2nd July 2020

Fastest-growing black hole identified

Astronomers report that J2157, discovered in 2018, is now known to have 34 billion solar masses and is consuming the equivalent of nearly 1 solar mass every day, making it the fastest-growing black hole in the Universe.

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8th June 2020

Possible Earth-like planet found around Sun-like star

Astronomers report that Kepler-160, a Sun-like star already known to host two planets, likely has a rocky third planet with orbit and light levels very similar to Earth.

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16th May 2020

Astronomers find nearest known black hole

A team at the European Southern Observatory reports finding what is likely a black hole about 1,120 light years away in the two-star HR 6819 system.

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4th May 2020

New study examines which galaxies are best for intelligent life

Spiral galaxies like our own Milky Way are more likely to harbour intelligent, technologically advanced civilisations, a new paper argues.

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2nd May 2020

First results from NASA's ICESat-2 mission

New data from cutting-edge satellite technology shows that melting in Antarctica and Greenland has contributed 14 mm (0.55 in) of global sea level rise since 2003.

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2nd May 2020

NASA selects companies to develop landers for human Moon missions

NASA has announced the selection of three U.S. companies – Blue Origin, Dynetics, and SpaceX – to design and develop human landing systems (HLS) for the Artemis program, one of which is planned to deliver the first woman and next man on the Moon by 2024.

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19th April 2020

First private lunar lander gets target site for 2021

Engineers at private aerospace company Intuitive Machines (IM) have confirmed a launch date and landing site for their upcoming IM-1 mission.

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16th April 2020

Earth-sized exoplanet found in habitable zone

NASA reports the discovery of Kepler-1649c, an exoplanet that is closer to Earth in size and temperature than any other world yet found in data from the Kepler space telescope.

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10th April 2020

NASA selects early-stage technology concepts

The latest NASA Innovative Advanced Concepts have been revealed. Many futuristic technologies are presented – including a way of directly viewing exoplanets in detail.

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9th April 2020

Extraction of space resources encouraged by Trump

This week, President Trump signed an executive order to spur the future long-term commercial exploitation of various celestial bodies and the mining of lunar resources.

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12th March 2020

Astronomers find exoplanet where it rains molten iron

Researchers using ESO's Very Large Telescope (VLT) report the discovery of WASP-76b, an exoplanet with temperatures of 2,400°C (4,352°F) that rains molten iron.

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5th March 2020

Protein discovered in meteorite?

Scientists have published details of what they believe is the first known meteorite to contain a protein. The molecule has been named hemolithin.

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1st March 2020

Freeman Dyson, 1923–2020

Freeman Dyson, one of the 20th century's greatest theoretical physicists, died this week aged 96. He is known for popularising the Dyson Sphere – a hypothetical megastructure that could surround an entire star.

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