NSF and SpaceX Finalize Radio Spectrum Coordination Agreement

The National Science Foundation (NSF) and SpaceX have finalized a radio spectrum coordination agreement to limit interference from the company’s Starlink satellites to radio astronomy assets operating between 10.6 and 10.7 GHz. The agreement, detailed in a statement released by NSF today, ensures that Starlink satellite network plans will meet international radio astronomy protection standards, and protect NSF-funded radio astronomy facilities, including the National Radio Astronomy Observatory (NRAO) and the Green Bank Observatory (GBO).

ALMA Witnesses Deadly Star-Slinging Tug-of-War Between Merging Galaxies

While observing a newly-dormant galaxy using the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) and the Hubble Space Telescope (HST), scientists discovered that it had stopped forming stars not because it had used up all of its gas but because most of its star-forming fuel had been thrown out of the system as it merged with another galaxy. The result is a first for ALMA scientists. What’s more, if proven common, the results could change the way scientists think about galaxy mergers and deaths.

ALMA’s 2014 Ground-Breaking HL Tau Results Have Appeared in Over 1,000 Scientific Papers in Less Than a Decade

Ground-breaking 2014 HL Tau observational data from the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) has been cited in more than 1,000 scientific studies in the past 7.5 years, aiding in major breakthroughs in scientists’ understanding of planet formation. The milestone comes as engineers at the U.S. National Science Foundation’s National Radio Astronomy Observatory (NRAO) embark on ambitious upgrades to the receivers responsible for the clarity of initial observations.

Science Results From NRAO Facilities to Be Presented at Multiple AAS 240 Press Conferences

Seven new scientific results from the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA), the Very Large Array (VLA), and the Very Large Array Sky Survey (VLASS) will be revealed at multiple press conferences during the 240th meeting of the American Astronomical Society (AAS) between June 13-15, 2022 in Pasadena, California.

Scientists Find Elusive Gas From Post-starburst Galaxies Hiding in Plain Sight

Post-starburst galaxies were previously thought to scatter all of their gas and dust—the fuel required for creating new stars—in violent bursts of energy, and with extraordinary speed. Now, new data from the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) reveals that these galaxies don’t scatter all of their star-forming fuel after all. Instead, after their supposed end, these dormant galaxies hold onto and compress large amounts of highly-concentrated, turbulent gas. But contrary to expectation, they’re not using it to form stars.

ALMA Reveals Carbon-Rich, Organic Birth Environments of Planets

An international collaboration of scientists using the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) has completed the most extensive chemical composition mapping of the protoplanetary disks around five nearby young stars at high resolution, producing images that capture the molecular composition associated with planetary births, and a roadmap for future studies of the makeup of planet- and comet-forming regions.

Scientists Observe Gas Re-accretion in Dying Galaxies for the First Time

A new study from scientists using the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) suggests that previously displaced gases can re-accrete onto galaxies, potentially slowing down the process of galaxy death caused by ram pressure stripping, and creating unique structures more resistant to its effects.

No olviden el surco: científicos usan masa estelar para establecer vínculo entre exoplanetas y discos protoplanetarios

A partir de los datos de más de 500 estrellas jóvenes observadas con el Atacama Large Millimeter/Submillimeter Array (ALMA), los científicos descubrieron un vínculo directo entre las estructuras de los discos protoplanetarios (los discos que rodean a las estrellas y donde se forman planetas nuevos) y las características demográficas de los planetas que allí nacen.

Mind the Gap: Scientists Use Stellar Mass to Link Exoplanets to Planet-Forming Disks

Data from 500 young stars observed with the Atacama Large Millimeter/submilliter Array (ALMA) is giving scientists a window back through time, allowing them to predict what exoplanetary systems looked like through each stage of their formation. And it all starts with a link between higher mass stars, disks with gaps in them, and a high occurrence of observed exoplanets.

National Radio Astronomy Observatory featured in the 2021 STEM for All Video Showcase

Three projects from the National Radio Astronomy Observatory are featured in the National Science Foundation-funded 2021 STEM for All Video Showcase running May 11 to May 18, showcasing the Observatory’s commitment to equity, social justice, and creative solutions to engagement during COVID-19.