Lifeboat Foundation

New research pokes holes in the idea that the cosmos expanded and then contracted before beginning again.

By James Riordon

Researchers simulated what would happen if a rogue star were to come within 100 astronomical units of the Sun.

Science 382, 1031–1035 (2023). DOI:10.1126/science.abo0233

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Astronomers have found a massive planet orbiting a small, cool star, and planet formation theories struggle to explain its existence.

Save this for later! From the Moon to the planets to the stars, read about the celestial events happening in December 2023!

Labroots recently shared key celestial events for November 2023 which offered skywatchers an opportunity to witness 16 days of events that included numerous meteor showers, comets, and planetary encounters. Now, Labroots wishes to share with you 22 days of celestial events for December 2023 that will ensure astronomy fans will not be disappointed. Each event is labeled in all caps for the type of event (e.g., MOON, PLANET, COMET, etc.) to provide skywatchers additional excitement to catch these incredible events!

December 1 (MOON and STAR): The Earth’s Moon will pass between 1–2 degrees from the star Pollux, which is located just under 34 light-years from Earth and resides within the constellation Gemini.

Continue reading “December 2023 Celestial Events” »

Researchers are perplexed by the discovery of an exoplanet with a mass that greatly surpasses what would be predicted given its closeness to the parent star.

Penn State.

Within the immense cosmic expanse, a perplexing discovery has emerged—a planet that, by all technical expectations, should not exist.

Continue reading “Scientists spot oversized planet orbiting low-mass star for first time” »

A recent study published in Nature discusses the confirmation of an exoplanetary system based on data collected in 2020. The system, known as HD 110,067, possesses six planets whose orbits are in resonance with each other, or “in sync”, meaning which could offer profound insights into the formation and evolution of planetary systems throughout the cosmos. All the planets exhibit sizes between Earth and Neptune, also known as sub-Neptunes, and was conducted by an international team of researchers using data from NASA’s Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS) and the European Space Agency’s CHaracterising ExOPlanet Satellite (Cheops).

Artist illustration of the planets within the HD 110,067 system exhibiting orbital resonances with the colored lines depicting their resonances with each other. (Credit: CC BY-NC-SA, Thibaut Roger/NCCR PlanetS)

“This discovery is going to become a benchmark system to study how sub-Neptunes, the most common type of planets outside of the solar system, form, evolve, what are they made of, and if they possess the right conditions to support the existence of liquid water in their surfaces,” said Dr. Rafael Luque, who is a Postdoctoral Scholar in the Department of Astronomy and Astrophysics at the University of Chicago and lead author of the study.

Research at Argonne reimagining building blocks of devices that power cellphones, space probes and more.

The Earth’s magnetic field plays a big role in protecting people from hazardous radiation and geomagnetic activity that could affect satellite communication and the operation of power grids. And it moves.

Scientists have studied and tracked the motion of the magnetic poles for centuries. The historical movement of these poles indicates a change in the global geometry of the Earth’s magnetic field. It may even indicate the beginning of a field reversal—a “flip” between the north and south magnetic poles.

Continue reading “Earth’s magnetic field protects life on Earth from radiation, but it can move, and the magnetic poles can even flip” »