Offbeat: General Offbeat: Space Space: Astronomy Space: Astrophysics Space: Exploration Space: General Space: Structures and Features Space: The Solar System
Published

Eruption of mega-magnetic star lights up nearby galaxy      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

While ESA's satellite INTEGRAL was observing the sky, it spotted a burst of gamma-rays -- high-energy photons -- coming from the nearby galaxy M82. Only a few hours later, ESA's XMM-Newton X-ray space telescope searched for an afterglow from the explosion but found none. An international team realized that the burst must have been an extra-galactic flare from a magnetar, a young neutron star with an exceptionally strong magnetic field.

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Published

Giant galactic explosion exposes galaxy pollution in action      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Astronomers have produced the first high-resolution map of a massive explosion in a nearby galaxy, providing important clues on how the space between galaxies is polluted with chemical elements.

Offbeat: General Offbeat: Space Space: Astronomy Space: Astrophysics Space: Exploration Space: General Space: Structures and Features
Published

AI and physics combine to reveal the 3D structure of a flare erupting around a black hole      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Based on radio telescope data and models of black hole physics, a team has used neural networks to reconstruct a 3D image that shows how explosive flare-ups in the disk of gas around our supermassive black hole might look.

Offbeat: General Offbeat: Space Space: Astronomy Space: Exploration Space: General Space: Structures and Features Space: The Solar System
Published

Astronomers uncover methane emission on a cold brown dwarf      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Astronomers have discovered methane emission on a brown dwarf, an unexpected finding for such a cold and isolated world. The findings suggest that this brown dwarf might generate aurorae similar to those seen on our own planet as well as on Jupiter and Saturn.

Space: Astronomy Space: Astrophysics Space: Cosmology Space: Exploration Space: General Space: Structures and Features Space: The Solar System
Published

No gamma rays seen coming from nearby supernova      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

A nearby supernova in 2023 offered astrophysicists an excellent opportunity to test ideas about how these types of explosions boost particles, called cosmic rays, to near light-speed. But surprisingly, NASA's Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope detected none of the high-energy gamma-ray light those particles should produce.

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Published

Most massive stellar black hole in our galaxy found      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Astronomers have identified the most massive stellar black hole yet discovered in the Milky Way galaxy. This black hole was spotted in data from the European Space Agency's Gaia mission because it imposes an odd 'wobbling' motion on the companion star orbiting it. Astronomers have verified the mass of the black hole, putting it at an impressive 33 times that of the Sun.

Space: Astronomy Space: Astrophysics Space: Cosmology Space: Exploration Space: General Space: Structures and Features
Published

Physicists solve puzzle about ancient galaxy found by Webb telescope      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Physicists solve a puzzle linked to JWST-ER1g, a massive ancient galaxy that formed when the universe was just a quarter of its current age.

Space: Astronomy Space: Astrophysics Space: Cosmology Space: Exploration Space: General Space: Structures and Features
Published

Physicists solve puzzle about ancient galaxy found by Webb telescope      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Physicists solve a puzzle linked to JWST-ER1g, a massive ancient galaxy that formed when the universe was just a quarter of its current age.

Offbeat: General Offbeat: Space Space: Astronomy Space: Astrophysics Space: Cosmology Space: Exploration Space: General Space: Structures and Features
Published

Brightest gamma-ray burst of all time came from the collapse of a massive star      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

In 2022, astronomers discovered the brightest gamma-ray burst (GRB) of all time. Now, astronomers confirm that a 'normal' supernova, the telltale sign of a stellar collapse, accompanied the GRB. The team also looked for signatures of heavy elements like gold and platinum in the supernova. They found no evidence of such elements, deepening the mystery of their origins.

Offbeat: General Offbeat: Space Space: Astronomy Space: Astrophysics Space: Exploration Space: General Space: Structures and Features Space: The Solar System
Published

Stellar winds of three sun-like stars detected for the first time      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

An international research team has for the first time directly detected stellar winds from three Sun-like stars by recording the X-ray emission from their astrospheres, and placed constraints on the mass loss rate of the stars via their stellar winds.

Space: Astronomy Space: Astrophysics Space: Exploration Space: General Space: Structures and Features Space: The Solar System
Published

Exoplanets true to size      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

A star's magnetic field must be considered in order to correctly determine the characteristics of exoplanets from observations by space telescopes such as Kepler, James Webb, or PLATO. Researchers show that the distribution of the star's brightness over its disk depends on the star's level of magnetic activity. This, in turn, affects the signature of an exoplanet in observational data. The new model must be used in order to properly interpret the data from the latest generation of space telescopes pointed at distant worlds outside our Solar System.

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Published

Beautiful nebula, violent history: Clash of stars solves stellar mystery      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

When astronomers looked at a stellar pair at the heart of a stunning cloud of gas and dust, they were in for a surprise. Star pairs are typically very similar, like twins, but in HD 148937, one star appears younger and, unlike the other, is magnetic. New data suggest there were originally three stars in the system, until two of them clashed and merged. This violent event created the surrounding cloud and forever altered the system's fate.

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Published

Twinkle twinkle baby star, 'sneezes' tell us how you are      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Researchers have found that baby stars discharge plumes of gas, dust, and magnetic flux from their protostellar disk. The protostellar disk that surrounds developing stars are constantly penetrated by magnetic flux, and if too much magnetic flux remained, the resulting object would generate a magnetic field stronger than any observed protostar. These newly discovered discharges of magnetic flux, or 'sneezes' as the researchers describes them, may be a vital step in proper star formation.

Space: General Space: Structures and Features Space: The Solar System
Published

Study shedding new light on Earth's global carbon cycle could help assess liveability of other planets      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Research has uncovered important new insights into the evolution of oxygen, carbon, and other vital elements over the entire history of Earth -- and it could help assess which other planets can develop life, ranging from plants to animals and humans.

Biology: Cell Biology Biology: Microbiology Biology: Zoology Ecology: Extinction Ecology: Sea Life Offbeat: General Offbeat: Paleontology and Archeology Offbeat: Plants and Animals Paleontology: Dinosaurs Paleontology: Fossils Paleontology: General
Published

Do some mysterious bones belong to gigantic ichthyosaurs?      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

Several similar large, fossilized bone fragments have been discovered in various regions across Western and Central Europe since the 19th century. The animal group to which they belonged is still the subject of much debate to this day. A study could now settle this dispute once and for all: The microstructure of the fossils indicates that they come from the lower jaw of a gigantic ichthyosaur. These animals could reach 25 to 30 meters in length, a similar size to the modern blue whale.

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Published

Inexplicable flying fox found in Hydra galaxy cluster      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

High sensitivity radio observations have discovered a cloud of magnetized plasma in the Hydra galaxy cluster. The odd location and shape of this plasma defy all conventional explanations. Dubbed the Flying Fox based on its silhouette, this plasma will remain a mystery until additional observations can provide more insight.

Biology: Evolutionary Biology: Zoology Ecology: Animals Ecology: Nature Environmental: Ecosystems Paleontology: Dinosaurs Paleontology: Early Mammals and Birds Paleontology: Fossils Paleontology: General
Published

Dinosaur study challenges Bergmann's rule      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

A new study calls into question Bergmann's rule, an 1800s-era scientific principle stating that animals in high-latitude, cooler climates tend to be larger than close relatives living in warmer climates.

Chemistry: Biochemistry Chemistry: General Chemistry: Inorganic Chemistry Computer Science: Quantum Computers Physics: General Physics: Quantum Computing Physics: Quantum Physics Space: Astrophysics Space: General Space: Structures and Features
Published

Chemical reactions can scramble quantum information as well as black holes      (via sciencedaily.com)     Original source 

A team of researchers has shown that molecules can be as formidable at scrambling quantum information as black holes by combining mathematical tools from black hole physics and chemical physics and testing their theory in chemical reactions.