SUNSET: 
Sun Might Have Formed in Giant Star's Bubble
A new theory of the solar system’s formation suggests that it formed within the shell of a wind-blown bubble surrounding a dead star.
New Observations of the "Most Mysterious Star in the Galaxy"
New data on Boyajian's Star show that dust — not an alien megastructure — is probably the cause of this star's mysterious behavior.
Neutron-star Smashup Might Have Choked Its Own Jet
LIGO’s neutron-star smashup might not have been a typical short gamma-ray burst. If true, the detection points toward a new class of gamma-ray bursts — but the jury is still out.
60-Second Astronomy News: Dec. 20, 2017
This week's roundup of astro news brings us a polar-orbiting planet, a novel way to measure stellar masses, and ginormous convective bubbles on a distant star.
Which of Kepler’s Stars Flare?
The habitability of distant exoplanets is dependent upon many factors — one of which is the activity of their host stars. To learn about which stars are most likely to flare, a recent study examines tens of thousands of stellar flares observed by Kepler. Need for a Broader Sample Most…
Infant Stars Huddle near Black Hole
A team of astronomers has found signs of small stars forming within a few light-years of the Milky Way’s central black hole.
The Star That Wouldn’t Die
Observations of a stellar explosion that refused to fade away have astronomers scratching their heads. What created the blast — and could it explain massive black holes?
Astronomers Catch Gravitational Waves from Colliding Neutron Stars
Spacetime ripples from the neutron star smash-up usher in the age of multi-messenger astronomy.
When a Star and a Binary Meet
What happens in the extreme environments of globular clusters when a star and a binary system meet? A team of scientists has new ideas about how these objects can deform, change their paths, spiral around each other, and merge.
The Seven Sister Stars of the Pleiades Are Pulsing, Kepler Finds
The Kepler satellite monitored thousands of stars, but the bright stars of the Pleiades largely remained out of its reach — until now.
Shockwaves Light up Stellar Explosions
Thermonuclear power sets off a type of stellar explosion known as a classical nova. Now, new research explains the mechanisms that cause these blasts to light up.
Historical Observations Reveal Ancient Nova
Astronomers and historians pinpoint the source of a 15th-century classical nova. It’s currently regathering strength.
Antares Image Reveals Chaotic Surface
Researchers have constructed a detailed view of the surface of red supergiant star Antares, revealing a chaotic atmosphere powered by mechanisms that are still poorly understood.
The White Dwarf That Survived
A peculiar white dwarf could be what’s left after a failed supernova explosion.
Sun's Waves Reveal Core's Spin
Solar astronomers may have finally detected gravity waves in our star’s core, revealing that the Sun’s central region rotates about four times faster than the outer layers.
ALMA Captures Star Formation in Action
New ALMA observations reveal a forming star as it launches a wind from the edge of the disk that feeds it.
Is Our Sun Slowing Down in Its Middle Age?
The Sun, now halfway through its life, might be slowing its magnetic activity, which could lead to permanent changes in the sunspots and auroras we see.
Discovery of a Free-Floating Double Planet?
An object previously identified as a free-floating, large Jupiter analog turns out to be two objects — each with the mass of a few Jupiters. This system is the lowest-mass binary we’ve ever discovered.
100 Billion Brown Dwarfs in the Milky Way?
A new study of a nearby cluster of newly formed stars reveals that brown dwarfs may rival stars in the Milky Way in number, with one brown dwarf for every two bona fide stars.
Brown Dwarfs vs. Stars: What Makes a Star a Star?
At what point does a clump of gas ignite, turning into a star? Astronomers now have an answer to what makes a star — and what makes a brown dwarf.
