Models Find a Narrow Route for Venus to Lose a Moon
A modeling study finds that tides could remove a hypothetical Venus moon, but only within a narrow and model-sensitive range of starting conditions.
Scientific publication4 min read
Subject
Astronomy & Space
Stars, planets, galaxies, cosmology, missions, and space observations.
113 published articles7 specialties
Latest in Astronomy
Astronomers Validate a Cold Sub-Neptune Near the Ice Line
A preprint validates TOI-6981 b as a cold sub-Neptune around an M4 dwarf, while its mass and atmosphere remain unmeasured.
Scientific publication4 min read
Repeated X-rays reveal a weak link to quasar accretion
A study of thousands of quasars found that repeated X-ray observations reveal a weak positive association between spectral shape and accretion state, but the signal is too small to explain most of the observed variety.
Scientific publication5 min read
Three metal-poor stars include one with unusually high magnesium
A small Subaru study identifies one CEMP-s star with the highest magnesium-to-iron ratio reported for a turn-off star of its kind, while its binary origin and Galactic membership remain unresolved.
Scientific publication4 min read
X-ray study suggests two ages for NGC 3079’s bubbles
An X-ray analysis of NGC 3079 reports a 0.92-million-year nuclear superbubble and a modeled 29.6-million-year galactic-scale bubble, while placing the inferred supernova progenitor cutoff at about 13 to 15 solar masses under a pure core-collapse model.
Scientific publication4 min read
Interleaved ToF-SIMS Tracks Isotope Fractions Down to 0.07% in Lab Tests
A laboratory preprint reports a 14-fold extension in the tested lower limit for oxygen-isotope fractions, while matching a linear reference across nominal tungsten-oxide markers.
Scientific publication4 min read
DESI data hint at changing matter density, but evidence is weak
A model fitted to DESI Full-Shape measurements finds a modest increase in the inferred matter-density parameter with redshift. Current tests do not clearly prefer that trend over a constant value, and the dark-energy interpretation remains model-dependent.
Scientific publication5 min read
Radio maps favor a compact double for J0011+3443
A preprint finds that J0011+3443 has a compact double radio structure and a peaked spectrum that favor a compact symmetric object, while lensing and dual-AGN interpretations remain unresolved.
Scientific publication4 min read
Laser experiment produces tunable pairs of attosecond soft-X-ray pulses
Researchers report two soft-X-ray pulses with nearly 30 microjoules of total energy, delay settings from 0 to 1 femtosecond, and spectral evidence that their relative phase can be tuned.
Scientific publication3 min read
BL Lacertae flare hints at an ultra-compact gamma-ray source
A study of BL Lacertae found significant gamma-ray changes on hour-long timescales, while evidence for faster variability remained marginal and model-dependent.
Scientific publication4 min read
AI Infers a Simulated Universe’s History From Today’s Matter
A three-dimensional neural network inferred averaged cosmological quantities from present-day simulated matter maps, including parameters linked to curvature and backreaction. Its predictions tracked the simulations closely, but the study is only a proof of principle because the training data were too simplified for sensible use on observations.
Scientific publication4 min read
Quasar’s changing X-rays put its ultrafast wind farther out
A study of the quasar PDS 456 links changes around 1 keV to a patchy, low-ionization ultrafast outflow crossing the X-ray-emitting region. Under that geometric interpretation, the wind lies well beyond a separately estimated high-ionization phase, narrowing the leading explanations for how it was accelerated.
Scientific publication5 min read
Rho Leo Shows a Persistent 16-Day Spectroscopic Rhythm
A long-running spectroscopic record of Rho Leo found a persistent 16.46-day rhythm, while TESS data suggested a less secure 33-day brightness cycle.
Scientific publication4 min read
One of Three Contact Binaries Is Near an Instability Threshold
A combined analysis of spectra, light curves and eclipse timings places the three systems at different stages of contact-binary evolution, with ZZ PsA closest to instability.
Scientific publication4 min read
Preprint finds fluid-dependent sonic points around a deformed black hole
A theoretical preprint models steady spherical accretion onto a static Konoplya-Zhidenko black hole and reports different transonic locations for different idealized fluid choices.
Scientific publication4 min read
Preprint sees starspot shifts in extreme contact binaries
An analysis of 11 extremely low mass ratio contact binaries found that two systems changed their out-of-eclipse brightness asymmetry within one TESS sector. It also found mixed orbital-period changes and evolutionary tracks that could not reproduce the shortest-period targets under the tested assumptions.
Scientific publication4 min read
Preprint reports H-band interferometer signal at 188 pW per nanometre
A chirped femtosecond-laser system produced a measurable broadband heterodyne signal in a single-channel laboratory test, while projected multiplexed sensitivity remains untested.
Scientific publication4 min read
Blue Field Ultra-Diffuse Galaxies Resemble Dwarfs in Star Formation
A small observational study of blue field candidates confirmed nine ultra-diffuse galaxies and eight other low-surface-brightness galaxies. After an aperture correction, all targets were described as lying within the star-forming main sequence, although the corrected star-formation rates were treated as upper limits.
Scientific publication4 min read
A fast, narrow jet emerges from compact source SMA3
ALMA observations show a highly collimated, chemically stratified jet whose shape and velocity pattern fit a disk-wind interpretation better than an X-wind model.
Scientific publication4 min read
PLACID coronagraph targets first science after internal tests
A preprint reports completed internal tests and modeled targets for PLACID, while the instrument's contrast performance and first science still await on-sky commissioning.
Scientific publication4 min read
Four of seven A stars show magnetic signatures in new study
A seven-star comparison found a sharp contrast between two ways of selecting slowly rotating, chemically peculiar A-type stars for magnetic-field searches.
Scientific publication3 min read
CMB distance data strongly favor alternative expansion models
A cosmology preprint reports overwhelming statistical support for GPAge expansion histories after CMB distances are included, while stressing that the fitted pattern still needs fuller tests.
Scientific publication3 min read
3D scan maps tissue chemistry alongside structure
A two-specimen proof of concept reconstructed three-dimensional fluorescence volumes and paired them with structural phase-contrast tomography under the same geometry.
Scientific publication4 min read
Preprint links solar wind Alfvénicity to radiation belt swings
A preprint analyzing seven years of Van Allen Probes data reports that outer-belt electron flux was far higher during high-Alfvénicity solar wind, with seasonal coherence strongest near solar minimum. The observational result points to a possible role for magnetic fluctuations but does not establish causation or show that it applies beyond solar cycle 24.
Scientific publication4 min read
JWST-Level Stability Mostly Falls Short in Exoplanet Telescope Model
A numerical preprint finds that only one modeled condition with unscaled JWST telemetry reaches the 10−10 raw-contrast target, while a tenfold motion reduction succeeds under idealized assumptions.
Scientific publication5 min read
Deep VISTA survey maps millions of sources in Magellanic Clouds
A new deep, multi-epoch VISTA dataset covers about 2.5 million detections in the central Large and Small Magellanic Clouds, with preliminary signs that it may improve motion studies and reveal central structure.
Scientific publication5 min read
Models link magma chemistry to starkly different sub-Neptune atmospheres
A modeling study finds that assumed magma composition and condensate chemistry can sharply alter predicted sub-Neptune atmospheres, sizes and spectra, but the results remain conditional on unverified chemistry and simplified planetary physics.
Scientific publication5 min read
Dark matter's clumpiness gap appears only at tiny scales
A topology-based simulation test distinguished collisionless and self-interacting dark matter around massive halos, but the contrast faded on larger scales.
Scientific publication5 min read
Follow-up observations challenge lensing claims for two quasar candidates
A two-object follow-up study identifies J0109–5424 as a z = 2.07 FeLoBAL quasar and does not favor lensing for P170+20.
Scientific publication4 min read
A 50-Hz wobble blurs high-resolution views at SOAR
An engineering case study of Chile's 4.1-m SOAR telescope finds a 50-Hz optical-axis wobble that blurs speckle data, while the vibration's source and disappearance after 2020 remain unresolved.
Scientific publication4 min read
Simulation finds strongest galaxy bias in node outskirts
A simulation analysis found the strongest reported galaxy bias in node outskirts and a decline in mean bias from short to long filaments.
Scientific publication3 min read
Parker Solar Probe filter lifts signal-to-noise for Jupiter radio data
A preprint describes a deterministic pipeline that improves the signal-to-noise of faint Jovian radio emissions in Parker Solar Probe archives, compares its patterns with Stokes V data, and screens likely events without becoming a definitive detector.
Scientific publication5 min read
Prime-Cam clears lab tests before planned Chile deployment
Prime-Cam met its laboratory deployment requirements and shipped with its first two modules, but its projected survey advantage still awaits telescope testing.
Proc. SPIE 14156, Millimeter, Submillimeter, and Far-Infrared Detectors and Instrumentation for Astronomy XIII, 1415604 (20 Aug 2026)5 min read
TESS web tool matches rotation periods in 86.3% of filtered cases
A preprint describes a browser-based tool for extracting TESS full-frame light curves and reports 86.3% period agreement in a periodic subset, versus 58.8% across a heterogeneous sample, with caveats about crowding and magnitude calibration.
Scientific publication4 min read
Laser choices shape prospects for a future 10 TeV photon collider
A preprint modeling study of a hypothetical 10 TeV gamma-gamma collider finds a trade-off between total collision yield and a narrower high-energy peak.
Scientific publication4 min read
Preprint: AI Flags 14,426 Likely Young Stars in APOGEE Data
The model recovered 70% of labeled likely young stars and added 14,426 candidates, but recall ranged from almost 100% in M dwarfs to about 0% in O-type stars.
Scientific publication4 min read
Hubble Scan Tests Find Tens-of-Parts-Per-Million Precision
A small study of 55 Cnc finds that Hubble's STIS can produce highly stable scanned spectra for exoplanet transit work, while showing why the reddest wavelengths remain difficult to interpret.
Scientific publication4 min read
TOI-4468 hosts a hot Jupiter and a nearby outer planet
An arXiv preprint describes TOI-4468 as a hot-Jupiter system with a validated outer planet and a separate, unconfirmed signal that may be a distant giant.
Scientific publication4 min read
New method targets redshift with strongest dark-energy departure
A methods preprint proposes choosing the redshift where the dark-energy equation of state sits farthest from w = −1 relative to its uncertainty, and its illustrative application gives a higher one-dimensional significance than the pivot.
Scientific publication3 min read
FAST Finds Contrasting OH Signals in Two Bright 2024 Comets
FAST observations of two bright 2024 comets found contrasting 18-centimeter OH signals, with model-derived production estimates and a tentative satellite-line identification in A3.
Scientific publication4 min read