An artist’s impression of the Earth-size exoplanet TRAPPIST-1e, depicted at the lower right, is silhouetted as it passes in front of its host star. Scientists call this event a transit. Credit: NASA, ESA, CSA, J. Olmsted (STScI).Astronomers have seen tentative evidence for an atmosphere on TRAPPIST-1e, an Earth-sized rocky planet 40 light years away.| astronomynow.com
Get ready for a clash of the titans when Venus and Jupiter, the two brightest planets in our Solar System, come together for a dazzling event visible across the length and breadth of the UK. By Astronomy Now’s Night Sky manager Mark Armstrong.| astronomynow.com
August means the Perseids: the annual shooting star spectacular reaches its peak to wow meteor enthusiasts with abundant bright events, writes Astronomy Now's Night Sky manager Mark Armstrong.| Astronomy Now
Planets without stars may not be so lonely after all. New research led by astronomers at the University of St Andrews suggests that free-floating giant planets—those adrift in interstellar space—can host their own miniature planetary systems.| Astronomy Now
Professor Michele Dougherty in the lab at Imperial College. Credit: Imperial College.His Majesty The King has approved Professor Michele Dougherty as the new Astronomer Royal. Professor Dougherty will be the sixteenth person and the first woman to hold this role since its creation 350 years ago. The previous Astronomer Royal, Professor Lord Martin Rees, is retiring from the position.| astronomynow.com
This illustration shows the three basic steps astronomers use to calculate how fast the universe expands over time, a value called the Hubble constant. All the steps involve building a strong “cosmic distance ladder,” by starting with measuring accurate distances to nearby galaxies and then moving to galaxies farther and farther away. This “ladder” is a series of measurements of different kinds of astronomical objects with an intrinsic brightness that researchers can use to calculate ...| astronomynow.com
The universe may end far sooner than expected—within 10⁷⁸ years, not 10¹⁰⁰—according to Dutch researchers who reinterpreted Hawking radiation, suggesting all massive objects gradually decay over time.| Astronomy Now