Attention all stargazers! Geminid meteor shower is set to dazzle tonight's night sky
In the heart of the holiday season and the festive buzz of December, there is yet another event to look forward to: the annual extravaganza, the celestial spectacle—the Geminid meteor shower. A glittering display The skies promise a thrilling show tonight, Wednesday, December 13, through Read More...
Hubble Telescope spots farthest star ever recorded
We've set a new benchmark in the world of stars: the farthest individual star ever seen to date. This one has a predicted mass at least 50 times that of our Sun and is millions of times brighter, plus, was created within the first billion years of the Big Bang. This may seem like a long time after Read More...
James Webb Space Telescope releases first stunning image of a star
An update on the James Webb Space Telescope is hitting your newsfeed again as it makes another landmark step in its journey to help us explore the universe. The telescope set off in late December 2021, with the mission to change how we study deep space forever. The Optimist Daily previously Read More...
Can galaxies exist without dark matter?
The nature of science is learning and revision. Our understanding of existence involves fine-tuning, sometimes completely restructuring our knowledge to comprise new discoveries. Physics, medicine, chemistry, all improve on themselves by revising older ideas, such as it is with dark matter and its 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...
China’s “artificial sun” fusion reactor breaks yet another record
The Chinese Academy of Sciences has exciting news about its fusion reactor that it recently shared in a release. The Experimental Advanced Superconducting Tokamak (EAST) fusion reactor successfully sustained a plasma temperature of 120 million degrees Celsius for 1,056 seconds, effectively Read More...
Mapping out the Milky Way’s snacks gives clues into dark matter
In our galaxy’s galactic halo, there are 12 streams of stars orbiting. These burning balls of gas are actually being torn apart and their energy is absorbed into the Milky Way. In other words, they are the galaxy’s food source. Using the Anglo-Australian Telescope (AAT), a team has finally got Read More...
US and Canada establish first international transboundary Dark Sky Park
If you enjoyed last week’s Perseid Meteor Shower and want to see more night sky action, we’ve got good news. The US and Canada have established the world’s newest International Dark Sky Park for star-lovers to enjoy. The Waterton-Glacier International Peace Park is a collaborative National 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...
How and when to see the Perseid Meteor Shower
If you live in the Northern Hemisphere, you might want to plan a late-night campout in the coming weeks as the Perseid Meteor Shower is coming to our skies! The star show began on July 14 and will run through August 24, reaching peak intensity from August 11 to August 13. A viewing will be best Read More...