How are galaxies born, and what holds them together? Astronomers assume that dark matter plays an essential role. However, as yet it has not been possible to prove directly that dark matter exists. A research team including Technical University of Munich (TUM) scientists has now measured for the first time the survival rate of antihelium nuclei from the depths of the galaxy, a necessary prerequisite for the indirect search for Dark Matter.
Astronomers led by the University of Warwick have identified the oldest star in our galaxy that is accreting debris from orbiting planetesimals, making it one of the oldest rocky and icy planetary systems discovered in the Milky Way.
Washington [US], October 21 (ANI): NASA's James Webb Space Telescope has captured a lush, highly detailed landscape the iconic Pillars of Creation where new stars are forming within dense clouds of gas and dust. The three-dimensional pillars look like majestic rock formations but are far more permeable. These columns are made up of cool interstellar gas and dust that appear at times semi-transparent in near-infrared light.
Washington [US], October 1 (ANI): The first map of the 'galactic underworld' a chart of the corpses of once massive suns that have since collapsed into black holes and neutron stars have revealed a graveyard that stretches three times the height of the Milky Way, and that almost a third of the objects have been flung out from the galaxy altogether.
Washington [US], September 25 (ANI): Using data from the Gaia space telescope, a team has shown that large parts of the Milky Way's outer disk vibrate. The ripples are caused by a dwarf galaxy, now seen in the constellation Sagittarius, that shook our galaxy as it passed by hundreds of millions of years ago.
Washington [US], September 11 (ANI): A new study suggests that many more planets may have large amounts of water than previously thought--as much as half water and half rock. The catch? All that water is probably embedded in the rock, rather than flowing as oceans or rivers on the surface.
Washington [US], July 9 (ANI): According to a new study, it takes only four years for a newly discovered star to take a complete round around the black hole at the centre of our galaxy.