Rutgers Expert Available to Discuss James Webb Space Telescope Science
New Brunswick, N.J. (Feb. 22, 2021) – Rutgers University–New Brunswick Professor Kristen McQuinn is available for interviews on the upcoming launch of the
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Astronomers document the rise and fall of a rarely observed stellar dance
Astronomers have catalogued 126 years of changes to HS Hydra, a rare evolving eclipsing binary. The two stars in HS Hydra began to eclipse each other starting around a century ago, peaking in the 1960s. The degree of eclipsing then plummeted over the course of just a half century, and will cease around Feb. 2021.
Read moreExpert: What is the Great Conjunction?
Contact: Kim Ward, University Communications: (517) 432-0117, kward@msu.edu, Zach Richardson, University Communications: (517) 281-5786, richa954@msu.edu.
Dec. 16, 2020
Ask the Expert: The Great Conjunction
EAST LANSING, Mich. – As the world continues to turn during the COVID-19 pandemic, many of us are settling in for a holiday season unlike any other in recent memory. One that, on its face, seems to lack the usual magic of holidays in the past. That would be the case, if not for the once-in-a-lifetime Great Conjunction that will occur on Dec. 21. A Great Conjunction that many are calling the “Christmas Star.” Shannon Schmoll, director of the Abrams Planetarium at Michigan State University, offers her insight on the astronomical event that will be sure to brighten the holidays.
What is a conjunction? Or what qualifies something as a conjunction?
A conjunction at its most basic is when two objects, such as planets, pass each other in the sky. The more specific answer, h
Galaxies in the Infant Universe Were Surprisingly Mature
ALMA telescope conducts largest survey yet of distant galaxies in the early universe
Rutgers Astronomer Receives Packard Fellowship for Innovative Young Scientists
New Brunswick, N.J. (Oct. 15, 2020) – Blakesley Burkhart’s childhood days spent volunteering at a science museum and watching the
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NRAO Joins Space Mission to the Far Side of the Moon to Explore the Early Universe
The NRAO has joined a new NASA space mission to the far side of the Moon to investigate when the first stars began to form in the early universe.
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Galaxy Simulations Could Help Reveal Origins of Milky Way
Rutgers astronomers have produced the most advanced galaxy simulations of their kind, which could help reveal the origins of the Milky Way and dozens of small neighboring dwarf galaxies. Their research also could aid the decades-old search for dark matter, which fills an estimated 27 percent of the universe. And the computer simulations of “ultra-faint” dwarf galaxies could help shed light on how the first stars formed in the universe.
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Study: Dying Stars Breathe Life Into Earth
As dying stars take their final few breaths of life, they gently sprinkle their ashes into the cosmos through the magnificent planetary nebulae. These ashes, spread via stellar winds, are enriched with many different chemical elements, including carbon.
Findings from a study published today in Nature Astronomy show that the final breaths of these dying stars, called white dwarfs, shed light on carbon’s origin in the Milky Way.
Astronomers Find Elusive Target Hiding Behind Dust
In some pairs of young stars, astronomers found a “hot corino” of organic molecules around one, but not the other. Researchers studied such a pair with the VLA at radio wavelengths that readily pass through dust, and found the other one.
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Upcoming Trimble Lecture with Elizabeth Kessler Highlights the Impacts of Hubble Imagery on May 7
The American Institute of Physics, celebrating the 30th anniversary of the launch of the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope, is delighted to host a virtual presentation by Stanford University’s Elizabeth Kessler in an upcoming Lyne Starling Trimble Science Heritage Public Lecture. The lecture series is presented by AIP and features science historians and writers who study the role of science and technology in modern society and culture. “Hubble Space Telescope Images and the Astronomical Sublime” will be hosted virtually, Thursday, May 7 at 3:30 p.m. Eastern (U.S.).
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Extrasolar Planet Apparently Disappears in Latest Hubble Observations
Astronomers using the Hubble Space Telescope have come to the jaw-dropping conclusion that a planet orbiting another star has seemingly disappeared after appearing in several years’ worth of Hubble images. A team of astronomers from the University of Arizona believe this is forensic evidence of a titanic collision between two asteroid-sized bodies orbiting a nearby star, Fomalhaut.
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Celebrating 30 Years of Hubble: Discoveries Continue to Wow Scientists, Public
Peering into the darkness to see what we could not previously see, the Hubble Space Telescope has been delighting scientists and the general public with revealing details and images of galaxies and celestial phenomena. The American Institute of Physics recognizes and celebrates the momentous occasion of the 30th anniversary of its launch and Physics Today is highlighting the anniversary in its April issue with a look back at the history of the telescope and analysis of Hubble’s discoveries over the past 30 years.
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