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University of Washington Simulations Challenge Dark Matter Detection Through Stellar Streams

University of Washington Simulations Challenge Dark Matter Detection Through Stellar Streams

A new study from the University of Washington (UW) has cast doubt on a leading theory regarding the detection of dark matter through observations of stellar streams. Stellar streams are long, thin filaments of stars orbiting galaxies, and their irregularities—such as gaps and kinks—have long been considered potential indicators of gravitational tugs from small clumps of dark matter, known as subhalos. However, UW astronomers, led by postdoctoral scholar Arpit Arora, simulated four Milky Way-sized galaxies without any dark matter clumps, populating them with approximately 15,000 stellar streams. After five billion simulated years, nearly every stellar stream developed irregularities. The study, published in The Astrophysical Journal, suggests that the structure of the host galaxy itself, with its uneven distribution of stars creating areas of varying density, can cause these irregularities as stellar streams pass through denser regions and are bent and torn by the gravitational landscape. This finding indic...
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Astronomers Observe Black Hole Swift J1727.8−1613 'Spewing' Material After Consuming Star

Astronomers Observe Black Hole Swift J1727.8−1613 'Spewing' Material After Consuming Star

An international team of scientists, led by the University of Warwick, has observed the binary black hole system Swift J1727.8−1613 discharging material after consuming parts of its companion star. This discovery, detailed in the Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society, challenges the traditional view of black holes as endless pits. Using the European Southern Observatory’s Very Large Telescope (VLT), astronomers monitored a 2023 eruption from Swift J1727.8−1613, witnessing winds and jets violently expelled from the black hole. Unlike typical single-image observations, the VLT allowed for a sequence of events to be tracked from consumption to eruption. Swift J1727.8−1613 is a smaller, less active black hole, approximately 10 times the mass of our Sun, orbiting a normal-sized star from which it strips material. The team noted that the eruptions continued even after the black hole had finished its 'meal,' suggesting a more complex process of matter processing and expulsion.
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ETH Zurich and SETI Institute Partner to Search for Extraterrestrial Life

ETH Zurich and SETI Institute Partner to Search for Extraterrestrial Life

ETH Zurich, a leading Swiss university, has announced a new research partnership with the SETI Institute, a private research organization based in the U.S. This collaboration aims to intensify the search for life beyond Earth. As part of this initiative, ETH Zurich will establish an assistant professorship at its Center for Research on Life in Space, led by Didier Queloz, a Nobel laureate in astrophysics. The SETI Institute, known for its search for extraterrestrial intelligence, has evolved its focus, with only about five percent of its current work dedicated to the direct search for alien civilizations. The partnership will leverage SETI's expertise in astrobiology and solar system exploration, particularly in the study of extremophiles—microorganisms capable of adapting to extreme environmental conditions. The collaboration will also focus on the search for these extremophiles in space, extending beyond our solar system to exoplanets. The ETH Zurich professorship, named 'Earth and Planetary Evolution,' ...
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Syracuse University Researchers Utilize AI to Accelerate Search for U.S. Rare Earth Elements

Syracuse University Researchers Utilize AI to Accelerate Search for U.S. Rare Earth Elements

Researchers at Syracuse University's Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences are participating in a national project aimed at accelerating the search for rare earth elements within the United States. Led by hydrogeochemist and associate professor Tao Wen, the team is developing physics-informed artificial intelligence (AI) tools to make the exploration process faster, more efficient, and scientifically grounded. The project, supported by a grant from the Department of Energy’s Genesis Mission Program through Oak Ridge National Laboratory, focuses on identifying a particular type of rare earth deposit believed to exist in deeply weathered granite formations across parts of the southeastern U.S. The research involves combining field observations, laboratory experiments, subsurface imaging, and computer modeling to understand where rare earth elements occur, how their concentrations change with depth, and the geological and chemical processes controlling their distribution.
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NASA's Roman telescope is in space. But don't expect photos until 2027

NASA's Roman telescope is in space. But don't expect photos until 2027

Here's what to know about the launch of the Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope, as well as what's next for NASA's latest astronomical observatory.
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Researchers Propose Retrieving Apollo Waste Bags from Moon to Study Microbial Survival

Researchers Propose Retrieving Apollo Waste Bags from Moon to Study Microbial Survival

Researchers have proposed retrieving one of the 96 waste bags and containers left on the Moon by Apollo astronauts across six landings. The primary objective is not to clean up the lunar surface, but to investigate whether any human microbes could have survived up to 57 years of exposure to lunar radiation, vacuum, and extreme temperature swings. These waste bags, which include human waste, food wrappers, and other refuse, have been exposed to the harsh lunar environment since as early as July 1969. While it is widely believed that nothing in them could still be alive, scientists aim to test this hypothesis. Even if no viable cells are found, the retrieved material could provide valuable data on how cells, DNA, and other biological traces decay in an extraterrestrial environment, offering insights into astrobiology and planetary protection.
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NASA Research Indicates Human Microbes May Survive on Moon's South Pole, Raising Contamination Concerns for Future Missions

NASA Research Indicates Human Microbes May Survive on Moon's South Pole, Raising Contamination Concerns for Future Missions

A recent NASA study, published in Science Advances, suggests that human-related microbes could survive for extended periods on the lunar surface, particularly in the Moon's south polar regions. Researchers, led by Prabal Saxena of Goddard Space Flight Center, mapped where five common human-associated microbes (three bacteria: Bacillus, Staphylococcus, Deinococcus; and two fungi: Aspergillus, Fusarium) could withstand the Moon's harsh conditions, specifically ultraviolet (UV) radiation. Contrary to expectations that survivable microbes would cluster only in permanently shadowed regions, the study found survivable pockets spread across the entire polar regions. This is largely due to the lower UV radiation levels at the poles compared to the equator, and the ability of even small surface features to cast shadows that offer protection. The fungus Aspergillus demonstrated the highest survivability, lasting for a week or longer in some areas. The study highlights that spacesuits are not completely sealed and ca...
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Commercial Space Federation Welcomes New Members Outlier and Rendezvous Robotics

Commercial Space Federation Welcomes New Members Outlier and Rendezvous Robotics

Commercial Space Federation Welcomes New Members Outlier and Rendezvous Robotics
Cincinnati Enquirer Cincinnati Enquirer
These 4 Ohio colleges are among America's top party schools

These 4 Ohio colleges are among America's top party schools

Four Ohio schools made Niche's 2027 Top Party Schools ranking. See which universities landed in the national top 25.
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NASA Team Proposes Artificial Eclipse in Space to Discover Earth-like Exoplanets

NASA Team Proposes Artificial Eclipse in Space to Discover Earth-like Exoplanets

A NASA-led team is advancing a concept called the Hybrid Observatory for Earth-like Exoplanets (HOEE), which proposes creating an artificial eclipse in space to directly image exoplanets. The plan involves deploying a large, flower-shaped 'starshade,' approximately 100 meters across, 175,000 kilometers from Earth. This starshade would precisely align with ground-based telescopes, blocking the intense light from distant stars. By doing so, it would allow the faint light from orbiting exoplanets, which are typically a billion times dimmer than their host stars, to be detected. The primary goal is to identify rocky, Earth-sized planets within the habitable zones of other star systems. This approach aims to enhance existing observatories rather than building entirely new, multi-billion dollar space telescopes, with the starshade itself estimated to cost around one billion dollars.
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James Webb Space Telescope Reveals Evolving Gas Dispersal Mechanisms in Planet-Forming Disks, Impacting Giant Planet Formation

James Webb Space Telescope Reveals Evolving Gas Dispersal Mechanisms in Planet-Forming Disks, Impacting Giant Planet Formation

New observations from NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) indicate that the processes stripping gas from planet-forming disks around young, Sun-like stars evolve as these systems mature. This research, led by Naman Bajaj of the University of Arizona and coauthored by SETI Institute scientist Uma Gorti, examined protoplanetary disks around 72 young stars. The study, one of the largest JWST investigations into planet formation, reveals that different mechanisms dominate gas removal at various stages of disk evolution. In younger systems, strong jets and broad outflows containing molecular and atomic gas, consistent with magnetically powered winds, are prevalent. As systems age and less material falls onto the central star, these jets weaken. High-energy radiation from the young star then penetrates deeper into the disk, heating and expelling gas through a process known as photoevaporation, which becomes increasingly significant.
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September 2026 Night Sky Features Harvest Moon, Planetary Conjunctions, and Increased Aurora Chances

September 2026 Night Sky Features Harvest Moon, Planetary Conjunctions, and Increased Aurora Chances

September 2026 is set to offer a series of celestial events for stargazers. The full moon, known as the Harvest Moon, will occur on September 26 at 12:49 p.m. EDT, glowing opposite the sun. This month will also feature several planetary encounters, including the Moon near Mars on September 6, a lunar-Jupiter occultation on September 8 visible from specific regions, and a Moon-Venus occultation on September 14. Additionally, the September equinox will take place on September 22, marking the beginning of astronomical autumn in the Northern Hemisphere. Increased chances for auroras are also predicted due to the Russell-McPherron and Equinoctial effects.