The Sky Tonight

May 18, 2015

Circular orbits for small extrasolar planets
Aarhus, Finland (SPX) May 18, 2015
Researchers based at Aarhus University have measured the orbital eccentricity of 74 small extrasolar planets and found their orbits to be close to circular, similar to the planets in the solar system. But in contrast to previous measurements of more massive exoplanets where highly eccentric orbits are commonly found. These findings have important implications for planet formation theory, as well as planet occurrence rates and habitability. These findings are a major step that will improve understa ... read more

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Astronomers Baffled by Discovery of Rare Quasar Quartet Using the W. M. Keck Observatory in Hawaii, a group of astronomers led by Joseph Hennawi of the Max Planck Institute for Astronomy have discovered the first quadruple quasar: four rare active black ... more		Hubble Catches Stellar Exodus in Action Using NASA's Hubble Space Telescope, astronomers have captured for the first time snapshots of fledging white dwarf stars beginning their slow-paced, 40-million-year migration from the crowded cente ... more		Hubble traces the migration of white dwarfs in cluster 47 Tucanae Astronomers using the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope have, for the first time, collected a census of young white dwarf stars beginning their migration from the crowded centre of an ancient star clu ... more
				Cause of galactic death: Strangulation As murder mysteries go, it's a big one: how do galaxies die and what kills them? A new study, published in the journal Nature, has found that the primary cause of galactic death is strangulation, wh ... more		Water was plentiful in the early universe Astronomers have long held that water - two hydrogen atoms and an oxygen atom - was a relative latecomer to the universe. They believed that any element heavier than helium had to have been formed i ... more

Space Tech Expo - Design - Build - Test - Long Beach CA - May 19-21, 2015

The World's Largest Commercial Drone Conference and Expo - Sept 9 - Las Vegas

Next Generation Integrated ISR 2015 - Washington DC - July 27-29

Scientists at Keck Discover the Fluffiest Galaxies An international team of researchers led by Pieter van Dokkum at Yale University have used the W. M. Keck Observatory to confirm the existence of the most diffuse class of galaxies known in the univ ... more		Subaru Telescope Observers Superflare Stars with Large Starspots A team of astronomers has used the High Dispersion Spectrograph on the Subaru Telescope to conduct spectroscopic observations of Sun-like "superflare" stars first observed and cataloged by the Keple ... more		EU states to hold talks on 'drone wall' to protect bloc Denmark military intel fails to identify source of drone flights Lithuania eases rules on shooting down drones		NSF and CERN sign new partnership for finding particles A new agreement between the United States and the European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN) will pave the way for renewed collaboration in particle physics, promising to yield new insights i ... more
				Ether Compounds Could Work like DNA On Oily Worlds In the search for life beyond Earth, scientists have justifiably focused on water because all biology as we know it requires this fluid. A wild card, however, is whether alternative liquids can also ... more		The weakest magnetic field in the solar system Magnetic fields easily penetrate matter. Creating a space practically devoid of magnetic fields thus presents a great challenge. An international team of physicists has now developed a shielding tha ... more

Army Network Modernization 2015 - Washington DC June 23-25

Comet Wild 2: A window into the birth of the solar system Our solar system, and other planetary systems, started as a disk of microscopic dust, gas, and ice around the young Sun. The amazing diversity of objects in the solar system today - the planets, moo ... more		Asteroid Distant 'Flyby' Thursday An asteroid, designated 1999 FN53, will safely pass more than 26 times the distance of Earth to the moon on May 14. To put it another way, at its closest point, the asteroid will get no closer than ... more		NASA ISRO radar satellite beams first Earth images from space Morocco High Atlas whistle language strives for survival China warns Papua New Guinea over Australian defence deal		Mercury's core dynamo present early in planet's history The Messenger spacecraft, which crash-landed into Mercury just a few days ago, found traces of magnetization in Mercury's crust, a new study reports. The presence of residual magnetization pro ... more
Probing the secrets of the universe inside a metal box The Standard Model of particle physics, sometimes called "The Theory of Almost Everything," is the best set of equations to date that describes the universe's fundamental particles and how they inte ... more		Measurement of a single nuclear spin in biological samples Physicists of the University of Basel and the Swiss Nanoscience Institute were able to show for the first time that the nuclear spins of single molecules can be detected with the help of magnetic pa ... more		Telescope-Laser Cannons to Clean Up Dangerous Space Junk The low Earth orbit is filled with what amounts to an outer space junk yard, left behind by decades of discarded satellites, collisions, and debris. And now Operation Orbital Clean House is aiming t ... more		Delta Cephei's hidden companion To measure distances in the Universe, astronomers use Cepheids, a family of variable stars whose luminosity varies with time. Their role as distance calibrators has brought them attention from resea ... more

	NASA Awards Study Contract To Deep Space Industries NASA has selected Deep Space Industries (DSI) for two contracts devoted to developing critical technologies for utilizing asteroid resources. One will support the development of asteroid regolith si ... more		Europa's Mystery Dark Material Could Be Sea Salt NASA laboratory experiments suggest the dark material coating some geological features of Jupiter's moon Europa is likely sea salt from a subsurface ocean, discolored by exposure to radiation. The p ... more

JUNO begins decade-long mission to probe neutrino mysteries

SFL Missions to Deliver Spacecraft Buses for HawkEye 360 RF Signal Detection Expansion

Voyager debuts first space based multi cloud region to advance orbital data processing

MESSENGER reveals Mercury's magnetic field secrets		Weather forecasts for planets beyond our solar system		Quantum-mechanical monopoles discovered		Milky Way may have four spiral arms		DARPA developing zoom lens to spot distant space objects more clearly
Galactic Gold Rush: Asteroid Mining to Start This Summer		Ceres Animation Showcases Bright Spots		Getting Down to Science at Ceres		Space debris from satellite explosion increases collision risk for space craft		Zooming in on an individual orbiting electron

AKARI far-infrared all-sky data released

Bringing high-energy particle detection in from the cold

Attosecond physics: A new gateway to the microcosmos

Quantum mechanical helium trio

NASA's LRO Moves Closer to the Lunar Surface

New bid to contact Europe's comet probe

Meteors from Halley's Comet

Astronomers detect drastic atmospheric change in super Earth

Saturn Moon's Activity Could Be 'Curtain Eruptions'

Astrophysicists offer proof that famous image shows forming planets

Star Explosion is Lopsided, Finds NASA's NuSTAR

A hot start to the origin of life

Astronomers unveil the farthest galaxy

Geochemical process on Saturn's moon linked to life's origin

European Space Agency Director Wants to Set Up a Moon Base

Hubble finds massive halo around the Andromeda Galaxy

Ancient Star Raises Prospects of Intelligent Life

Astrobiology Students Use Art to Develop Critical Thinking Skills

Proto super star cluster - a cosmic 'dinosaur egg' about to hatch

Sounding rocket unveils makeup of a supernova remnant

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