NASA’s IXPE Measures White Dwarf Star for First Time

By Michael Allen  For the first time, scientists have used NASA’s IXPE (Imaging X-ray Polarization Explorer) to study a white dwarf star. Using IXPE’s unique X-ray polarization capability, astronomers examined a star called the intermediate polar EX Hydrae, unlocking the geometry of energetic binary systems.  In 2024, IXPE spent nearly one week focused on EX Hydrae, a […]

NASA Selects Tech Proposals to Advance Search-for-Life Mission

NASA announced Monday the selection of industry proposals to advance technologies for the agency’s Habitable Worlds Observatory concept – the first mission that would directly image Earth-like planets around stars like our Sun and study the chemical composition of their atmospheres for signs of life. This flagship space telescope also would enable wide-ranging studies of […]

NASA Hubble Helps Detect ‘Wake’ of Betelgeuse’s Elusive Companion Star

Using new observations from NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope and ground-based observatories, astronomers tracked the influence of a recently discovered companion star, Siwarha, on the gas around Betelgeuse. The research, from scientists at the Center for Astrophysics | Harvard & Smithsonian (CfA), reveals a trail of dense gas swirling through Betelgeuse’s vast, extended atmosphere, shedding light […]

NASA to Cover US Spacewalks 94, 95 at International Space Station

NASA astronauts will conduct two spacewalks Thursday, Jan. 8, and Thursday, Jan. 15, outside the International Space Station, and the agency will provide comprehensive coverage. The first spacewalk is scheduled to begin at 8 a.m. EST on Jan. 8 and last about six hours and 30 minutes. NASA will provide live coverage beginning at 6:30 […]

NASA’s Hubble Examines Cloud-9, First of New Type of Object

A team using NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope has uncovered a new type of astronomical object — a starless, gas-rich, dark-matter cloud considered a “relic” or remnant of early galaxy formation. Nicknamed “Cloud-9,” this is the first confirmed detection of such an object in the universe — a finding that furthers the understanding of galaxy formation, […]