Black Hole Mass Measured; Ice Sheets on Mars; Saliva Diagnoses Disease
Astronomers Precisely Measure Black Hole Mass A group of astronomers have been able to determine the precise mass of a distant black hole in the center of an enormous elliptical galaxy 73 million light years away. The galaxy is called NGC 1332 and is located in the direction of the southern constellation Eridanus. To measure […]
NASA Seeks Astronauts; Good Sleep = Good Mood; Device Finds Water in Space
Help Wanted – NASA As NASA continues to prepare to resume human spaceflight launches and readies its ambitious ‘Journey to Mars’, it is putting out its “help wanted” sign. The space agency announced that it will soon begin to accept applications for its next class of astronauts who will fly from the Space Coast of […]
Science Scanner: Monster Galaxy; Mars Missions On Vacation
Monster Galaxy Found Near Edge of Universe A group of researchers imaged a “monstrous galaxy” – SDP.81, located some 11.7 billion light-years from Earth, using the Atacama Large Millimeter/sub-millimeter Array (ALMA) in Chile and a natural magnification method called “gravitational lensing.” The researchers used the gravity of a massive galaxy 3.4 billion light-years away to […]
Unique Carbon-Based Molecule Found in Deep Space May Indicate Origins of Life
Astronomers from Cornell University in Ithaca, NY, Germany’s Max Planck Institute for Radio Astronomy, and the University of Cologne found an unusual carbon-based molecule called isopropyl cyanide in a gas cloud some 27,000 light years away. Those involved with the discovery say the finding suggests the type of complex molecules needed for life may have […]
Astronomers Spot Snow in Deep Space
New fallen snow on a crisp winter morning can be a beautiful and inspiring sight. But astronomers using the new Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) in Chile got really got a real thrill recently when they saw and imaged a snow fall in a very young solar system some 175 light years from Earth. The […]