pressnews.MEDICINE · SCIENCE · EVIDENCE
RSSSearchMy library
The archive · since 2010
THE ORIGINAL COLLECTION · SINCE 2010

Space
press releases.

Research announcements from universities, hospitals and scientific institutions. Explore the stories, people and discoveries behind the headlines.

Original publication datesPage 10
FIND A STORY

Find a past release.

Dates and source material belong to the original release.

Read our research explainers

Browse the collection · original publication order

Space

Some young suns align with their planet-forming disks, others are born tilted

(Santa Barbara, Calif) — Researchers at UC Santa Barbara, The University of Texas at Austin, Yale University and National Taiwan Normal University have found that a fair number of sun-like stars emerge with their rotational axis tilted with respect to their protoplanetary disks, the clouds of gas and dust from which solar systems are born. “All young stars have these discs, but we’ve known little about their orientations with respect to the spin axis of the host stars,” said UCSB associate physics professor Brendan Bowler, who studies how planets form and evolve through their orbits and atmospheres, and is senior author of a study in ...

Read the release
Space

Ultraviolet light reveals the aftermath of rare star collision

University of Warwick astronomers have uncovered compelling evidence that a nearby white dwarf is in fact the remnant of two stars merging — a rare stellar discovery revealed through Hubble Space Telescope ultraviolet observations of carbon in the star’s hot atmosphere. White dwarfs are the dense cores left behind when stars exhaust their fuel and collapse. They are Earth-sized stellar embers weighing typically half as much as the Sun, made up of carbon-oxygen cores with surface layers of helium and hydrogen. While white dwarfs ...

Read the release
Space

Findings show NT’s vital water source is drying – and it can be seen from space

A critical water source for vast areas of the Northern Territory is drying at an accelerating rate, according to new findings, with losses clearly visible from space. The Cambrian Limestone Aquifer (CLA) is a large, interconnected limestone system containing high-quality groundwater that supports numerous NT rivers, towns, Indigenous communities, pastoral enterprises, and irrigated agriculture. But the findings, published in a new study led by Griffith University researchers, show the aquifer has experienced significant water loss since 2014, reaching its lowest recorded storage level in 2021 (the end of the study period). The study draws on two decades ...

Read the release
Space

New survey maps hundreds of satellite systems orbiting dwarf galaxies

We usually think of satellites as small objects orbiting planets or stars. But in the broader universe, galaxies themselves can have satellites—smaller galaxies bound by gravity that orbit a larger host, carrying with them stars, gas, dust, and dark matter. Most of what we know about satellite galaxies comes from studying the Milky Way and other similarly large galaxies. But a new study led by Dartmouth astronomers broadens that understanding by exploring the satellites of dwarf galaxies—systems less than a tenth the size of the Milky Way. The multi-institutional survey triples the number of dwarf ...

Read the release
Space

Baby star sets off explosion, gets caught in blast

Astronomers have observed an explosion in space that is pushing back against and influencing the baby star which triggered the explosion in the first place. If explosions like this one are common around young stars, then the young stars and their planets are exposed to a harsher environment than previously thought. Stars and their associated planetary systems are formed from the gravitational collapse of molecular clouds in space. As a cloud collapses, it retains its angular momentum, causing it to evolve into a spinning structure known as a protoplanetary disk. Stars and planets form within a protoplanetary disk, ...

Read the release
Space

Trigger warnings fall flat, but safe spaces build trust in the classroom

Trigger warnings may not help students feel more supported, but safe space messages do. A new study found that being told they were in a ‘safe space’ made students feel more comfortable, trusting, and positive toward the person delivering them. Researchers from Flinders University and collaborators in the United States studied the responses of 738 U.S based university students. Each student watched a short trauma-related lecture introduced by an instructor with either a trigger warning, a safe space message, both, or neither. Students ...

Read the release
Space

Black hole vibes

Kyoto, Japan -- Black holes embody the ultimate abyss. They are the most powerful sources of gravity in the universe, capable of dramatically distorting space and time around them. When disturbed, they begin to "ring" in a distinctive pattern known as quasinormal modes: ripples in space-time that produce detectable gravitational waves. In events like black hole mergers, these waves can be strong enough to detect from Earth, offering a unique opportunity to measure a black hole's mass and shape. However, precise calculation of these vibrations through theoretical methods ...

Read the release
Space

New research: Satellite imagery detects illegal fishing activity, shows strict protections work

Washington, D.C. (July 24, 2025) — New peer-reviewed research in the journal Science demonstrates the power of strict legal bans against industrial fishing in marine protected areas (MPAs). The analysis — which combines satellite imagery and artificial intelligence technology to detect previously untraceable vessels — reveals that most of the globe’s fully and highly protected MPAs successfully deter illegal fishing. The study is the first of its kind to demonstrate that the most strictly protected marine reserves are well ...

Read the release
Space

Astronomers discover star-shredding black holes hiding in dusty galaxies

Astronomers at MIT, Columbia University, and elsewhere have used NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) to peer through the dust of nearby galaxies and into the aftermath of a black hole’s stellar feast. In a study appearing today in Astrophysical Journal Letters, the researchers report that for the first time, JWST has observed several tidal disruption events — instances when a galaxy’s central black hole draws in a nearby star and whips up tidal forces that tear the star to shreds, giving off an enormous burst of energy in the process. Scientists have observed about 100 ...

Read the release
Space

BASILISK partners with The Planetary Society and CalTech’s IQIM to recruit the global esports audience in the movement to save science

NEW YORK and SEATTLE – JULY 24, 2025 — BASILISK, the global esports organization built to champion science, debuted two historic partnerships at the Esports World Cup 2025 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia this week – furthering its mission to elevate science advocacy through the global reach and cultural influence of competitive gaming. BASILISK’s new strategic partnerships with the California Institute of Technology’s Institute for Quantum Information and Matter (IQIM) and The Planetary Society create a powerful bridge between renowned scientific institutions and the next generation of STEM enthusiasts. “To root for BASILISK is ...

Read the release
Space

The evolution of life may have its origins in outer space

Using the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA), a team of astronomers led by Abubakar Fadul from the Max Planck Institute for Astronomy (MPIA) has discovered complex organic molecules – including the first tentative detection of ethylene glycol and glycolonitrile – in the protoplanetary disc of the outbursting protostar V883 Orionis. These compounds are considered precursors to the building blocks of life. Comparing different cosmic environments reveals that the abundance and complexity of such molecules increase from star-forming regions to fully evolved planetary systems. This suggests that the seeds of life are assembled in space and are widespread. The ...

Read the release
Space

Interference to astronomy the unintended consequence of faster internet

Curtin University researchers have undertaken the world’s biggest survey of low frequency satellite radio emissions, finding Starlink satellites are significantly interfering with radio astronomy observations, potentially impacting discovery and research. Unintended signals from satellites - leaked from onboard electronics - can drown out the faint radio waves astronomers use to study the universe. Researchers from the Curtin University node of the International Centre for Radio Astronomy Research (ICRAR), hosted at the Curtin Institute of Radio Astronomy (CIRA), focused on the Starlink mega-constellation as it has the most satellites in orbit, at ...

Read the release
Space

UCF researchers developing new methods to passively mitigate lunar dust for space exploration

Lunar dust is more than a mild irritant or hallmark of an untidy room like dust found on Earth. Lunar dust particles are sharp and abrasive due to the lack of atmosphere gradually dulling their surfaces, leading them to potentially damaging critical lunar equipment or causing respiratory issues for astronauts. Managing lunar dust (also known as regolith) and safeguarding astronauts or sensitive equipment on the moon isn’t as simple as sweeping it up with a broom and pan. That’s why a team of NASA-funded UCF researchers is pioneering a new nanocoating to passively mitigate the effects of lunar dust, ...

Read the release
Space

Gemini North discovers long-predicted stellar companion of Betelgeuse

Betelgeuse is one of the brightest stars in the night sky, and the closest red supergiant to Earth. It has an enormous volume, spanning a radius around 700 times that of the Sun. Despite only being ten million years old, which is considered young by astronomy standards, it’s late in its life. Located in the shoulder of the constellation Orion, people have observed Betelgeuse with the naked eye for millennia, noticing that the star changes in brightness over time. Astronomers established that Betelgeuse has a main period of variability of around 400 days and a more extended secondary period of around six years. In 2019 and 2020, ...

Read the release
Space

Astronomers witness newborn planet sculpting the dust around it

Astronomers may have caught a still-forming planet in action, carving out an intricate pattern in the gas and dust that surrounds its young host star. Using ESO’s Very Large Telescope (VLT), they observed a planetary disc with prominent spiral arms, finding clear signs of a planet nestled in its inner regions. This is the first time astronomers have detected a planet candidate embedded inside a disc spiral. “We will never witness the formation of Earth, but here, around a young star 440 light-years away, we may be watching a planet come into existence in real time,” says Francesco Maio, a doctoral researcher at the University of Florence, Italy, ...

Read the release
Space

NASA to launch SNIFS, Sun’s next trailblazing spectator

July will see the launch of the groundbreaking Solar EruptioN Integral Field Spectrograph mission, or SNIFS. Delivered to space via a Black Brant IX sounding rocket, SNIFS will explore the energy and dynamics of the chromosphere, one of the most complex regions of the Sun’s atmosphere. The SNIFS mission’s launch window at the White Sands Missile Range in New Mexico opens on Friday, July 18. The chromosphere is located between the Sun’s visible surface, or photosphere, and its outer ...

Read the release
Space

University of Surrey launches Space Institute to drive the UK's small satellite boom and tackle urgent global challenges

With the UK's £19 billion space economy surging, government and industry urgently need faster research, innovation and skilled talent – yet more than half of space organisations report critical shortages, a challenge now being tackled by the newly launched Surrey Space Institute at the University of Surrey. The Institute will convert the University's 45-year small satellite leadership into mission-ready solutions for climate, resilience and secure global connectivity. The Institute will build on the legacy of the Surrey Space Centre, where Professor Sir Martin Sweeting pioneered ...

Read the release
Space

Ultra-hot Jupiter’s death spiral could reveal stellar secrets

Astronomers track doomed planet's death spiral Macquarie University astronomers have tracked an extreme planet's orbital decay, confirming it is spiralling towards its star in a cosmic death dance that could end in three possible ways. The ultra-hot Jupiter exoplanet TOI-2109b, located 870 light-years from Earth, completes an orbit around its star in just 16 hours – making it the closest hot Jupiter ever discovered. With a mass nearly five times that of Jupiter and almost twice Jupiter's size, ...

Read the release
Space

UC Irvine astronomers discover scores of exoplanets may be larger than realized

Irvine, Calif., July 14, 2025 — In new research, University of California, Irvine astronomers describe how more than 200 known exoplanets are likely much larger than previously thought. It’s a finding that could change which distant worlds researchers consider potential harbors for extraterrestrial life. “We found that hundreds of exoplanets are larger than they appear, and that shifts our understanding of exoplanets on a large scale,” said Te Han, a doctoral student at UC Irvine and lead author of the new Astrophysical Journal Letters study. “This means we may have actually found fewer Earth-like planets so far than we thought.” Astronomers ...

Read the release
Space

Astronomers find a giant hiding in the ‘fog’ around a young star

Astronomers have detected a giant exoplanet – between three and ten times the size of Jupiter – hiding in the swirling disc of gas and dust surrounding a young star. Earlier observations of this star, called MP Mus, suggested that it was all alone without any planets in orbit around it, surrounded by a featureless cloud of gas and dust. However, a second look at MP Mus, using a combination of results from the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) and the European Space Agency’s Gaia mission, suggest that the star is not alone after all. The international team of astronomers, led by the University of Cambridge, detected a large gas giant in the star’s ...

Read the release
Space

LIGO-Virgo-KAGRA detect most massive black hole merger to date

The LIGO-Virgo-KAGRA (LVK) Collaboration has detected the merger of the most massive black holes ever observed with gravitational waves using the US National Science Foundation (NSF)-funded LIGO observatories. The powerful merger produced a final black hole approximately 225 times the mass of our Sun. The signal, designated GW231123, was detected during the fourth observing run of the LVK network on November 23, 2023. LIGO, the Laser Interferometer Gravitational-wave Observatory, made history in 2015 when it made the first-ever direct detection of gravitational waves, ripples in space-time. In that case, the waves emanated from a black ...

Read the release
Space

Newly discovered interstellar object 'may be oldest comet ever seen'

Royal Astronomical Society press release RAS PR 25/33 (NAM 13) 10 July 2025 Embargoed until Friday 11 July 2025 at 10:00 BST A mystery interstellar object discovered last week is likely to be the oldest comet ever seen – possibly predating our solar system by more than three billion years, researchers say. The "water ice-rich" visitor, named 3I/ATLAS, is only the third known object from beyond our solar system ever spotted in our cosmic neighbourhood and the first to reach us from a completely different region of our Milky Way galaxy. It could ...

Read the release
Space

The Milky Way could be teeming with more satellite galaxies than previously thought

Embargoed until 00:01 BST on Friday 11 July 2025 (19.01 ET Thursday 10 July 2025) -With pictures- The Milky Way could have many more satellite galaxies than scientists have previously been able to predict or observe, according to new research. Cosmologists at Durham University, UK, used a new technique combining the highest-resolution supercomputer simulations that exist, alongside novel mathematical modelling, predicting the existence of missing “orphan” galaxies. Their findings suggest that there should be 80 or perhaps up to 100 more satellite galaxies surrounding ...

Read the release
Space

Radar-based control of a helical microswimmer in 3-Dimensional space with dynamic obstacles

Recent advances have yielded significant progress in actuation, navigation, and control of magnetic microrobots. Nevertheless, dynamic obstacle avoidance in 3D environments remains a critical challenge, often relying on computationally intensive path-planning methods that limit real-time performance. "Using a hierarchical radar system to enable high-frequency direction updates minimizes computational load while ensuring collision-free navigation," explained corresponding author Jiangfan Yu, a professor at The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shenzhen. The radar framework comprises (a) a motion sphere for directional ...

Read the release
Space

Ancient river systems reveal Mars was wetter than we thought

Royal Astronomical Society press release RAS PR 25/30 (NAM 10) 9 July 2025 Embargoed until Thursday 10 July 2025 at 00:01 BST The discovery of more than 15,000 kilometres of ancient riverbeds on Mars suggests that the Red Planet may once have been much wetter than previously thought. Researchers looked at fluvial sinuous ridges, also known as inverted channels, across Noachis Terra – a region in Mars' southern highlands. These are believed to have formed when sediment deposited by rivers hardened ...

Read the release
From the original Press-News collection. Issuers of news releases are responsible for the accuracy of their content.