Through some of the very first scientific observations with the brand-new Large Binocular Telescope (LBT) in Arizona, astronomers has found that a recently discovered tiny companion galaxy to our Milky Way, named the Hercules Dwarf Galaxy, has truly exceptional properties: while basically all of its known peers in the realm of these tiny dwarf galaxies are rather round, this galaxy at a distance o... read full post picked by AutumnLotus 1 year ago

The Hubble Space Telescope has found a large galaxy 10.6 billion light-years away from Earth that is stuffing itself with smaller galaxies caught like flies in a web of gravity. The galaxy is so far away that astronomers are seeing it as it looked in the early formative years of the Universe, only 2 billion years after the Big Bang. picked by 2manyusernames 2 years ago

Newborn stars shine like celestial sparklers in a new portrait of the nearby Triangulum Galaxy – the most detailed ultraviolet image of a galaxy ever taken. Astronomers will use the image, taken by NASA's Swift telescope, to create an "age map" of the galaxy's components to understand how galaxies evolve over time. picked by AutumnLotus 8 months ago

Once considered just your average single asteroid, 2001 SN263 has now been revealed as the first near-Earth triple asteroid ever found. The asteroid -- with three bodies orbiting each other -- was discovered this week by astronomers at the radar telescope at the National Science Foundation's (NSF) Arecibo Observatory in Puerto Rico. picked by AutumnLotus 8 months ago

Some crucial ingredients for life on Earth may have formed in interstellar space, rather than on the planet's surface. A new computer model indicates clouds of adenine molecules, a basic component of DNA, can form and survive the harsh conditions of space, and possibly sprinkle onto planets as the stars they orbit travel through a galaxy. picked by AutumnLotus 1 year ago

Scientists are using the giant Robert C. Byrd Green Bank Telescope (GBT) to go prospecting in a rich molecular cloud in our Milky Way Galaxy. They seek to discover new, complex molecules in interstellar space that may be precursors to life. picked by AutumnLotus 3 months ago

Amateur astronomers saw only a fuzzy patch of light when Comet 8P/Tuttle made its closest approach to the Earth on 2 January. But astronomers using the world's largest radio dish, the Arecibo telescope in Puerto Rico, got a much more detailed, and surprising, view: The comet's nucleus resembled a peanut, suggesting it formed when two comets collided and stuck together. picked by AutumnLotus 9 months ago

Two ancient meteorites billions of years old have been found to contain record breaking levels of amino acids, the building blocks of life.

Tests showed that the molecules, which form the basis of proteins, were extraterrestrial in origin. picked by AutumnLotus 7 months ago

Scheduled for launch in 2013, the Webb telescope is widely regarded as the premier observatory of the next decade. It is an infrared telescope, which means it senses the heat of stars and galaxies millions and even billions of light years away. picked by suebe 1 year ago

Astronomers have made use of ESO's Very Large Telescope to detect for the first time in the ultraviolet the carbon monoxide molecule in a galaxy located almost 11 billion light-years away, a feat that had remained elusive for 25 years. This detection allows them to obtain the most precise measurement of the cosmic temperature at such a remote epoch. picked by AutumnLotus 5 months ago

The NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope has captured a new image of the galaxy NGC 1132 which is, most likely, a cosmic fossil – the aftermath of an enormous multi-galactic pile-up, where the carnage of collision after collision has built up a brilliant but fuzzy giant elliptical galaxy far outshining typical galaxies. picked by AutumnLotus 8 months ago

Messier 74, also called NGC 628, is a stunning example of a 'grand-design' spiral galaxy that is viewed by Earth observers nearly face-on. Its perfectly symmetrical spiral arms emanate from the central nucleus and are dotted with clusters of young blue stars. picked by AutumnLotus 10 months ago

Astronomers believe they've glimpsed light from some of the universe's first stars through the world's largest telescope on the Big Island. picked by AutumnLotus 1 year ago

Researchers from the Max Planck Institute for Radio Astronomy (MPIfR) in Bonn have detected for the first time a molecule closely related to an amino acid: amino acetonitrile. The organic molecule was found with a 30 metre radio telescope in Spain and two radio interferometers in France and Australia in the "Large Molecule Heimat", a giant gas cloud near the galactic centre in the conste... read full post picked by AutumnLotus 7 months ago

The Large Binocular Telescope on Mount Graham, Ariz., has taken celestial images using its twin side-by-side, 8.4-meter (27.6 foot) primary mirrors together, achieving first "binocular" light. picked by AutumnLotus 7 months ago

Astronomers from SRON Netherlands Institute for Space Research have discovered a new cluster of galaxies, hidden behind a previously identified cluster of galaxies. The recently exposed cosmic giant is apparently just as bright as the first group, but is six times further away. The astronomers made the discovery as part of an international team using the space telescope XMM-Newton. picked by AutumnLotus 10 months ago

Alien life may well exist in a primitive form somewhere in our corner of the galaxy, famed astrophysicist Stephen Hawking has said. picked by AutumnLotus 6 months ago

A primitive star has been born in the heart of a computer, revealing how the basic building blocks of life were present soon after the Big Bang some 13.7 billion years ago. Stars convert light elements such as helium and hydrogen into the heavier elements necessary for life and it has often been remarked that human beings are glorified stardust. picked by AutumnLotus 2 months ago

A newly discovered dwarf galaxy in the Local Group has been found to have formed in a region of space far from our own and is falling into our system for the first time in its history. picked by AutumnLotus 1 year ago

Organic compounds contain carbon and hydrogen and form the building blocks of all life on Earth. By analyzing organic material and minerals in the Martian meteorite Allan Hills 84001, scientists have shown for the first time that building blocks of life formed on Mars early in its history. Previously, scientists have thought that organic material in ALH 84001 was brought to Mars by meteorite impac... read full post picked by AutumnLotus 10 months ago