Freeze-thaw cycle helps asteroids ferry molecules of life to planets

Cracks running through samples of asteroid Ryugu were probably formed by the repeated thawing and freezing…

Planet spotted orbiting Barnard’s star just 6 light years away

Artist’s impression of Barnard’s star b, a planet in orbit around Barnard’s star ESO/M. Kornmesser One…

Stellar views of some of the most spectacular sights in the universe

Galaxy Messier 82 (M82), also known as the cigar galaxy NASA/ESA/Hubble Heritage Team (STScIAURA); J. Gallagher…

Sophie Koudmani: The astrophysicist unravelling the origins of supermassive black holes

Supermassive black holes are, as you might expect, rather large – millions and sometimes billions of…

Search for alien transmissions in promising TRAPPIST-1 star system draws a blank

Artist’s impression of the seven planets in the TRAPPIST-1 system NASA A search for aliens communicating…

Planet in the 'forbidden zone' of dead star could reveal Earth's fate

A distant planet should have been consumed when its star expanded to become a red giant,…

Jo Dunkley interview: The astrophysicist who may be about to discover how the universe began

Some 13.8 billion years ago, the universe began in a big bang – or, at least,…

Astronauts may need medical evacuation from one-third of moon missions

Medically evacuating an astronaut from space is difficult and expensive, and a new model predicts that…

Bacteria on the space station are evolving for life in space

The International Space Station has its own distinctive microbiome Dima Zel/Shutterstock Bacteria on board the International…

We’ve just doubled the number of gravitational waves we can find

Gravitational wave detectors use laser beams in tubes that span kilometres The Virgo Collaboration Gravitational waves…