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astronomy Articles | Developments Today

Artist's illustration of the sub-Neptune exoplanet, TOI-270 d. (Credit: NASA)

JWST study suggests mini-Neptunes may hide deep water

Researchers modeled TOI-270 d and found water may separate from hydrogen instead of remaining well mixed.
The study suggests JWST atmospheric observations could miss deeper water reservoirs on some sub-Neptunes.
The finding challenges simpler assumptions about the internal structure of one of the galaxy’s most common planet classes.

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DT Editorial Team·Jul 26, 2026·via universetoday.com

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Astronomers found Omega Centauri’s first stellar-mass black hole, which has a visible star companion that is shown in greater detail. Credit: ESA/NASA/MPIA/STScI

Hubble and Webb find Omega Centauri’s first stellar-mass black hole

Astronomers confirmed the first stellar-mass black hole in Omega Centauri.
The result relied on Hubble data from 2002 to 2023 plus Webb NIRCam observations.
The object, oMEGACat BH-2, was found through astrometric measurements of a visible star’s motion.
The discovery supports models suggesting Omega Centauri should host many stellar-mass black holes.

DE

DT Editorial Team·Jul 24, 2026·via universetoday.com

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The Lunar Far Side offers a pristine and welcoming environment for multi-messenger observatories due to its lack of light pollution and radio interference from Earth. Can we keep it that way for future scientists to use? Courtesy of Artemis 1 mission.

Moon preservation debate gains support among scientists

A Royal Astronomical Society debate found 76% support for scientific preservation of the Moon.
The lunar far side is valued for its lack of Earth-based radio interference and light pollution.
The issue extends planetary protection ideas into questions of scientific land use and governance.
The debate highlights growing tension between future lunar commerce and preserving pristine research environments.

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DT Editorial Team·Jul 24, 2026·via universetoday.com

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Artist’s illustration of comet 41P, measured at about 1 kilometer (0.6 miles) in diameter, depicted approaching the Sun, resulting in outgassing from the evaporating ice. (Illustration Credit: NASA, ESA, CSA, Ralf Crawford (STScI)

Comet 41P’s Reverse Spin May Be a Countdown to Breakup

Researchers report the first observed reverse spin in a comet.
Hubble data from 2017 support a model in which uneven gas jets changed 41P's rotation.
Computer models suggest the small nucleus could eventually break apart.

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DT Editorial Team·Jul 24, 2026·via universetoday.com

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This illustration shows the system around the star CD-35 2722, with the newly found moon-like object at the center. Credit: ESO/M. Kornmesser

First confirmed exo-satellite blurs the line between planet and moon

Astronomers confirmed the first known exo-satellite in the CD-35 2722 system.
The moon-like object is roughly Jupiter-sized and orbits a brown dwarf.
The discovery complicates standard definitions of stars, planets, and moons.
Similar systems could become important targets in future exoplanet studies.

DE

DT Editorial Team·Jul 23, 2026·via universetoday.com

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The Milky Way in the sky over the ESO's La Silla Observatory in Chile's Atacama Desert. The Milky Way's thick disk is full of older stars and rotates more slowly than its thin disk, which is full of younger stars. New research says a cosmic flip is responsible for this puzzling arrangement. Image Credit: ESO/B. Tafreshi (twanight.org)

Simulations suggest the Milky Way flipped its disk

Researchers used the Auriga simulations to study why the Milky Way’s thick disk rotates slowly.
The work suggests an ancient merger may have flipped the galaxy’s disk orientation.
The finding links present-day stellar motions to the Milky Way’s long merger history.

DE

DT Editorial Team·Jul 23, 2026·via universetoday.com

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Jupiter-mass 'exomoon' orbiting brown dwarf challenges cosmic labels

Jupiter-Mass Exomoon Candidate Blurs Line Between Planet and Moon

ESO observations found evidence for a Jupiter-mass companion orbiting a brown dwarf in the CD-35 2722 system.
If confirmed, the object could be the first moon discovered outside the solar system.
Its size and orbital setup complicate the usual distinction between planets and moons.

DE

DT Editorial Team·Jul 22, 2026·via phys.org

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Gamma ray observations from NASA's Fermi Space Telescope reveal the extended emission region around LHAASO J1912+1014u, now confirmed as a proton PeVatron. The dashed circle shows the Moon's size for scale (Credit : Tsunefumi Mizuno et al.)

Astronomers identify a Milky Way proton PeVatron near Altair

Astronomers say LHAASO J1912+1014u has been confirmed as a proton PeVatron.
The result helps explain where some of the Milky Way's highest-energy cosmic ray protons originate.
Researchers combined gamma-ray, radio, and X-ray observations to separate proton and electron scenarios.
The finding strengthens the case for multiwavelength methods in identifying extreme particle accelerators.

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DT Editorial Team·Jul 22, 2026·via universetoday.com

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New radio-burst method helps locate universe's missing ordinary matter

Fast Radio Bursts Help Scientists Track the Universe’s Missing Matter

Researchers analyzed thousands of fast radio bursts to measure how matter distorts their signals.
The method links missing ordinary matter to diffuse clouds around groups of galaxies.
The findings support models in which material is pushed far beyond galaxies’ bright visible regions.

DE

DT Editorial Team·Jul 21, 2026·via phys.org

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Cosmic gymnastics: How the Milky Way once underwent a dramatic flip

Simulations suggest the Milky Way once flipped its disk

Researchers used 25 Milky Way-like simulations from the Auriga suite to study halo rotation.
Slowly rotating stellar halos were associated with major head-on mergers and disk flips.
The work offers a possible explanation for the Milky Way’s unusually slow stellar halo rotation.

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DT Editorial Team·Jul 21, 2026·via phys.org

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This artist's illustration shows a white dwarf and its much larger red dwarf binary companion. Astronomers have four more of these binary stars in the Sun's neighborhood. They're called post-common-envelope binaries, and they're hard to detect because the bright red dwarf hides the white dwarf from telescopes. Image Credit: Mark A. Garlick/University of Warwick

Hidden White Dwarfs Found in the Solar Neighborhood

Astronomers confirmed four white dwarfs within about 65 light-years of Earth.
Each was concealed by a brighter red dwarf companion in a tight binary system.
Researchers detected the systems through spectroscopic wobble measurements using Hubble's STIS instrument.
The binaries could improve models of post-common-envelope stellar evolution.

DE

DT Editorial Team·Jul 21, 2026·via universetoday.com

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Artist’s illustration of exoplanets orbiting Barnard’s Star. Credit: [International Gemini Observatory/NOIRLab/NSF/AURA/P. Marenfeld](https://www.gemini.edu/gallery/images/noirlab2510a/)

Barnard’s Star’s planets look even less hospitable than expected

Researchers linked Barnard’s Star’s chemistry to likely magnesium-rich planets.
The inferred abundance of periclase suggests poor long-term water storage.
Very tight orbits and long radiation exposure likely stripped away atmospheres.

DE

DT Editorial Team·Jul 21, 2026·via universetoday.com

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Artist's impression of the planet LHS 1140 b and its host star (Credit : ESO/spaceengine.org)

Atmosphere detected on rocky habitable-zone exoplanet

Astronomers reported evidence of an atmosphere around rocky exoplanet LHS 1140 b.
The planet orbits within its star’s habitable zone about 48 light-years away.
Researchers detected helium escaping from the planet using the WINERED spectrograph on the Magellan Telescope.
The result could help identify which habitable-zone rocky planets are worth deeper study.

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DT Editorial Team·Jul 20, 2026·via universetoday.com

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The Sun's spectrum, crossed by dark Fraunhofer lines where atoms in its outer layers absorb light at specific wavelengths, the fingerprint astronomers use to work out what a star is made of (Credit : NASA)

Astronomers solve the Sun’s ‘missing silver’ puzzle

Astronomers had long found less silver in the Sun than meteorites suggested should be present.
Researchers led by Sema Caliskan at Uppsala University built a more realistic solar atmosphere model.
The analysis also used improved atomic physics for how silver interacts with light and its surroundings.
The revised result brings the Sun’s silver abundance into line with meteorite benchmarks.

DE

DT Editorial Team·Jul 20, 2026·via universetoday.com

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An illustration of a planet with a glowing sun in the distance

Astronomers find strongest evidence yet of an atmosphere on a rocky habitable-zone world

Astronomers detected helium escaping from LHS 1140 b.
The signal is the strongest evidence yet of an atmosphere on a rocky habitable-zone exoplanet.
The result could sharpen future searches for potentially habitable worlds.

DE

DT Editorial Team·Jul 19, 2026·via livescience.com

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An artist's impression of a superluminous supernova and an associated gamma-ray burst being driven by a rapidly spinning neutron star. Credit: CfA

Fast-response radio system captures a gamma-ray burst within minutes

The SMA responded to a Swift gamma-ray burst alert on January 26, 2026.
The observatory was on target within 13 minutes and produced near-real-time images.
The system could expand early-time millimeter studies of powerful transient events.

DE

DT Editorial Team·Jul 19, 2026·via universetoday.com

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This artist's illustration shows a supermassive black hole (SMBH) tearing apart a star that got too close in a tidal disruption event. These events flare brightly, making otherwise invisible black holes visible. Astrophysicists want to find more of these events across cosmic time so they can understand how SMBH have become so massive. The upcoming Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope will find many more of them. Image Credit: NASA, Ralf Crawford (STScI)

Roman Space Telescope Could Reveal Ancient Black Holes Through Stellar Destruction

A new forecast study says Roman could detect many more tidal disruption events across the universe.
Those flares can reveal lower-mass supermassive black holes that are otherwise difficult to detect.
A larger TDE sample could help test models of early black hole seeding and growth.

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DT Editorial Team·Jul 17, 2026·via universetoday.com

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An artist's conception of Eärendil-1 in orbit. Credit: Reflect Orbital.

FCC clears first test launch for orbital reflector satellite

Reflect Orbital received FCC approval for its first reflector-satellite test launch.
The approval concerns radio spectrum use, not the reflector’s full societal impact.
The company plans three early test satellites and ultimately envisions a massive constellation.
Astronomers have raised concerns about the night-sky effects of bright orbital mirrors.

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DT Editorial Team·Jul 17, 2026·via universetoday.com

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Image of the Australian desert showing the growing light pollution caused by artificial satellites. Credit: Joshua Rozells

Ultra-Black Coating Could Mitigate Light Pollution Caused by Satellites

Satellite light pollution is a growing problem due to increasing numbers of satellites in LEO.
University of Surrey researchers developed Vantablack 310, an ultra-black coating that absorbs over 99.9% of visible light.
The coating can significantly reduce satellite reflectivity, mitigating interference with astronomy and ecosystems.
Challenges include cost and integration with satellite design.

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DT Editorial Team·Jul 9, 2026·via universetoday.com

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Astronomers build a one-stop universe data hub

Multimodal Universe: A Unified Data Hub for Astronomers

MMU standardizes 80+ TB of astronomical data from multiple surveys.
Enables cross-study analysis without supercomputing power.
Led by Center for Astrophysics | Harvard & Smithsonian.
Data includes galaxy images, spectra, and time series.

DE

DT Editorial Team·Jul 8, 2026·via phys.org

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