SUNSET: 
Plutonian Mounts Aren’t Ice Volcanoes
Careful study of data from the New Horizons mission indicates that an iconic, caldera-looking feature isn’t what it seems.
Shredded Star Reveals Elusive Middle-Mass Black Hole
Astronomers have used the death of a star to uncover details about a hidden intermediate-mass black hole.
Don’t Worry About Bennu (Yet)
Careful measurements using the OSIRIS-REX spacecraft have refined astronomers’ predictions for how likely it is that this potentially hazardous asteroid will strike Earth.
The Black Hole Files with Camille Carlisle
Event Horizon Telescope Reveals Curious Jet Structure from Black Hole
Observations of the nearest radio galaxy, Centaurus A, provide the highest-resolution look at the long jets shooting from the galaxy’s supermassive black hole.
Gravitational Waves Reveal Black Hole–Neutron Star Mergers
Two new detections give astrophysicists a novel look at how stellar remnants pair up.
Astronomers Look into the Past of Local Dwarf Galaxies
A combination of simulations and observations indicates that galaxies like the Large Magellanic Cloud control when punier dwarfs plunge into large galaxies.
The Black Hole Files with Camille Carlisle
Astronomers Detect Strong Magnetic Fields Around M87’s Black Hole
Event Horizon Telescope data support the idea that magnetic fields control how black holes feed and grow.
Astronomy News: Galactic One-Two Punch, Black Hole Heartbeat Falters
In the news this week: Globular clusters have the detailed scoop on our galaxy's past, and a "heartbeat" black hole binary in the Milky Way has gone mysteriously dim.
Survey Finds Newborn Black Hole Jets in Distant Galaxies
Astronomers have spotted a surprising number of quasars with jets launched within a couple of decades.
Big Black Holes Dominate New Gravitational-Wave Catalog
Gravitational-wave scientists have unveiled their latest catalog of events, revealing a surprising number of massive black holes.
The Black Hole Files with Camille Carlisle
Black Hole Scientists Win 2020 Nobel Prize in Physics
This year’s award goes to three researchers who played key roles in developing the theoretical and observational evidence for black holes.
Winds and Tides Drive Sea Waves on Titan
Sunlight glittering off rough patches of sea on Saturn’s largest moon indicates ever-changing waves.
Black Hole Collision May Have Caused Burst of Light
Astronomers think they’ve detected a flash created by the merger of two black holes.
The Black Hole Files with Camille Carlisle
Gravitational Wave Detectors Find Mystery “Mass Gap” Object
Astronomers have caught a black hole colliding with a mysterious companion that might be either one of the most massive neutron stars or the smallest black hole ever detected.
Black Holes Grow by Gas, Not Mergers, Most of Their Lives
Calculations suggest how black holes have amassed mass and predict what the black holes’ spins should be if this picture is correct.
Ryugu May Have Skirted Close to the Sun
Observations by the Japanese Hayabusa 2 spacecraft show subtle color differences, indicating something has reddened the asteroid’s surface.
The Black Hole Files with Camille Carlisle
Closest Black Hole to Earth? Maybe
An international team of astronomers says that they’ve discovered the closest black hole to Earth — an invisible object dancing with two large, bright stars 1,000 light-years away.
Mismatched Black Holes Merge
For the first time, the LIGO and Virgo gravitational-wave detectors have "heard" gravitational waves from an unequal pair of black holes.
Black Hole Changes Star’s Orbit in Gravity Test
A long-awaited measurement indicates that a star whizzing around the Milky Way’s supermassive black hole has changed its trajectory.
Event Horizon Telescope Finds Bent Jet Near Black Hole
Observations from the worldwide network of radio telescopes show the fire hose of plasma shooting from a distant galaxy does something strange near its source.