https://www.smithsonianmag.com/rss/tag/astronomy/RSS feed for AstronomyenWed, 15 Jul 2026 19:40:22 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/astronomers-noticed-a-mysterious-spot-appearing-in-telescope-images-it-turned-out-to-be-the-faintest-exoplanet-ever-imaged-from-earth-180989133/The gas giant, called Beta Pictoris d, had been hiding in plain sight for more than a decade, until two independent teams verified its existenceWed, 15 Jul 2026 19:40:22 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/astronomers-noticed-a-mysterious-spot-appearing-in-telescope-images-it-turned-out-to-be-the-faintest-exoplanet-ever-imaged-from-earth-180989133/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/in-a-first-astronomers-find-sugar-in-the-space-between-stars-providing-new-clues-about-the-origins-of-life-on-earth-180989122/Sugars are crucial components of RNA and DNA, the basis of all known organisms alive today. In a new study, the sugar erythrulose was detected in a gas- and dust-filled cloud near the center of our Milky Way galaxyWed, 15 Jul 2026 14:00:00 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/in-a-first-astronomers-find-sugar-in-the-space-between-stars-providing-new-clues-about-the-origins-of-life-on-earth-180989122/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/meet-sak-tahn-waax-a-maya-math-whiz-who-lived-more-than-1000-years-ago-and-left-behind-a-really-elegant-complex-formula-180989125/For the first time, archaeologists identified one of the culture’s famed Classic era mathematicians and astronomersWed, 15 Jul 2026 13:03:15 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/meet-sak-tahn-waax-a-maya-math-whiz-who-lived-more-than-1000-years-ago-and-left-behind-a-really-elegant-complex-formula-180989125/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/this-giant-planet-survived-the-death-of-its-star-the-james-webb-space-telescope-just-found-its-atmosphere-180989077/New observations of WD 1856 b, a gas giant closely orbiting a white dwarf, offer a preview of what could happen to Jupiter and Saturn after the sun dies in about five billion years.Tue, 07 Jul 2026 19:09:34 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/this-giant-planet-survived-the-death-of-its-star-the-james-webb-space-telescope-just-found-its-atmosphere-180989077/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/see-ten-spectacular-images-from-this-years-astronomy-photographer-of-the-year-contest-that-capture-the-wonders-of-the-universe-180989065/The pictures, on the competition's shortlist, reveal the remarkable celestial objects that lie above our heads, both in deep space and closer to homeMon, 06 Jul 2026 14:00:00 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/see-ten-spectacular-images-from-this-years-astronomy-photographer-of-the-year-contest-that-capture-the-wonders-of-the-universe-180989065/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/the-greatest-cosmic-movie-ever-made-the-worlds-largest-digital-camera-begins-a-historic-decade-long-survey-of-the-night-sky-180989059/After a year of testing, the Vera C. Rubin Observatory in Chile has started capturing data as part of the much-anticipated Legacy Survey of Space and TimeWed, 01 Jul 2026 21:21:11 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/the-greatest-cosmic-movie-ever-made-the-worlds-largest-digital-camera-begins-a-historic-decade-long-survey-of-the-night-sky-180989059/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/these-17-stunning-photos-of-the-strawberry-moon-show-earths-natural-satellite-in-all-its-glory-180989050/The first full moon of the summer delivered dazzling visuals from across the globe. Its low position in the sky from the perspective of the Northern Hemisphere gave it a golden hueTue, 30 Jun 2026 20:10:45 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/these-17-stunning-photos-of-the-strawberry-moon-show-earths-natural-satellite-in-all-its-glory-180989050/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/mars-rover-spots-complex-carbon-on-the-red-planet-marking-yet-another-detection-of-a-building-block-of-life-180989043/Along with other recent discoveries, the new finding from Perseverance boosts the case that Mars once hosted conditions that could support living things—but it isn’t a definitive sign of ancient organismsTue, 30 Jun 2026 13:38:51 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/mars-rover-spots-complex-carbon-on-the-red-planet-marking-yet-another-detection-of-a-building-block-of-life-180989043/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/a-rare-comet-made-history-as-the-third-known-interstellar-object-to-fly-through-our-solar-system-studies-are-now-revealing-the-mysterious-the-mysterious-conditions-in-which-it-formed-180989037/In the latest research, telescope observations of 3I/ATLAS examine its chemical structure and suggest that it took shape in a peripheral region of a relatively calm planetary systemMon, 29 Jun 2026 16:02:32 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/a-rare-comet-made-history-as-the-third-known-interstellar-object-to-fly-through-our-solar-system-studies-are-now-revealing-the-mysterious-the-mysterious-conditions-in-which-it-formed-180989037/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/see-the-most-detailed-photo-of-the-milky-ways-heart-ever-taken-in-visible-light-which-will-help-astronomers-hunt-for-exoplanets-180989027/The European Space Agency’s Euclid telescope was built to study dark matter and dark energy, but for one day last year, it captured the densely packed stars brightening the center of our galaxyFri, 26 Jun 2026 21:09:42 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/see-the-most-detailed-photo-of-the-milky-ways-heart-ever-taken-in-visible-light-which-will-help-astronomers-hunt-for-exoplanets-180989027/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/astronomers-discovered-a-cosmic-fossil-in-the-making-the-most-chemically-primitive-galaxy-seen-yet-by-peering-back-to-the-edge-of-time-180988954/The James Webb Space Telescope observed 13-billion-year-old light, using a closer galactic cluster like a magnifying glass. The work helps experts understand the universe’s earliest stars and mysterious ultra-faint dwarf galaxiesThu, 18 Jun 2026 16:41:08 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/astronomers-discovered-a-cosmic-fossil-in-the-making-the-most-chemically-primitive-galaxy-seen-yet-by-peering-back-to-the-edge-of-time-180988954/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/stary-up-late-and-admire-the-cosmos-with-this-new-stargazing-trail-that-links-certified-dark-sky-destinations-180988953/The initiative debuts as Colorado gears up to celebrate the 150th anniversary of its statehoodFri, 12 Jun 2026 21:29:54 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/stary-up-late-and-admire-the-cosmos-with-this-new-stargazing-trail-that-links-certified-dark-sky-destinations-180988953/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smithsonian-institution/see-a-diamond-planet-an-exploding-star-and-a-black-hole-up-close-in-a-new-immersive-virtual-reality-experience-180988945/Informed by science from the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory and astronomers worldwide, this “documentary that you can walk through” visualizes the cosmos in a 3D introduction to the universeFri, 12 Jun 2026 16:19:35 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smithsonian-institution/see-a-diamond-planet-an-exploding-star-and-a-black-hole-up-close-in-a-new-immersive-virtual-reality-experience-180988945/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/a-rare-meteorite-found-in-the-sahara-desert-offers-evidence-of-a-lost-protoplanet-180988932/Chemical signatures indicate the meteorite came from an early planet that met an untimely end during the formation of our solar systemThu, 11 Jun 2026 12:00:00 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/a-rare-meteorite-found-in-the-sahara-desert-offers-evidence-of-a-lost-protoplanet-180988932/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/the-supermassive-black-hole-at-the-heart-of-our-galaxy-seems-to-be-blowing-wind-just-as-scientists-long-theorized-180988908/Scientists have been searching for evidence of this breeze since the 1970s. They've seen intense wind from other black holes, but they've struggled to observe the one at the Milky Way's centerFri, 05 Jun 2026 19:34:01 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/the-supermassive-black-hole-at-the-heart-of-our-galaxy-seems-to-be-blowing-wind-just-as-scientists-long-theorized-180988908/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/nasa-officially-ends-the-maven-mission-months-after-losing-contact-with-the-mars-orbiter-180988897/The agency last heard from the spacecraft on December 6. Recovered fragmentary data suggest that MAVEN was spinning unexpectedly, hinting at a change in its trajectory and draining its batteriesThu, 04 Jun 2026 18:51:26 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/nasa-officially-ends-the-maven-mission-months-after-losing-contact-with-the-mars-orbiter-180988897/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/a-bright-meteor-lit-up-the-new-england-sky-before-exploding-with-a-loud-boom-and-its-pieces-may-have-landed-in-cape-cod-bay-180988869/People reported seeing the glowing space rock or hearing or feeling its breakup from Delaware to Montreal. Experts estimate that it was about three feet wide and traveling at 75,000 miles per hour when it broke apartMon, 01 Jun 2026 18:44:20 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/a-bright-meteor-lit-up-the-new-england-sky-before-exploding-with-a-loud-boom-and-its-pieces-may-have-landed-in-cape-cod-bay-180988869/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/a-smaller-than-usual-blue-moon-will-end-the-month-with-a-lunar-spectacle-heres-what-to-know-about-the-full-micromoon-180988854/The blue moon will be the second of two full moons in the same month, a coincidence that only takes place about every two and a half years. It will also appear to be slightly smaller and dimmer than the average full moonThu, 28 May 2026 19:40:08 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/a-smaller-than-usual-blue-moon-will-end-the-month-with-a-lunar-spectacle-heres-what-to-know-about-the-full-micromoon-180988854/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/see-nasas-stunning-new-images-of-mars-captured-during-an-asteroid-bound-spacecrafts-strategic-flyby-180988788/The Psyche mission, on its way to study an asteroid of the same name, approached within 2,864 miles of the red planet on May 15Fri, 22 May 2026 20:14:29 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/see-nasas-stunning-new-images-of-mars-captured-during-an-asteroid-bound-spacecrafts-strategic-flyby-180988788/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/neptunes-moon-nereid-might-be-the-sole-intact-survivor-of-an-ancient-lunar-collision-180988785/A study suggests that the ice giant's largest moon, Triton, made a dramatic entrance to the Neptunian system long ago, kicking Nereid outward and destroying the planet's other original lunar companionsThu, 21 May 2026 20:16:29 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/neptunes-moon-nereid-might-be-the-sole-intact-survivor-of-an-ancient-lunar-collision-180988785/