Randall Hyman, Author at Astronomy.com

Low-level clouds play surprise role in global warming

Randall Hyman — Thu, 05 Dec 2024 20:34:40 +0000

In a study published today in Science, researchers say they have solved a climate enigma — the inexplicable surge in global temperature in 2023, rising faster than climate models predicted. By analyzing satellite data and weather records, a team of climatologists in Germany have found that the culprit is likely fewer clouds at low altitudesContinue reading "Low-level clouds play surprise role in global warming"

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Chandra X-ray telescope, facing chopping block, gets reprieve from NASA

Randall Hyman — Fri, 01 Nov 2024 21:30:02 +0000

Scientists breathed a collective sigh of relief last week when NASA announced that the Chandra X-ray Observatory had been spared the chopping block — at least for another year. It was an abrupt about-face from plans announced in March to decommission the space-based telescope by this December. Much of the credit for the 11th-hour stayContinue reading "Chandra X-ray telescope, facing chopping block, gets reprieve from NASA"

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Discovery of a tiny exoplanet sheds new light on a very old star

Randall Hyman — Thu, 03 Oct 2024 20:41:47 +0000

As lone stars go, there’s nothing quite so distinctive as Barnard’s Star. After the Alpha Centauri system, it is our closest neighbor, a red dwarf one-fifth the size of the Sun and 4,500 degrees Fahrenheit (2,500 degrees Celsius) cooler. Just 6 light-years away, it outpaces all other stars by shifting across the night sky byContinue reading "Discovery of a tiny exoplanet sheds new light on a very old star"

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’Starry Night’ captures the turbulent physics of why stars twinkle

Randall Hyman — Tue, 17 Sep 2024 18:54:48 +0000

Turbulence abounds in nature, from the spinning whorls of hurricanes to the brilliant swirls of Jupiter’s immense storms. Astronomers have even observed it where stars are born in the vast maelstrom of molecular clouds. But much as scientists have tried, no single theory has ever captured the full scale and unpredictability of turbulence. Nobel laureateContinue reading "’Starry Night’ captures the turbulent physics of why stars twinkle"

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New Horizons measures how dark the universe can get

Randall Hyman — Thu, 05 Sep 2024 16:51:20 +0000

As black as space may seem, even the darkest corner of the universe gets light. Measuring that tiny glimmer — called the cosmic optical background (COB) — sheds light on the energy balance of the entire universe, one of cosmology’s holy grails. With recent data gathered by the New Horizons spacecraft, now 57 times fartherContinue reading "New Horizons measures how dark the universe can get"

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Astronomers are rallying to save NASA’s Chandra X-ray Observatory

Randall Hyman — Thu, 22 Aug 2024 18:00:00 +0000

All space missions come to an end. Some die quietly of old age, running out of fuel or power. Some go in a blaze of glory, plunging into an atmosphere and burning up, sending back data to the last. Others self-destruct, never reaching their intended targets — blowing up on the launch pad, or ending upContinue reading "Astronomers are rallying to save NASA’s Chandra X-ray Observatory"

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JWST sees light invisible to the eye. These scientists decide how to color it

Randall Hyman — Sat, 17 Aug 2024 10:00:00 +0000

When it comes to appearances, the universe is a tricky place. Visible light occupies merely a sliver of the electromagnetic (EM) spectrum. To study the cosmos in its entirety, scientists must peer beyond visible light using specialized instruments, including radio telescopes and X-ray telescopes. And the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) senses infrared (IR) radiation,Continue reading "JWST sees light invisible to the eye. These scientists decide how to color it"

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These are the ways our world will end

Randall Hyman — Fri, 01 Mar 2024 15:00:00 +0000

The universe is a terrifying place, filled with existential threats. Earth may seem quite solid beneath our feet, but the continued existence of the thin layers of rock, water, and air that sustain us is in no way guaranteed. Errant asteroids, soaring superflares, and exploding supernovae are just a few of the calamities that mightContinue reading "These are the ways our world will end"

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JWST captures immense, rare explosion a million times brighter than our galaxy

Randall Hyman — Wed, 25 Oct 2023 15:37:06 +0000

In March of this year, astronomers detected a brilliant burst of gamma rays more than a million times more luminous than our entire galaxy. It was the second brightest gamma-ray burst (GRB) ever detected and lasted some 200 seconds. A study published today in Nature reports that this object was a collision of neutron starsContinue reading "JWST captures immense, rare explosion a million times brighter than our galaxy"

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Study: Satellite traffic jam calls for ‘urgent’ changes

Randall Hyman — Thu, 12 Oct 2023 19:45:38 +0000

As SpaceX, Amazon, and others vie for supremacy in the race to establish constellations of communications satellites, the superhighway used by low-Earth orbit (LEO) satellites is becoming dangerously cluttered. To avert the equivalent of a multi-car pileup, we need better traffic laws, say authors of a paper published in Science today. Next month’s quadrennial meetingContinue reading "Study: Satellite traffic jam calls for ‘urgent’ changes"

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