A full on smashup or a near miss? We find out what happens to planets when their galaxies collide
Deep Space
Deep Space
Solar System
What would happen if a black hole entered our Solar System?
Hint: it doesn’t end well for Earth…
News
Construction on new exoplanet hunter PLATO begins
The mission will not only seek new planets but will also investigate the properties of their host stars, and determine the planetary masses, sizes and ages with unprecedented accuracy
Deep Space
What is an accretion disk?
Often found around a star or black hole, we find out what an accretion disc is
Deep Space
How close to the edge of a galaxy can planets exist?
Is there such a thing as a ‘galactic habitable zone’?
Space Exploration
Kepler finds 80 exoplanet candidates in astonishing record time
The haul includes a particular standout: a likely planet that orbits the star HD 73344, which would be the brightest planet host ever discovered by the mission
Solar System
Why is Uranus colder than Neptune?
Why is the furthest planet from the Sun, Neptune, warmer than Uranus?
Astronomy
April Night Sky: This month’s planets
Venus remains the star of the evening skies, while Saturn and Mars keep close company in the morning
Deep Space
Stephen Hawking: “I was playing poker with Albert Einstein, Isaac Newton and Commander Data on the Starship Enterprise!”
Back in 2014, we caught up with the great scientist to get his thoughts on the universe, his cameo in Star Trek: The Next Generation and why we could be living in a hologram
Deep Space
How are comets made?
We take a look at how these ‘dirty snowballs’ are made
Deep Space
Are brown dwarfs more like stars or planets?
Planets, stars or something entirely different? We take a look to see what brown dwarfs are
Astronomy
Astronomer proposes new definition of a planet
By adding these new constraints, astronomers should be able to differentiate between a large planet and a brown dwarf
Space Exploration
Great Red Spot’s roots lie deep in Jupiter’s foundations
NASA’s Juno spacecraft has peered through the clouds of the gas giant to reveal more detail about the planet’s famous storm
News
Alien volcanoes could improve chances of finding life on exoplanets
Hydrogen pouring from volcanic sources on planets throughout the universe could improve chances of locating life in the cosmos
News
NASA needs your help to find Solar System’s Planet 9
Elusive planets may be lurking around the edges of our solar neighbourhood, and astronomers from NASA and UC Berkeley want the public’s help to hunt them down
News
Astronomers find new way to search for life on other worlds
A simple chemistry method could vastly enhance how scientists search for signs of life
News
Most common ‘outer planets’ probably like Neptune
The study provides the first indication of the types of planets waiting to be found far from a host star
News
Astronomers watch the birth of a young planetary system
For the first time we’ve seen how a powerful whirlwind shoots out from a rotating disc of gas and dust surrounding a young star
Competitions
Win two Meade telescopes and a spotting scope worth over £1000!
Be fully equipped for your tours of the night sky this winter, courtesy of Hama UK and Meade Instruments
Astronomy
Watch a planetary “high five” right now
It’s the school holidays, so why not show your children how they can see their favourite planets from Earth?