SUNSET: 
A New Type of Supernova
Astronomers have discovered a new supernova class where the star might survive the explosion.
The Oldest, Loneliest Supernova
A distant explosion of a white dwarf, the oldest of its kind, may help reveal the cause of death for other, closer dwarfs.
Can Stars Form in our Galaxy's Center?
Observations of Milky Way’s chaotic center show hints of stars forming just two light-years away from our galaxy’s supermassive black hole.
Does a Famous Nova Have a "Suicide Pact"?
The usual fate for a recurrent nova is that a white dwarf fattens up at the expense of its companion and then explodes as a supernova. But the two stars of the system T Pyxidis might be bringing about their own destruction in an unusual way.
Mysterious Crab Nebula Flare
Once thought to be a stable source in the sky, the Crab Nebula has erupted in a gamma-ray flare. One of about a half dozen detected since 2007, the flare is ongoing and perplexes astronomers, who still wonder how it's created.
Tiny Telescopes Launch
Successfully launched February 25th, a pair of diminutive telescopes inside basketball-size cubes will give scientists new views of the brightest stars in the galaxy.
Stellar Senior Citizen
Astronomers have confirmed that the star HD 140283 is nearly as old as the universe.
Baby Black Hole Discovered
Astronomers investigating a supernova remnant see nothing but swirls of gas. The lack of stellar remains means the explosion must have birthed a black hole only 1,000 years ago.
Culprit Pegged for Cosmic Rays
Astronomers working with the Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope say they might finally have the “smoking gun” they’ve needed to convict supernova remnants as the origin of energetic particles called cosmic rays.
Harbingers of Death: Predicting Supernovae
A massive outburst may give a month’s advance notice of when certain giant stars will go supernova. That’s not great for evacuation plans, but perfect for observers who want to catch a supernova in action.
Pulsar Twitches Perplex Astronomers
New X-ray and radio observations detected a strange switcheroo in the radiation from a pulsar. The repeated hiccups have left scientists scratching their heads.
Astronomers Zoom in on Solar Hairs
New observations with a rocket-launched imager reveal individual strands of plasma wound around each other in the Sun’s corona. These strands could be tied to the mysteriously high temperature of this region.
Mapping Alien Atmospheres in 3D
A new technique charts the stormy weather of a brown dwarf 35 light-years away, allowing astronomers to probe deep into the atmosphere as well as across the cloud tops.
Triple Stars in Far-Flung Relationships
New simulations suggest that sometimes "three's a crowd" when stars form — and that chaotic interactions can leave two stars close together and fling a third (such as reddish Proxima Centauri, at left) into a distant orbit.
A Planetary Nebula Reborn — For a While
A stunning image from the Hubble Space Telescope and Chandra X-ray Observatory reveals a planetary nebula come back to life.
Explaining Cosmic Butterflies
Planetary nebulae, left behind by stars like our Sun, come in chimerical shapes. New observations confirm that many of these shapes may have a common explanation.
Auroras Grace Stellar Skies
Stunning auroras play in Earth's upper atmosphere, and similar cascading curtains grace the skies of giant planets, brown dwarfs — and even small stars.
Revisiting Orion's Stellar Membership
The Orion Nebula hosts a well studied star cluster, the gold standard by which astronomers measure all other clusters. New research suggests that this benchmark might need to be revised.
Star Draws Spiral
ALMA observations have revealed a spiral buried inside a shell surrounding the star R Sculptoris. While not the first of its kind discovered, the spiral does show that the star is hiding something.
Star Zips around Black Hole
Astronomers announced that they've successfully tracked a star that takes less than 12 years to whip around the Milky Way's central black hole. The star isn't so special on its own, but combined with other observations it might help unwrap the region's mysteries.
