Astronomy

The Intel Science Talent Search honored the top winner and nine esteemed runners-up of its 2014 competition at a black-tie affair in Washington, D.C.

These Teenagers Have Already Accomplished More Than You Ever Will

The winners of this year's Intel Science Talent Search take on flu vaccines, stem cells and tools for diagnosing cancer

Observing the center of the Milky Way at Paranal Observatory.

Top 10 Travel Destinations for An Astronomy Geek

From the world's biggest telescopes to isolated islands, here are some of the best places to explore the cosmos

A pigeon trap, on view at the Air and Space Museum, used by Nobel Prize winners Penzias and Wilson to remove the birds roosting in the radio antenna's large horn.

How Two Pigeons Helped Scientists Confirm the Big Bang Theory

For decades, astronomers had debated how the universe began. Then, in 1964, they had their "Eureka!" moment

An artist's rendition of the Big Bang.

What Astronomers Are Still Discovering About the Big Bang Theory

A half-century after it was confirmed, the theory still yields new secrets

SM0313 is the little star right in the center.

This is the Oldest Star We’ve Ever Seen

SM0313 was part of the second wave of star formation

Ceres, as seen by Hubble.

An Oasis in the Void: Dwarf Planet Ceres Is Venting Water

Ceres is a dwarf planet in the asteroid belt, between Mars and Jupiter

I heard you like stars.

Astronomers Find What May Be a Star Within a Star

The best candidate yet for an elusive Thorne-Żytkow Object

Futurists Once Dreamed of Submarine Helicopters And Spaceships Powered by Swans

The ships that we've dreamed up tell us a lot about just how badly humans have wanted to travel beyond our own world

Jupiter's moon Io in orbit around the gas giant. Io is casting a dark shadow on Jupiter's atmosphere.

Did Astronomers Just Find the First Moon Outside Our Solar System?

The potential moon is half the size of Earth and in orbit around a planet four times bigger than Jupiter

Can You Fry Things in Space?

Can the good old American tradition of caking foods in grease continue in the vast recesses of space?

The Andromeda Galaxy

What Does the Future of the Universe Hold?

The collision of our galaxy with the Andromeda galaxy is billions of years away, but it’s never too early to wonder what will happen

Watch China’s Chang’e Lander Touch Down on the Moon

For the first time in 37 years, humans have landed something on the Moon

“The Simpsons” Has Been Secretly Teaching Its Fans Complicated Math

Several writers for The Simpsons completed degrees in math and physics before they turned to screen writing for the beloved cartoon

The Mars Orbiter Mission will launch from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre in a PSLV-c25 rocket.

T Minus 16 Hours Until India Goes to Mars

The countdown is on for India's first mission to Mars

It Might Rain Diamonds on Jupiter

Take some methane, add lightning and massive pressures, and what do you get? Diamond hail

None

Astronaut Scott Carpenter, the Second American to Orbit the Planet, Dies at 88

John Glenn, who was a close friend to Carpenter, is now the last surviving astronaut from NASA's Project Mercury, the original space program

Where Did the Word Asteroid Really Come From?

It wasn't until the 1850's that the word was accepted by scientists. Today, we use the word all the time. We just credit the wrong guy for its invention

An artist’s idea of what PSO J318.5-22 may look like

This Baby Rogue Planet Is Wandering the Universe All by Itself

This planet, six times bigger than Jupiter, is sailing through space just 80 light-years away

Defrosting the Crests of Inca City, LAT: -81.5° LONG: 296.3° “The nature of this polygonal network, unique on Mars, remains poorly understood, but seems to be linked to volcanic dykes covered by eolian sand. These terrains are close to the South pole and undergo springtime defrosting in dark patches that become progressively larger as temperatures climb,” writes geophysicist Nicolas Mangold in This is Mars.

This Is Mars in Extremely High Resolution

French designer Xavier Barral pored over 30,000 images taken by the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter's HiRISE camera, selecting the most appealing for his book

5 Smithsonian Scientific Research Projects Shut Down by the Shutdown

The federal government shutdown has affected astronomy, paleontology fieldwork and research into animal behavior at the Smithsonian

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