The Hubble Space Telescope has conducted a comprehensive survey of the Andromeda galaxy, revealing over 200 million stars, though the galaxy's total population is estimated at 1 trillion stars. This survey, combining data from the PHAT and PHAST programs, covers the entire disk of Andromeda and provides insights into its evolutionary history, which differs significantly from the Milky Way. Andromeda appears to have undergone recent star formation and interactions, possibly due to a past collision with another galaxy. These findings will aid future observations by the James Webb and Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescopes.
A compact, easy-to-assemble 114mm aperture Newtonian reflector telescope, suitable for both beginner astronomers and travel.
From meteor showers to the potential return of the northern lights, here are the celestial spectacles to watch for in 2025 visible from Silicon Valley. The article discusses various astronomical events, including planetary movements, lunar eclipses, meteor showers, and the possibility of seeing the northern lights.
| Date | Event |
|---------------|--|
| January 13 | Moon passing in front of Mars (Occultation) |
| February 25 - March 1 | Best time to spot Mercury in the sky |
| March 13 | Full lunar eclipse |
| Various dates | Meteor showers (Quadrantids, Lyrids, Eta Aquariids, Draconids, Leonids, Geminids) |
| Date | Event |
|---------------|--|
| January 13 | Moon passing in front of Mars (Occultation) |
| February 25 - March 1 | Best time to spot Mercury in the sky |
| March 13 | Full lunar eclipse |
| Various dates | Meteor showers (Quadrantids, Lyrids, Eta Aquariids, Draconids, Leonids, Geminids) |
The article discusses the various methods and histories behind naming stars, from ancient Arabic origins to modern astronomical catalogs, and addresses the issue of star naming scams.
The paper presents near-infrared interferometric imaging of the dust-enshrouded red supergiant WOH G64 located in the Large Magellanic Cloud, revealing elongated compact emission and a significant change in the near-infrared spectrum suggesting the formation of hot new dust close to the star.
Dark matter detectors designed to spot hypothetical dark matter particles have instead detected a signal from neutrinos produced by the sun. This 'neutrino fog' is both a milestone and a sign that these detectors may soon be overwhelmed by neutrinos, hindering their ability to detect dark matter.
Astronomers using Webb's MIRI instrument have directly imaged Epsilon Indi Ab, a gas giant several times the mass of Jupiter located around 12 light-years away from Earth. This is one of the coldest exoplanets to be directly detected, with an estimated temperature of 2 degrees Celsius.
Epsilon Indi is a nearby star system, notable for hosting a binary brown dwarf system, Epsilon Indi B. The system is discussed in detail, including its properties, the characteristics of the brown dwarfs, and the implications for understanding stellar evolution.
