Saturn at its brightest: a stargazer's guide to 'Saturn at opposition'
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM This week provides a rare opportunity for stargazers. Saturn will be at opposition on the night of September 7-8, offering the greatest time of year to see the ringed planet. When Saturn is in opposition, Earth is squarely between Saturn and the Sun, making Read More...
Astronomers demand disco balls for science: A shiny spin on solar observation
It’s true that disco balls have had their place in space for decades now. However, some astronomers argue in a new article that disco balls should also be installed in colleges and scientific institutes. Disco balls, as a group of Scandinavian astronomers put it in their yet-to-be-peer-reviewed Read More...
Meet Susan Murabana, the astronomer bringing the cosmos to Kenyan youth
A celestial display unfolds beneath the velvety African night sky, amidst the peace of Kenya's isolated Samburu county. It’s 1:30 AM in mid-August, and 50 enthralled individuals lie on the dry riverbed, their eyes turned heavenwards, entranced by the stars. The Milky Way arcs gracefully across Read More...
Astronomers spot the beginnings of a “baby gas giant”
We can take up astronomy now, buy a good telescope, and go out on the right night to look up at the sky and marvel at the gaseous planets of our own solar system. These are of course Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune. However, we average enthusiasts would need some different equipment, and Read More...
Turns out there are ice volcanoes on Pluto. Here's how they work
We learn more fascinating and otherworldly things about our universe the farther out into space we explore. Some of our discoveries bend our understanding of science, and some completely baffle us. This is the case now that scientists have confirmed that there are, in fact, ice volcanoes on Read More...
A first-of-its-kind star made from two dying stars
It is a wonder looking up at space, seeing the continuum of the cosmos in beautiful celestial bodies exploding, reforming, and shining brightly in the night sky. In this stellar life cycle, scientists have discovered the brilliant birth of a new star created from the collision of two dying Read More...
Check out the biggest, most detailed ever 3D map of the universe
To the delight of astronomy lovers worldwide, a team of scientists at the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory has recently unveiled the largest and most detailed 3D map of the universe ever. Thanks to data collected by the Dark Energy Spectroscopic Instrument (DESI), the astonishing image Read More...
We are not alone: First possible star-revolving planet found outside our galaxy
The search beyond our own galaxy never fails to keep uncovering new and exciting things about our mysterious universe. One of the most recent potential discoveries is a planet in the Messier 51 (M51) or Whirlpool galaxy. What makes this planet, named M51-ULS-1b, so special is the fact it transmits Read More...
Scientists observe supernova explosion in unprecedented detail
In a world-first, astronomers have recorded the earliest moments of a supernova — the powerful explosion of a massive star — in unprecedented detail. The observation is a celebratory moment in the world of astronomy that could help improve our knowledge about what happens to stars the moment Read More...
China will soon open up its massive FAST telescope to global astronomers
Astronomers around the world will soon get an exciting opportunity to observe the sky like never before when the world’s largest Aperture Spherical radio Telescope (FAST) opens up to the global scientific community starting April 1st. Located in China, the “Sky Eye” parabolic dish is a Read More...