SUNSET: 
"Brightest Supernova Ever" or Shredded Star?
An incredible blaze of light discovered more than a year ago still has astronomers baffled as to its cause - and the answer may be contrary to recent headlines.
Astronomers Discover Roundest Star
Asteroseismologists delving into the Kepler mission's data trove have found a star that appears to be more spherical than any natural object.
ALMA Images Spiral Disk Around Baby Stars
Astronomers have imaged a third star embedded in the spiral disk around a pair of baby stars, the first direct evidence of a process of star formation known as disk fragmentation.
Two Stars, Three Planet-forming Disks
A young pair of stars hosts three potentially planet-forming disks, and all three of them are wildly tilted with respect to each other.
Proxima Centauri Has Sun-Like Cycle
Observations confirm that the closest star to our solar system has a regular magnetic cycle similar to our Sun.
Did Ancient Explosions Rock Eta Carinae?
New observations suggest this unstable star let off some steam before its famous 19th century “Great Eruption” . . . but there’s more to the story than meets the eye.
Gaia Mission Maps 1 Billion Stars
The European Space Agency's Gaia mission has released its first data release, mapping a billion stars across the Milky Way and beyond
Amateurs Help Discover Pulsing White Dwarf
Amateur astronomers worked together with the pros in the discovery of the pulsing white dwarf in the variable system known as AR Scorpii. Hear from Josch Hambsch, one of the amateurs on the team, on what it was like to take part.
Tabby’s Star: Weird Star Gets Weirder
A new study on KIC 8462852, the star of alien megastructure fame, finds yearlong trends that effectively rule out the one working theory astronomers had to explain this strange star.
A New Look at the Crab Nebula
A new Hubble Space Telescope image shows the very heart of the Crab Nebula, one of the most studied supernova remnants.
The Kavli Foundation Q&A: How Did Nature's Heaviest Elements Form?
The Kavli Foundation hosted a Q&A with three astronomers to probe the recent discovery of hard-to-produce heavy elements in a nearby dwarf galaxy. The discovery sheds light on stellar histories and galactic evolution.
The Resurgence of the Brightest Supernova
In 2015 ASASSN-15lh gained fame as the most luminous supernova ever discovered. Almost a year later and against all odds, the supernova has rebrightened.
Light Echoes Map Planet-forming Disk
Light’s finite speed helped astronomers pinpoint the location of the “inner wall” of the disk of dust and gas that’s feeding a fast-growing baby star.
Long-Ago Supernovae Littered Earth
Roughly 2 million years ago, as the human ancestor homo erectus was descending from the trees, two supernovae exploded nearby and showered Earth with debris.
Spectral Types For Spring Nights
Hidden within the subtle hues of the stars are the keys to their temperatures and compositions. Get acquainted with the classic OBAFGKM spectral sequence through real stars you can see on a spring night.
Mysterious Radio Burst Repeats Itself
A brief burst of radio waves has been observed repeating, enabling astronomers to settle its exotic origin.
Astronomers Pinpoint Mysterious Radio Burst
A radio burst with the energy of a hundred million Suns has finally been placed on the cosmic map, enabling scientists to investigate the origin of these mysterious bursts.
How Astronomers Count Sunspots
A multi-year investigation revealed errors in our understanding of the Sun.
Stars Form in Turbulent Times
New images of four circumstellar disks suggest that the star formation process is much more violent than previously thought.
Old Stars' Fossil Fields
Astronomers have confirmed that strong magnetic fields are frozen in place deep inside aging stars called red giants.
