astronomy news stories on Newser

Check Out Last Night's Supermoon

Matt Cantor — Sun, 06 May 2012 07:01:00 CDT

Last night brought this year's "supermoon," the point in which the moon is closest to the Earth in its orbit. The moon was some 15,300 miles closer to us than usual, making it look about 14% bigger, an expert tells the AP . Unfortunately, "you'd be very hard-pressed to detect...

Don't Forget: 'Supermoon' Tonight

Rob Quinn — Sat, 05 May 2012 06:56:17 CDT

The biggest and brightest full moon of the year will grace the skies tonight. The "supermoon," which occurs when the moon is nearest Earth in its orbit, will appear only slightly smaller than last year's, which was the brightest full moon in nearly 20 years. It will become full at...

New California Gold Rush: Searching for Meteorite Bits

Evann Gastaldo — Mon, 30 Apr 2012 07:18:14 CDT

The fireball that exploded over California last week did more than just produce a window-shaking sonic boom—it also scattered pieces of meteorite over, fittingly enough, a 30-square-mile portion of the state's Gold Country region. News of the extremely rare type of space rock sent scientists and treasure hunters alike...

Astronomer Gets Cameron to Re-Shoot Titanic Scene

Evann Gastaldo — Mon, 02 Apr 2012 12:33:24 CDT

Remember the scene in Titanic in which Kate Winslet clings to a piece of wood, promising Leonardo DiCaprio that she'll "never let go?" (And then she lets go?) Well, apparently, the stars shown in the night sky during that scene were all wrong. But never fear: James Cameron has fixed...

Rare 'Rectangular' Galaxy Spotted

Rob Quinn — Thu, 22 Mar 2012 00:41:00 CDT

The vast majority of galaxies fall into one of three categories—football-shaped, irregular, or a disc with spiral arms. But LEDA 074886 is a strange one. When viewed from our planet, the dwarf galaxy has a strange, rectangular, "emerald cut" shape. Its discoverers believe the galaxy is shaped like a...

Venus, Jupiter Nestle Nice and Close Tonight

Neal Colgrass — Mon, 12 Mar 2012 18:08:14 CDT

Look out the window tonight and you'll see two planetary pals coming together for their annual rendezvous. Venus and Jupiter, which have been approaching each other for months, will finally dazzle skywatchers this week by nestling nice and close—from our perspective, in fact, just a few inches apart. The...

Ancient Asteroid May Explain Moon's Magnetic Mystery

Mark Russell — Sat, 10 Mar 2012 08:05:47 CST

One of the moon's oddest anomalies is how parts of its crust have a magnetic field and others don't. But now scientists say they have a relatively simple theory for this inconsistency—a 120-mile-wide asteroid that smashed into the moon's south pole 4.5 billion years ago left behind magnetic...

Mars Puts on a Show Tonight

Mark Russell — Sat, 03 Mar 2012 06:41:38 CST

It's called the Mars opposition—the period every 26 months that the orbits of the sun, Earth, and Mars line up, with the sun and Mars on opposite sides of the Earth. And with Mars swinging extra close to the Earth tonight—a veritable stone's throw at just 62.6...

'Super Earth' Spotted, Might Support Life

Rob Quinn — Fri, 03 Feb 2012 04:03:26 CST

A planet in a triple-star system a relatively close 22 light years away is the best candidate yet for supporting life, researchers say. The rocky planet, GJ 667Cc, is around 4.5 times the size of Earth and orbits in the middle of the "Goldilocks zone" where water can remain...