2023 has been a bumper year for black holes, especially those of the supermassive variety. Here is Space.com's picks for the most exciting black hole stories of the year.
Space News & Blog Articles
13 record-breaking space discoveries of 2023
Some of the strongest, longest, smallest, biggest and best reasons to celebrate space as the year comes to a close. There are a handful of awesome firsts in here too.
55 years after Apollo 8's Christmas at the moon, a new Artemis crew readies for launch (exclusive)
Apollo 8 flew three astronauts around the moon in 1968. Artemis 2 plans to run a similar mission in 2024 or so, and the mission commander said the astronauts do see parallels in the two missions.
Miniaturized Jumping Robots Could Study An Asteroid’s Gravity
Missions focusing on small bodies in the solar system have been coming thick and fast lately. OSIRIS-Rex, Psyche, and Rosetta are all examples of projects that planned or did rendezvous with a small body in the solar system. But one of their biggest challenges is understanding the gravity of these bodies – which was especially evident when Philae, Rosetta’s lander, had a hard time staying on the surface of its intended comet. A new idea from researchers at the University of Colorado Boulder and NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory could help solve that problem – by bouncing small probes around.
How Supersymmetry Saved String Theory
String theory, like most revolutions, had humble origins. It started all the way back in the 1960’s as an attempt to understand the workings of the strong nuclear force, which had only recently been discovered. Quantum field theory, which had been used successfully to explain electromagnetism and the weak nuclear force, wasn’t seeming to cut it, and so physicists were eager for something new.
Using Smart Materials To Deploy A Dark Age Explorer
One of the most significant constraints on the size of objects placed into orbit is the size of the fairing used to put them there. Large telescopes must be stuffed into a relatively small fairing housing and deployed to their full size, sometimes using complicated processes. But even with those processes, there is still an upper limit to how giant a telescope can be. That might be changing soon, with the advent of smart materials – particularly on a project funded by NASA’s Institute for Advanced Concepts (NIAC) that would allow for a kilometer-scale radio telescope in space.
The Atmosphere of an Exoplanet Reveals Secrets About Its Surface
As astronomers have begun to gather data on the atmospheres of planets, we’re learning about their compositions and evolution. Thick atmospheres are the easiest to study, but these same thick atmospheres can hide the surface of a planet from view. A Venus-like world, for example, has such a thick atmosphere making it impossible to see the planet’s terrain. It seems the more likely we are to understand a planet’s atmosphere, the less likely we are to understand its surface. But that could change thanks to a new study in the Monthly Notices of the Royal Astrophysical Society.
Home (Alone) on Mars: Actor Daniel Stern on leading NASA in 'For All Mankind'
If there is a multiverse where every possible outcome happens, then in one of those universes Marv Murchins from "Home Alone" is NASA's chief. Such a thing is playing out on 'For All Mankind.'
Watch giant loop of plasma dance above the sun in stunning video
A huge loop of plasma dances above the surface of the sun in a stunning timelapse captured by astrophotographer Miguel Claro.
Alexander Skarsgård to star in Apple TV+ sci-fi 'Murderbot' series
Everyone's favorite homicidal SecUnit will soon head to the small screen in a new "Murderbot" TV series picked up by Apple TV+ based on author Martha Wells's thrilling collection.
10 times the night sky amazed us in 2023
The night sky of 2023 delivered many amazing views of the moon, comets, meteors and even space debris. Here are this year’s most memorable skywatching sights.
Live Coverage: SpaceX delays launch of twin radar satellites for German military
A SpaceX Falcon 9 is scheduled to launch the SARah 2 & 3 satellites for the German military. The twin craft, equipped with passive synthetic aperture radar reflectors, will liftoff from Vandenberg Space Force Base during an 83-minute window that opens at 5:11 a.m. PST / 8:11 a.m. EST / 1311 UTC on Sunday, Dec. 24.
12 James Webb Space Telescope findings that changed our understanding of the universe in 2023
These are the James Webb Space Telescope's most notable discoveries in 2023.
SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket to launch 2 German military satellites early Dec. 23
A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket is set to launch two radar reconnaissance satellites for the German military early Saturday morning (Dec. 23).
Life beyond Earth may form in the coldest depths of space, Ryugu asteroid samples reveal
PAHs may be able to form in cold regions of space, affecting what scientists think about the origins of planets and possibility of alien life.
SpaceX launches Falcon 9 first-stage booster on record-breaking 19th flight
A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket launches for a record-breaking 19th time, sending 23 Starlink satellites up to low Earth orbit. Image: Pete Carstens
Update 1:06 a.m. EST: Liftoff of SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket confirmed. The booster, B1058, landed on the droneship several minutes after launch.
NASA Tightbeams a Cat Video From 31 Million Kilometers Away
NASA’s Deep Space Network (DSN) has been responsible for maintaining contact with missions venturing beyond Low Earth Orbit (LEO) since 1963. In addition to relaying communications and instructions, the DSN has sent breathtaking images and invaluable science data back to Earth. As missions become more sophisticated, the amount of data they can gather and transmit is rapidly rising. To meet these growing needs, NASA has transitioned to higher-bandwidth radio spectrum transmissions. However, there is no way to increase data rates without scaling the size of its antennas or the power of its radio transmitters.
New Hubble Telescope image shows mysterious spokes on Saturn's rings
Scientists have no idea what the spokes are.
Warped supernova spotted by James Webb Space Telescope could settle a longstanding debate
Gravitationally lensed images of two different supernovas in the same galaxy can be used to measure the expansion rate of the universe.
SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket to launch on record-breaking 19th mission tonight
A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket is poised to launch for a record-setting 19th time tonight (Dec. 22), sending 23 Starlink internet satellites to orbit.
Watch 14 Years of Gamma-Ray Observations in This Fascinating NASA Video
The Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope, named in honor of noted physicist Enrico Fermi, has been in operation for almost a decade and a half, monitoring the cosmos for gamma rays. As the highest-energy form of light, these rays are produced by extremely energetic phenomena – like supernovae, neutron stars, quasars, and gamma-ray bursts (GRBs). In honor of this observatory’s long history, NASA’s Goddard Spaceflight Center has released a time-lapse movie that shows data acquired by the Fermi Space Telescope between August 2008 and August 2022.