Astronomy

Science stands still for no one, and with a new year comes a new calendar of exciting events in spaceflight and exploration. New Atlas rounds up some of the most important milestones to look forward to in 2020.

In 2016, astronomers discovered a potentially habitable Earth-sized exoplanet just four light-years away – and new observations suggest it isn’t alone. A second planet may be orbiting Proxima Centauri, the closest star to the Sun.

Researchers have discovered the oldest material on Earth – and it’s not from Earth. Tiny grains from a meteorite that fell in Australia were found to be between 5 and 7 billion years old, meaning they predate our planet, the Sun and the solar system.

Large clouds of dark matter have been indirectly detected before, but it should also form smaller clumps. Now Hubble observations have detected evidence of these small clumps for the first time, lending weight to a prevailing dark matter hypothesis.

A team of astrophysicists led by Princeton University has found an exoplanet that is within three million years of destruction. Situated 14,000 light-years away, WASP-12b is spiraling toward its sun and will eventually be destroyed by tidal forces.

Based on 130 years of telescopic photographs, astronomers have concluded that the binary star V Sagittae (V Sge), located in the constellation Sagitta, will go nova before century's end as the main star is devoured by its white dwarf companion.

The LIGO collaboration has announced the detection of gravitational waves from a pair of neutron stars colliding. This marks just the second time ever that this kind of event has been spotted, as the smash-up sent ripples through spacetime itself.

The universe appears to be full of fast radio bursts (FRBs) that are difficult to locate and identify. But now astronomers have traced one back to its home galaxy – the closest one yet – which could help unravel the mystery.

The cosmic beauty of space never ceases to impress. New Atlas rounds up some of the most incredible space photos of 2019, including historic firsts, stunning starscapes, gorgeous galaxies and some new angles on our own solar system.

2I/Borisov is the first interstellar comet seen, and Hubble has been watching its journey through our neighborhood. The telescope has snapped new images of the comet, which has now swung past the Sun and is on its way back out of the solar system.

While NASA's TESS satellite was staring off into the depths of interstellar space, the comet 46P/Wirtanen wandered into view. The satellite managed to catch an explosive outburst from the comet in more detail than ever seen before.

Black holes are mysterious objects: just when we think we understand how big they can get, we go and find new ones that bend the rules. Now, astronomers have found a stellar black hole in our galaxy that’s so big it defies explanation.