Browsing: Astronomy

A warped photo of Big Ben. Alan Cleaver via Flickr Earlier this month, the chief minister of the Indian state of Assam, Tarun Gogoi, started something of a brouhaha with a bold pronouncement on the generally sleepy topic of time zones. “We need a local time for Assam and the other northeastern states which will […]

Why the Milky Way looks like it spirals.

Our home in the universe continues to rock out of control.

Searching the heavens for our sun’s family.

As recently as the late 80s, finding a planet orbiting another star seemed like the stuff of sci-fi fantasy, about as realistic as a diminutive alien riding a flying bicycle, or a sports car that worked as a time machine. Thanks to many smart astronomers using a new generation of powerful telescopes, we now know […]

As astronomers point their telescopes up at the sky to learn about the cosmos, they tend to push those devices’ abilities to their limits. The edge of what we can measure is, of course, where all the interesting things are happening. The downside of this ambition is that the conclusions drawn from the newest data […]

Stories about a life spent searching for life among the stars.

Think we might eventually travel to other planets? In a way, we already are.

Looking up to the sky, a young astronomer finds truths at her feet.

Far from being romantic heroes, starless planets may be a dime a dozen.