All articles tagged with #cosmic dust
A University of Sydney doctoral student creates tiny cosmic-dust analogues in the lab by exciting a mix of nitrogen, carbon dioxide and acetylene with 10,000 volts of electricity, reproducing conditions around stars to study how dust catalyzes organic molecules and potentially seeded life; the team aims to build a database of dust types to compare with meteorites and astronomical observations.
NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope captures a sharp close-up of the Helix Nebula, a planetary nebula about 650 light-years away formed when a Sun-like star shed its outer layers and left a white dwarf at its center; Webb’s infrared view reveals hot gas and cooler dust, illustrating how dying stars recycle heavier elements into the cosmos and seed future planets, with binary interactions potentially triggering novae.
The article discusses the likelihood of material shed by the interstellar object 3I/ATLAS reaching Earth, concluding that due to solar wind and radiation pressure, any large particles or objects are unlikely to pose a threat or reach the ground, with the risk of impact being negligible.
Astronomers have discovered the 'most pristine' star ever seen near the edge of the Milky Way, which is extremely metal-poor and may be a direct descendant of the universe's first stars, providing insights into early stellar formation and evolution.
Astronomers using ESA's Gaia telescope have discovered a colossal wave rippling through the Milky Way, originating from its center and affecting a large portion of the galaxy, possibly caused by a past galactic encounter or related to other galactic structures, revealing new insights into our galaxy's dynamic behavior.
The James Webb Space Telescope's MIRI instrument has captured detailed mid-infrared images of the Sagittarius B2 molecular cloud, revealing its dense dust clouds and star-forming regions, which could provide insights into why this cloud is so prolific in star production compared to other galactic centers.
Cosmic dust, composed mainly of small particles of silicates, ices, and metals, originates from processes like supernova explosions, stellar outflows, and planetary nebulae, but the primary source of the universe's dust appears to be core-collapse supernovae, which produce large amounts of dust that can survive destructive processes, playing a crucial role in star and planet formation.
The James Webb Space Telescope has observed the formation of planetary building blocks, such as crystalline silicate dust and quartz grains, around the dead star in the Butterfly Nebula, providing new insights into how planets originate from cosmic dust.
3I/ATLAS is an interstellar object observed to lack a typical cometary tail, with surface characteristics suggesting a large, rocky body around 20-46 km in diameter. It shows signs of CO2 ice shedding but no water vapor, raising questions about its origin and composition. Its trajectory and properties hint it may have been purposefully directed into the Solar System, and further observations are needed to understand its true nature.
New research indicates that supermassive black holes are more common than previously thought, with about 35% hidden by dust, which impacts our understanding of galaxy development and black hole growth, using infrared and X-ray data to uncover these obscured objects.
Astronomers using the James Webb Space Telescope have discovered new galaxies in the Spiderweb protocluster, challenging previous assumptions about galaxy formation in dense cosmic regions. The findings suggest that gravitational interactions are less significant than previously thought, with star formation fueled by gas accumulation across large-scale structures. This discovery was made possible by Webb's infrared capabilities, which penetrate cosmic dust, revealing obscured galaxies. The research, published in the Astrophysical Journal, marks a significant step in understanding galaxy cluster formation.
Scientists are scouring the roofs of English cathedrals, such as Canterbury Cathedral, for cosmic dust particles known as micrometeorites. These tiny particles, which likely originate from comets and asteroids, provide valuable insights into the chemistry of asteroids and meteorites, as well as Earth's history and changes over time. Researchers are using vacuum cleaners to collect thousands of dust particles in the hopes of finding minuscule cosmic spherols, and are also exploring the potential influence of cosmic dust on Earth's chemistry and early prebiotic chemistry. The abundance of urban micrometeorites is opening up planetary science to a wider audience and providing a snapshot of the different processes and bodies in outer space.
New research suggests that life could spread throughout the galaxy via cosmic dust, a process known as panspermia. The study explores how planetary dust particles could escape their host planet's gravitational pull and travel through interstellar space, potentially carrying life or complex organic molecules to other worlds. While the idea is intriguing, the origins of life and the frequency of its appearance on other planets remain unknown, leaving a stubborn nugget of the unknown at the center of these thought experiments and calculations.
An international team of astronomers has discovered a previously unknown source of cosmic dust in the universe: Type 1a supernovae interacting with gas from their surroundings. This finding, published in Nature Astronomy, suggests that thermonuclear supernovae may account for a significant amount of dust in elliptical galaxies. The researchers monitored a supernova, SN 2018evt, for over three years and observed the creation of dust in the circumstellar gas after it cooled following the supernova shock wave passing through it. This discovery sheds light on the contribution of thermonuclear supernovae to cosmic dust and may have implications for space exploration, particularly with the upcoming James Webb Space Telescope.
The Daily Telescope features an image of NGC 2170, a reddish nebula located in the Monoceros constellation, captured by astrophotographer Mel Martin. The nebula is a large area of cosmic dust reflecting the light of nearby stars, creating a colorful appearance in the image. This showcases the beauty of the universe and offers a real glimpse into the wonders of the cosmos.