conditions in this self-inflicted environment are likely to expand the planet’s atmosphere and can significantly accelerate the rate at which the planet is losing its atmosphere.”
In a separate paper published in Astronomy and Astrophysics, astronomers confirmed that HIP 67522 is a magnetically active star emitting strong radio radiation along with a magnetic field.
They monitored the star at low radio frequencies for approximately 135 hours using the Australian Telescope Compact Array (ATCA), revealing it as a bright and explosive source of radio waves.
However, there were no indications of radio wave flares resulting from star-planet interactions.
“The lack of detection aligns with the notion that planet-driven flares may be too faint for ATCA to observe, corroborating the conclusions on magnetic star-planet interactions presented in our Nature paper,” they noted.
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Ekaterina Ilin et al. Nearby planets induce flares in their host star. Nature, published online July 2, 2025. doi:10.1038/s41586-025-09236-z
Ekaterina Ilin et al. 2025. Search for planetary-induced radio signals from the young exoplanet-host star HIP 67522. A&A, in press; doi: 10.1051/0004-6361/202554684
Two concentric rings surrounding the supernova remnant SNR 0509-67.5 indicate it underwent two explosions.
ESO/p. Das et al. Background stars (Hubble): K. Noll et al.
A white dwarf star located approximately 160,000 light years away has been observed to have exploded not once, but twice. Astronomers have discovered the first proof of a supernova being linked to dual explosions.
The White Dwarf Star represents a dead stellar body, much like our Sun, which has exhausted its nuclear fuel, leaving an Earth-sized core. When a white dwarf siphons material from a companion star, it can accumulate enough mass to trigger an explosion as a Type IA supernova.
The process by which a white dwarf becomes a supernova remains largely unclear. Some astronomers have theorized that two separate explosions might occur, but until now, there has been no concrete evidence supporting this.
Priyam Das, from the University of New South Wales in Canberra, along with colleagues, examined spectra acquired by a large telescope at the European Southern Observatory in Chile. Their studies of the supernova remnant in the Large Magellanic Cloud reveal two distinct concentric shells resulting from the explosions.
Das theorizes that the white dwarf must have amassed helium on its surface, potentially from a nearby helium-rich white dwarf or a giant helium-rich star, leading to its eventual explosion.
“We witness the initial helium explosion occurring very quickly, within a mere few dozen seconds; it all happens in an instant,” states Das.
The material ejected during the first explosion was recorded to be traveling at 25,000 kilometers per second. Hence, despite the second explosion taking place only seconds later, the two events are still separated by a significant distance.
The light from this cosmic explosion is believed to have reached Earth somewhere between 310 and 350 years ago. It would have shone brightly in the southern hemisphere’s night sky, but human records indicate there was no sighting, likely due to it being obscured by the Sun.
Astronomers utilize the exceptional sensitivity of the Mid-infrared instrument (Miri) on the NASA/ESA/CSA James Webb Space Telescope to investigate exoplanets within the three-ring debris disks surrounding the 6.4 million-year-old star TWA 7.
This Webb/Miri image shows the exoplanet TWA 7b, comparable in mass to Saturn. Image credits: NASA/ESA/CSA/WEBB/AM LAGRANGE/M. ZAMANI, ESA & WEBB.
Debris disks, comprised of dust and rocky materials, can exist around both young and evolved stars, but they are more luminous and detectable around younger celestial bodies.
These disks are often identified by their visible rings and gaps, which are believed to be shaped by planets that form within them.
The star TWA 7 is a low-mass (0.46 solar mass) M-type star situated approximately 111 light-years away in the constellation of Antlia.
Also referred to as Ce Antilae or Tyc 7190-2111-1, it is part of the TW Hydra Association.
The nearly edge-on three-ring fragmented disks make TWA 7 an optimal target for Webb’s highly sensitive mid-infrared observations.
“Our observations indicate a strong candidate for the planet that influences the structure of the TWA 7 debris disk, located precisely where we anticipated finding a planet of this mass,” states Dr. En Marie Lagrange, an astronomer at the Observatoire de Paris-PSL.
On June 21, 2024, Dr. Lagrange and colleagues employed a coronagraph with Webb’s Miri instrument to effectively suppress the bright glare of the host star, uncovering faint nearby objects.
This method, known as high contrast imaging, enables astronomers to directly observe planets that would otherwise be obscured by the overwhelming light of their host stars.
After eliminating residual starlight through advanced image processing, a faint infrared source was detected near TWA 7, distinguishable from background galaxies or other solar system objects.
This source is located within one of the three dust rings previously identified around TWA 7 by earlier ground-based investigations.
Its brightness, color, distance from the star, and position within the ring align with theoretical expectations for a young, cold Saturn-mass planet that shapes the surrounding debris disks.
“They are also the most popular and highly skilled professionals,” remarked Dr. Matilde Marin, an astronomer at Johns Hopkins University and the Institute for Space Telescope Science.
The team’s preliminary analysis suggests that the object known as TWA 7B has a mass approximately 0.3 times that of Jupiter (about 100 times that of Earth) and may be a young, cold exoplanet with a temperature of 320 K (around 47°C).
Its positioning (approximately 52 AU from the star) corresponds with a gap in the disk, indicating a dynamic interaction between the planet and its surroundings.
Once corroborated, this discovery marks the first direct link between a planet and the structure of debris, offering initial observational insights into the Trojan disk.
“These findings underscore Webb’s capability to probe previously unobservable low-mass planets orbiting nearby stars,” the astronomer commented.
“Ongoing and future observations will seek to more accurately characterize candidates, investigate the state of their atmospheres, and enhance our understanding of planet formation in young systems and the evolution of disks.”
“This preliminary result represents an exciting new frontier where Webb sheds light on the discovery and characterization of exoplanets.”
These findings are detailed in a publication in the journal Nature.
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Lagrange et al. Evidence of sub-Jovian planets within the young TWA 7 disk. Nature Published online on June 25th, 2025. doi:10.1038/s41586-025-09150-4
Enthusiasts of Marvel movies and comics might recognize the tale of Thor’s Hammer, Mjolnir. This metal was crafted from the core of a dying star. While the power of the God of Thunder is not accessible to anyone, some of the heavy metals around us might originate from a long-dormant planet.
Similar to living beings, stars experience a life cycle. For stars with less than about 10 times the mass of the sun, the concluding phase is a White Dwarf. At this point, stars are compressed to the density of Earth and reach temperatures of around 100,000 Kelvin, approximately 100,000°C or 180,000°F. Unlike other stars, they cease to fuse elements in their cores for energy. Instead, they maintain their structure through Quantum mechanical principles and slowly release heat. This is why scientists often refer to white dwarfs as The dead star.
Nevertheless, under certain conditions, a white dwarf can experience one last surge of energy. There exists a limit to a white dwarf’s size, specifically 1.4 times the mass of the sun. If a star exceeds this threshold, gravitational forces can overpower its structural support, caused either by accumulating surrounding gas and dust or by merging with another white dwarf. This rapid compression ignites a chain reaction of fusion, culminating in an explosion known as a Type IA Supernova. Researchers estimate that such an explosion occurs in the Milky Way every 100-700 years.
A group of astrophysicists aimed to explore this phenomenon along with a rarer alternative. If a star is spinning while accumulating material, it can collapse into something even denser, a Neutron Star, and eject excess material without undergoing an explosion. The team simulated the aftermath of six different scenarios where the white dwarf collapsed after surpassing the size limit, known as Post Bounce. In these simulations, they adjusted various parameters, such as speed, width, temperature, and size thresholds of the white dwarfs.
They then controlled the initial conditions, including the mass of the white dwarf. Alkar simulated the behavior of low-energy particles referred to as liquid physics Neutrino 2D. Given the computational demands, astrophysicists typically simulate only a fraction of a second of post-bounce behavior. However, this team extended their simulation to 4.5-7 seconds to gain a deeper understanding of how ejected layers from white dwarfs behave.
The simulated white dwarf quickly collapsed, transitioning from a slower rate of 0.8 seconds to a rapid 0.04 seconds. The scenario diverged, with the unspinning white dwarf erupting into a supernova, while the spinning white dwarf transformed into a neutron star. In this latter case, the remnants of the stars were so densely packed that neutrinos collided with them, heating them up and ejecting them from the star.
The focus then shifted to the ejected material. The mass of material expelled ranged from 0.005 times to 0.05 times the mass of the sun, equivalent to about 1,700 to 17,000 Earth masses. Heavier elements like nickel can form during this process.
The researchers concluded that the outer layers ejected from collapsing white dwarfs could change rapidly during these events. They discovered that the material released was initially rich in protons and formed lighter elements but later became enriched in neutrons and heavier elements.
The team recommended developing more advanced 3D models of white dwarfs prior to their collapse for future studies. They suggested that astrophysicists could utilize these models to estimate the contribution of elements in the solar system originating from white dwarf collapses.
Illustration of TRAPPIST-1, a red dwarf star with at least seven orbiting planets
Mark Garlick/Alamy
Investigating the atmosphere surrounding the TRAPPIST-1 star system, one of the most promising locations in the galaxy, may prove even more challenging for astronomers than previously anticipated due to sporadic radiation bursts emitted by the stars.
First identified in 2016, TRAPPIST-1 is a diminutive red star located about 40 light years from Earth and is known to orbit at least seven planets. Several of these planets are situated within habitable zones that could support liquid water, making them prime candidates for astronomers searching for signs of extraterrestrial life.
For life to be sustainable, these planets must retain an atmosphere. Up to now, extensive observations from the James Webb Space Telescope have shown no signs of atmospheres on any of the planets.
Now, Julien DeWitt from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and his team have detected minor bursts emanating from TRAPPIST-1 for several minutes each hour. These radiation surges seem to complicate the planets’ capacity to capture light filtering through their atmospheres — if they exist — which is essential for determining the chemical makeup of any atmosphere.
Using the Hubble Space Telescope, DeWitt and his team searched for specific ultraviolet wavelengths from TRAPPIST-1 that would be absorbed by hydrogen. If a planet detected this light more than anticipated while transiting in front of the star, it could suggest that hydrogen was escaping from its atmosphere.
Although they found no definitive evidence, significant variabilities in different observations hint that extra light is being emitted at certain times. Hubble data can be divided into 5-minute increments, showing that this additional light is fleeting. DeWitt and his team deduce that these must be microflares — akin to solar flares from our sun, but occurring more frequently.
TRAPPIST-1 is quite faint, requiring astronomers to observe for extended periods to gather enough light. “Furthermore, there’s this flaring activity, which coincides with the timing of the transiting planets,” DeWitt states. “It’s particularly difficult to draw any conclusive insights regarding the existence of [atmospheres on the exoplanets],” he adds.
DeWitt and his colleagues also assessed whether these flares could impede a planet’s ability to retain its atmosphere. They found that one planet, TRAPPIST-1b, which the James Webb Space Telescope had already failed to detect atmospheric evidence for, could lose an equivalent of 1,000 times the hydrogen found in Earth’s oceans every million years. However, it’s often challenging to pinpoint which of these flares actually impact the planet. DeWitt suggests many uncertainties and various scenarios still need exploration.
Such stars can exhibit varying activity levels, but TRAPPIST-1 appears to be experiencing a more active phase, states Ekaterina Ilin from the Dutch Institute of Radio Astronomy. “This outcome isn’t completely unexpected or otherworldly; it’s just unfortunate. It’s more active than we had hoped,” she remarks. “In a way, it adds new layers to interpreting these flares, especially if you consider them.”
Astronomers have uncovered compelling evidence for the existence of Dark Stars—massive stars in the early universe that might be partly energized by dark matter. If confirmed, these hypothetical stars could shed light on the enigmatic large black holes observed in the early universe, although skepticism remains among some astronomers regarding these findings.
The concept of Dark Stars was proposed in 2007 by Katherine Freese and her colleagues at the University of Texas at Austin. They theorized that immense clouds of hydrogen and helium in the early universe could interact with dark matter, forming gigantic and stable stars. Absent dark matter, such vast gas clouds would collapse into black holes, but energy from decaying dark matter can counter this collapse, resulting in star-like entities even without the nuclear fusion typical of ordinary stars.
Until recently, evidence for these exotic objects from the early universe was scant, but in 2022, the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) began discovering numerous bright, distant celestial objects. Freese and her team identified three galaxies that exhibited several characteristics predicted by Dark Star models, such as round shapes and similar luminosity, though detailed spectral data was absent to confirm their hypothesis definitively.
Now, with new spectral observations from JWST, Freese’s team believes they can match theoretical predictions of what Dark Stars should resemble, including two additional candidates. One of these potential candidates shows intriguing hints of specific helium characteristics—missing electrons—which, if validated, could serve as a distinct hallmark of a Dark Star. Freese remarks, “If it’s real, I don’t know how else to explain it using Dark Stars.” She cautions, however, that evidence is still limited.
Meanwhile, Daniel Whalen from the University of Portsmouth in the UK suggests that an alternative theory of ultra-massive protostars, which do not involve dark matter, might also explain the JWST findings. “They overlook considerable literature concerning the formation of ultra-massive protostars, some of which can produce signatures remarkably similar to the ones they present,” claims Whalen.
Freese, however, strongly disagrees, asserting that burning dark matter is the only feasible method for creating such massive stars. “There’s no alternative route,” she insists.
A complicating factor arises from separate observations of the objects studied by Freese’s team using the Atacama Large Millimeter Array (ALMA) in Chile, which indicated the presence of oxygen. This element is not associated with Dark Stars, suggesting these candidates might be hybrid stars. On the other hand, Whalen and his team interpret the presence of oxygen as a strong indicator that these objects cannot be Dark Stars, attributing their formation to conventional stars that exploded as supernovae.
Should Freese and her collaborators confirm that these objects are indeed Dark Stars, it could address significant challenges in understanding the universe. Current models posit that such black holes can only originate from extremely massive matter, which raises questions about their formation in the early universe.
The identification of TO-6894B, an exoplanet roughly 86% the size of Jupiter orbiting the low-mass Redd star (0.2 solar masses), underscores the importance of enhancing our comprehension of the formation mechanisms of giant planets and their protoplanetary disc environments.
Artist’s illustration of TOI-6894B behind its host star. Image credit: Markgarlic/Warwick University.
The TOI-6894 system is located approximately 73 parsecs (238 light years) away in the Leo constellation.
This planet was discovered through a comprehensive analysis of data from NASA’s Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS), aimed at locating giant planets around low-mass stars.
“I was thrilled by this discovery. My initial focus was on observing a low-mass red star with TESS, in search of a giant planet,” remarked Dr. Edward Bryant, an astronomer from the University of London.
“Then, utilizing observations from ESO’s Very Large Telescope (VLT), one of the most substantial telescopes globally, I identified TO-6894B, a giant planet orbiting the smallest known star with such a companion planet.”
“I never anticipated that a planet like TOI-6894B could exist around such a low-mass star.”
“This finding will serve as a foundational element in our understanding of the boundary conditions for giant planet formation.”
TOI-6894B is a low-density gas giant, with a radius slightly exceeding that of Saturn, which has only 50% of its mass.
The parent star is the lowest mass star yet found to host a massive planet, being just 60% of the mass of the next smallest star observed with such a planet.
“Most stars in our galaxy are actually small, and it was previously believed that they couldn’t support a gas giant,” stated Dr. Daniel Baylis, an astronomer at Warwick University.
“Therefore, the fact that this star has a giant planet significantly impacts our estimates of the total number of giant planets likely to exist in the galaxy.”
“This is a fascinating discovery. We still don’t completely understand why relatively few stars can form such large planets,” commented Dr. Vincent Van Eilen, an astronomer at the University of London.
“This drives one of our objectives to search for more exoplanets.”
“By exploring different planetary systems compared to our own solar system, we can evaluate our models and gain insights into how our solar system was formed.”
The prevailing theory of planetary formation is known as core accretion theory.
According to this theory, the cores of planets are initially formed by accreting material, and as the core grows, it attracts gases that eventually create its atmosphere.
Eventually, the core becomes sufficiently large to initiate the runaway gas accretion process, leading to the formation of a gas giant.
However, forming gas giants around low-mass stars presents challenges, as the gas and dust necessary for planetary formation in their protoplanetary discs is limited, hindering the formation of a sufficiently large core to kickstart this runaway process.
The existence of TOI-6894B indicates that this model may be insufficient and that alternative theories need to be considered.
“Considering TO-6894B’s mass, it might have been formed through an intermediate core-fault mechanism, whereby the protoplanet forms and accumulates gas steadily without orbiting, making it large enough to undergo runaway gas accretion,” Dr. Edward explained.
“Alternatively, it might have formed due to an unstable gravitational disk.”
“In certain cases, the disk surrounding the star can become unstable due to the gravitational forces it exerts on itself.”
“These disks may fragment as gas and dust collapse, leading to planet formation.”
However, the research team found that neither theory fully accounted for the formation of TOI-6894B based on the data available.
“Based on the stellar irradiation affecting TOI-6894B, we anticipate that its atmosphere is primarily influenced by methane chemistry, which is quite rare to identify.”
“The temperatures are low enough that atmospheric observations may even reveal the presence of ammonia.”
TOI-6894B might serve as a benchmark for methane-dominated atmospheric studies and an ideal laboratory for investigating planetary atmospheres containing carbon, nitrogen, and oxygen beyond our solar system.
Survey results will be featured in the journal Nature Astronomy.
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Bryant et al. A giant exoplanet in orbit around a 0.2 solar mass star. Nature Astronomy, Published online on June 4th, 2025. doi:10.1038/s41550-025-02552-4
oOn a recent Saturday afternoon in Kampala’s informal settlement in Uganda’s capital, a crowd of young men gathered on benches inside a dimly lit shed to enjoy the pirated version of the Hollywood comedy horror film “The Monkey.”
As the English action played out on the screen, a narrated translation in Bantu Luganda by VJ Junior, one of Uganda’s leading video jockeys, reverberated throughout the room.
By freely translating films and TV shows for local audiences, VJ Junior has become a key figure in the TV and film culture across rural and low-income areas of East Africa.
These VJs act as part narrators and part comedians, often simplifying scripts and placing them in relatable contexts. For instance, they might replace a character’s name with that of a local individual or swap out a Western concept for a Ugandan analogy.
Ugandans will view the film “The Monkey” in April at a video hall in Katwe, Kampala. Photo: Carlos Mureithi/The Guardian
In one notable scene, a father discusses his son’s absence, stating, “So I’m away because I have to carry all sorts of weird baggage and deal with it,” to which he adds, “It’s the bad… the evil… that I’ve inherited from my father, and I don’t want to share that with you.”
VJ Junior summarized this moment with: “The reason I didn’t want to be with you is that I am weighed down by burdens. I inherited mental anguish, demonic influences, curses, and more from my father.”
VJs have the ability to infuse humor, exaggeration, and distinctive sound effects into their translations, sometimes diverging significantly from the original script.
Having grown up in Kampala during the 1990s, VJ Junior, born Mary Smart Matobu, developed a passion for film and frequently enjoyed Hollywood movies translated by VJs.
VJ Junior shares that his role involves “helping people understand, entertain, and draw inspiration from films.” Photo: Carlos Mureithi/The Guardian
In 2006, he entered the field, inheriting a recording studio from his older brother, VJ Ronnie, and later moved to the U.S. to pursue filmmaking. He recalled that his debut as a VJ, while working on “Rambo III,” “lacked finesse,” but he enhanced his skills by studying iconic figures like KK The Best and VJ Jingo.
VJ Junior’s big break came in 2009 with the translation of “Promise,” a Filipino soap opera for local channel Bukedde TV. “It was a massive success and became a significant brand for me,” the 40-year-old noted. “People began to trust my work.”
rRonnie’s Entertainment, the bustling video store in Katwe, drew shoppers eager to browse shelves crammed with thousands of VJ DVDs. Employees were busy copying movies onto customers’ flash drives. A DVD would sell for 2,000 Ugandan shillings (£0.41), with the flash drive copy costing 1,000 shillings.
Shop owner Ronald Zentongo reported vending hundreds of films and television shows daily, revealing that blockbuster titles include Marvel films and series like “Prison Break” and “24.” “Customers eagerly anticipate VJ Junior’s translations.”
The culture of Ugandan video jockeys emerged from the colonial practice where evangelists provided microphones to translate Christian films for local audiences. The 1980s saw the rise of video halls as VHS foreign films became more accessible. To bridge the language gap, video hall operators enlisted VJs to translate these films into local languages in real time.
With advancements in technology, VJs have transitioned from VHS to VCDs, and now to DVDs and flash drives. Numerous websites have popped up, allowing viewers to stream and download content via subscriptions.
The industry is also diversifying; some VJs are now dubbing Ugandan films and TV shows, with new VJs translating into languages beyond Luganda, the predominant language in the country.
A DVD being sold at Ronnie Entertainment. Photo: Carlos Mureithi/The Guardian
By adapting foreign films and series for Ugandan viewers, VJs foster a sense of belonging, as noted by Imokola John Baptist, a lecturer at Makerere University. His research suggests audiences feel valued, recognized, and acknowledged, though he cautions against over-translation that may obscure core themes and messages.
Video jockeys and their distributors often find themselves at odds with authorities over copyright infringements, facing the risk of police raids on video stores leading to confiscation of DVDs and copying equipment. VJ Junior expressed that copyright issues pose significant hurdles for his business, making it “incredibly challenging” to obtain dubbing rights for foreign films.
Describing the VJ’s contribution to Ugandan society as pivotal in “helping individuals to understand, entertain, and inspire,” VJ Junior stated he typically dubs around 10 films and TV episodes each week.
“Research is essential. You need to be informed, educated,” he remarks about the skills vital for his role. “The industry is expanding, and the demand is increasing.”
This binary system comprises a PSR J1928+1815 along with a rapidly spinning millisecond pulsar known as the Helium Star Companion.
The AI impression of the compact binary system. Image credit: Gemini AI.
The millisecond pulsar consists of rapidly rotating neutron stars that emit radio waves.
These stars attain remarkable rotational velocities by harvesting material from surrounding stellar groups.
The development of such exotic binary systems remains partially understood, as it encompasses a range of complex processes.
The theory suggests that binary systems may undergo a common envelope phase, where a star orbits within the outer layer of its companion.
If the companion in this evolutionary phase is a neutron star, the theory indicates that the outer layer will be swiftly ejected, resulting in a binary system of recycled pulsars and stripped helium stars.
In the recent study, Dr. Zonglin Yang, a national astronomer at the Chinese Academy of Sciences, along with colleagues, examined the millisecond pulsar PSR J1928+1815.
Utilizing data from a high-speed 500-meter aperture spherical radio telescope, they discovered that the pulsar has a spin period of 10.55 ms and resides in a close binary system with companion helium stars, completing an orbit every 3.6 hours.
They employed a stellar model to demonstrate that this system originated following an unstable mass transfer from companion stars to neutron stars, leading to the formation of a common envelope around both stellar objects.
The neutron star approached the core of the other star, ejected the outer envelope, and released energy, resulting in a tightly bound binary system.
“The companion star has a mass between 1.0 and 1.6 solar masses, obscuring the pulsar approximately 17% of its orbit and is undetectable at other wavelengths, suggesting it is likely a stripped helium star,” the authors noted.
“We interpret this system as having recently undergone a common envelope phase to create compact binaries.”
“Such systems are thought to be rare, yet we anticipate the existence of others,” they added.
“We estimate that there could be between 16 and 84 undiscovered examples within the Milky Way.”
The findings are documented in a paper published in the journal Science.
____
Zl Yang et al. 2025. A pulsar helium star compact binary system formed by common envelope evolution. Science 388 (6749): 859-863; doi: 10.1126/science.ado0769
For a century, astronomers have been studying Bernard's stars in the hopes of finding planets around them. First discovered by Ee Barnard at the Yerkes Observatory in 1916, it is the closest single star system to Earth. I'm using an astronomer now Maroon-X Instruments At the Gemini Northeres Scope, half of the NSF's International Gemini Observatory, there is solid evidence of three exoplanets around Bernard's star, two of which were previously classified as candidates. We also combined data from Maroon-X with data from Espresso instrument ESO's very large telescope confirms the existence of a fourth planet and raises it from candidate to candidate genuine exoplanet.
Illustration of an exoplanet artist orbiting Bernard's star. Image credits: International Gemini Observatory / Noirlab / NSF / Aura / P. Marenfeld.
Bernard's star is an M3.5 type star in the constellation of Ophetus.
Alpha Centauri's triple steller system is the closest star to the Sun, almost six light years away.
Also known as the Gliese 699 or GJ 699, Bernard's star is thought to be 10 billion years old due to its slow spin and low levels of activity.
According to a new study, stars host at least four planets, each with only about 20-30% of the Earth's mass.
They are very close to their home star, so in a few days they zip around the entire star.
It probably means they are too hot so uninhabitable, but this discovery is a new benchmark for discovering small planets around nearby stars.
“It's a really exciting discovery. The Bernard star is our universe's neighbor, but even so, we know little about it,” said doctoral degree Ritvik Basant. A student at the University of Chicago.
“The accuracy of these new instruments from previous generations signal a breakthrough.”
Stars are much brighter than planets, so it's easy to find the effects that planets have on them – such as watching the wind by seeing how the flag moves.
The Maroon-X instrument looks for one such effect. The gravity of each planet is pulled slightly towards the position of the star. In other words, the stars seem to wobble back and forth.
Maroon-X can measure the color of light very accurately, pick up these small shifts, and even bully the number of planets that have to circumvent the stars to have this effect.
Basant and colleagues rigorously coordinated and analyzed data taken on 112 different nights over three years.
They found solid evidence of three planets around Bernard's star.
When the team combined the findings with data from espresso instruments, they saw good evidence of the fourth planet.
“These planets are probably rocky planets, not gas planets like Jupiter,” the astronomer said.
“It would be hard to secure it secured. The angle seen from Earth means that they cannot see them crossing in front of the stars.
“But by gathering information about similar planets around other stars, we can make better guesses about their makeup.”
Team's Survey results It was released today Astrophysics Journal Letter.
____
Ritvik Basant et al. 2025. Four sub-Earth planets orbiting Bernard's star from Maroon X and Espresso. apjl 982, L1; doi: 10.3847/2041-8213/ADB8D5
Ultra-high energy cosmic rays are the highest energy particles in the universe, and their energy is more than one million times greater than what humans can achieve.
Professor Farrar proposes that the merger of binary neutron stars is the source of all or most ultra-high energy cosmic rays. This scenario can explain the unprecedented, mysterious range of ultra-high energy cosmic rays, as the jets of binary neutron star mergers are generated by gravity-driven dynamos and therefore are roughly the same due to the narrow range of binary neutron star masses. Image credit: Osaka Metropolitan University / L-Insight, Kyoto University / Riunosuke Takeshige.
The existence of ultra-high energy cosmic rays has been known for nearly 60 years, but astrophysicists have not been able to formulate a satisfactory explanation of the origins that explain all observations to date.
A new theory introduced by Glennnies Farrer at New York University provides a viable and testable explanation of how ultra-high energy cosmic rays are created.
“After 60 years of effort, it is possible that the origins of the mysterious highest energy particles in the universe have finally been identified,” Professor Farrar said.
“This insight provides a new tool to understand the most intense events in the universe. The two neutron stars fuse to form a black hole. This is the process responsible for creating many valuable or exotic elements, including gold, platinum, uranium, iodine, and Zenon.”
Professor Farrer proposes that ultra-high energy cosmic rays are accelerated by the turbulent magnetic runoff of the dual neutron star merger, which was ejected from the remnants of the merger, before the final black hole formation.
This process simultaneously generates powerful gravitational waves. Some have already been detected by scientists from the Ligo-Virgo collaboration.
“For the first time, this work explains two of the most mystical features of ultra-high energy cosmic rays: the harsh correlation between energy and charge, and the extraordinary energy of just a handful of very high energy events,” Professor Farrar said.
“The results of this study are two results that can provide experimental validation in future work.
(i) Very high energy cosmic rays occur as rare “R process” elements such as Xenon and Tellurium, motivating the search for such components of ultra-high energy cosmic ray data.
(ii) Very high-energy neutrinos derived from ultra-high-energy cosmic ray collisions are necessarily accompanied by gravitational waves generated by the merger of proneutron stars. ”
study It will be displayed in the journal Physical Review Letter.
____
Glennys R. Farrar. 2025. Merger of dichotomous neutron stars as the source of the finest energy cosmic rays. Phys. Pastor Rett 134, 081003; doi:10.1103/physrevlett.134.081003
mThe butt effect is some of the best science fiction ever made. That might sound like an epic comment, but it's true. As a trilogy, original games from 2007 to 2013 are easy to pick the most brain ideas from the sci-fi genre and invested them into memorable military role-playing games that have been the first to the controversial end. I slotted it.
Whether you prefer Asimov's hopeful optimistic outlook, Shelley's dark and reflective commentary, Star Trek's accessible thought experiment, or BattleStar Galactica's arch melodrama, Mass Effect is it I have everything. The trilogy grazes Star Wars West-inspired ratios as happily as Iain M Banks' “hard” sci-fi, bringing all its moods and micro-story into a galaxy that is captivating and believable Melding, walking in one way or another breathtaking optimism, and a choking smile.
Mass effects are special. And, like a successful video game series, franchise achievement rests on the shoulders of the developers' vast assemblies. Bioware project director Casey Hudson and studio co-founders Ray Muzyka and Greg Zeschuk have earned plenty of credits, but much of their souls comes from other creatives at Bioware. Written by Drew Calpisin, Derek Watts's Art Direction, Lead Designer Preston Wattmaniuk's vision, and Jack Wall's rising film music.
Every time you play, you can feel the choking inevitability of closed sacrifices around you. I needed music to match
“I made the Jade Empire soundtrack very successful in BioWare before Mass Effect,” Wall tells me that he asks how he became part of the team working on the original title. “Then they put out an audition process for what the team called SFX, the codename for Mass Effect. It was a blind audition, and Bioware got files back from many composers. The team was , I listened to all these different things and decided who nailed it the most. And I won that audition blind.”
Soon, Casey Hudson began working on giving an overview to the wall. “His mission was, 'I want this to sound like '80s science fiction music'. There is no Star Wars. There's nothing like the Tangerine Dream, Vangelis, or Blade Runner. Those were the main ideas. “Hudson specifically guides vintage analog synth sounds (particularly in films) that defined science fiction of the era, and wants to imagine a multi-layered multi-removal approach from the Tangerine Dream as the perfect accompaniment to a dense, complex mass-effect universe. I was thinking that.
Wall explains that Bioware played music written by another composer called Sam Hulick. Although Hulick was not chosen as a lead composer (as he was considered too junior for his job), Wall gave him equal credibility on the soundtrack.
Up until Mass Effect 2, music really became itself and essential to the whole experience. If Mass Effect has this almost utopian outlook, then the sequel is dark if mid-20th century science fiction optimism was established to establish the universe. The end of everything is nearing. From the off point, the final act is a “suicide mission” and it is said that the problem should be sorted out before reaching the return point. There is extensive pessimism, and with each moment you play, you can feel the choking inevitability of closed sacrifices around you. I needed music to match.
“At the beginning of development, Casey Hudson came in and said, 'I want to write the ending now,'” Wall says. I want it to be the main moment everyone remembers. He gave me some guidance and told me through what he wanted. [players] Feeling – This is always the best way to work with the supervisor. ”
“The team will decide who nailed it the most”… Jack Wall.
This track may be the aptly named Suicide Mission, which may be the most important part of the entire trilogy. It has an orchestral bias more than anything in the first game and reflects a serious overall tone. It shows how quickly they mature from one game to the next.
“It had to be epic, it had to feel like a movie, it had to feel 'one guy against everything',” Wall says. “You had to feel like you were saving the world and saving the galaxy. I came up with that main theme. [Hudson] I liked it right away. ”
However, before Wall and Hudson began installing the pieces together there was maintenance to do. Bioware and Wall were not impressed by how the music from the first game was patched to the final product. “The transition was awful,” Wall says, asking for an example.
“So, what we decided is that in Mass Effect 2, we'll do all the implementations we've never done before,” he continues. “I had an amazing assistant called Brian Didomenico who worked with me in my studio every day. He sat in my vocal booth with a desk and a PC. I told him I was my track. Sent, he implemented them into the game and did playtests there. And we tweak it until it really gets better… Bioware puts out the game when it's ready Things were delayed a lot because they were known for it, but the fans were very happy when they got it.”
Wall remembers finishing the game. It's noted that the entire ending sequence passed “in a tiny little video spitted out by the game engine.” He took the files and fed them to his Mac's film editor, stitched together the endings and edited the suicide mission. He then wrote various endings on the track, reflecting the player's choices.
“The end of everything is near”…Mass Effect 2. Photo: EA
“It was the biggest heart that I've ever done in my life,” he laughs. “And no one walked me around because they were surprised when they were about to finish the game. I handed it over and they had a lot of massages at their end to make it work. It had to, but they did it…and the result is one of the best ending sequences of the game I've ever played. It was worth the effort.”
Wall didn't return to the score for Mass Effect 3, the most popular game in the trilogy. “Casey wasn't particularly pleased with me at the end,” he says. “But I'm very proud of that score. It was nominated for BAFTA and it really worked… [even if] It didn't go as well as Casey had hoped. “Talk to the wall, I feel a near-Fleetwood Mac level creative tension between him and Hudson. The duo have created something amazing that will live forever in the minds of sci-fi and RPG enthusiasts, but at the expense of some relationships.
“That kind of fallout is just part of the transaction,” he says. “It's one of the few things in my career and it was a tough time, but that's it.”
You can survive the final mission in Mass Effect 2. Make all the right choices and execute your plans with absolute clarity and determination, and you can save all your crew as your hero and all your crew stare at a particular death. But, at least for most players, a much more likely outcome is losing at least one member of the team. This bundle of ragtags of heroes splits, gets injured, loses morale and sets foot into the climax of a series that is hopeless. For me, it reflects the brutal reality that good science fiction reveals.
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