Leading X-ray space telescopes XMM-Newton and XRISM have spotted an extraordinary blast from a supermassive black hole. In a matter of hours, the gravitational monster whipped up powerful winds, flinging material out into space at eye-watering speeds of 60 000 km per second.

Geneva, Switzerland (SPX) Dec 09, 2025
The RISTRETTO project at the University of Geneva has reached a key stage, with several core elements of its high-precision spectrograph now prototyped and tested for observations of the nearby exoplanet Proxima b. The instrument is designed to study the faint reflected light of this Earth-sized planet, which orbits Proxima Centauri at a temperature compatible with liquid water but remains outsh

Stanford CA (SPX) Dec 09, 2025
Imagine a robot about the size of a toaster floating through the tight corridors of the International Space Station, quietly moving supplies or checking for leaks - all without an astronaut at the controls. Such technology could free up valuable time for astronauts and open new opportunities for robotics-based exploration. That sci-fi vision is coming closer to reality now that Stanford research

Tokyo, Japan (SPX) Dec 09, 2025
For decades, nuclear physicists have known that so called islands of inversion mark regions of the nuclear chart where standard shell structure breaks down and magic numbers vanish in favor of strongly deformed shapes. In earlier work these islands were identified mainly in neutron rich isotopes such as beryllium 12 with N = 8, magnesium 32 with N = 20, and chromium 64 with N = 40, all distant f

Los Angeles CA (SPX) Dec 09, 2025
An international group of astronomers led by Texas Tech University assistant professor Elias Aydi published a paper titled Multiple outflows and delayed ejections revealed by early imaging of novae in Nature Astronomy on Dec. 5. The team used interferometry with the Center for High Angular Resolution Astronomy (CHARA) Array in California, combining light from multiple telescopes to obtain the hi

Tokyo, Japan (SPX) Dec 09, 2025
Astronomers are testing a new way to measure how fast the universe is expanding by using time delays in gravitationally lensed images of distant quasars, in an effort to clarify the long-standing tension between different measurements of the Hubble constant. The expansion rate of the universe, known as the Hubble constant, describes how quickly galaxies recede as a function of distance, wi

Los Angeles CA (SPX) Dec 09, 2025
Gamma ray bursts rank among the most energetic explosions known, usually flashing and fading within seconds or minutes, but on 2 July 2025 astronomers detected GRB 250702B, a source that produced repeated bursts for over seven hours and now stands as the longest gamma ray burst yet observed. Space based observatories, including NASAs Fermi Gamma ray Space Telescope, first recorded the gamma rays

Los Angeles CA (SPX) Dec 09, 2025
Rocket Lab Corporation has qualified the captive Hungry Hippo fairing for its Neutron launch vehicle and is sending the structure to Virginia for integration ahead of the rocket's debut mission. The fairing halves remain attached to Neutron's first stage from liftoff through landing, rather than separating and being discarded or recovered at sea. In flight, the halves open to release the second

Los Angeles CA (SPX) Dec 09, 2025
Axle Point Capital and Balerion Space Ventures are directing new private capital into companies that build core infrastructure for the expanding U.S. space and defense economy, from mission software and guidance systems to deployable microreactors and high-temperature reactors. Axle Point's first transaction is a strategic equity investment in Odyssey Space Research LLC, a flight software and en