Featured
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Why the Hubble telescope is still in the game — even as JWST wows
NASA’s nearly 33-year-old observatory still has plenty of top science to do, and astronomers want to extend its lifetime.
- Alexandra Witze
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News |
These ‘green pea’ galaxies might have helped to end the Universe’s dark age
JWST has spotted three tiny, distant galaxies that could solve a long-standing cosmic mystery.
- Shannon Hall
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Article
| Open AccessEarly Release Science of the exoplanet WASP-39b with JWST NIRSpec G395H
The medium-resolution transmission spectrum of the exoplanet WASP-39b, described using observations from the Near Infrared Spectrograph G395H grating aboard JWST, shows significant absorption from CO2 and H2O and detection of SO2.
- Lili Alderson
- , Hannah R. Wakeford
- & Xi Zhang
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World View |
Why I’m leaving NASA and the job I’ve loved most
Stepping down well is an important leadership skill — and one that is rarely named or valued.
- Thomas H. Zurbuchen
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JWST gets first glimpse of 7-planet system with potentially habitable worlds
Astronomers have been eager for the landmark telescope to study the TRAPPIST-1 system.
- Alexandra Witze
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How nuclear waste will help spacecraft explore the Moon — and beyond
European researchers are developing batteries that use a radioactive isotope to power long missions in the Solar System.
- Elizabeth Gibney
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‘Great scientific step forward’: Construction of world’s largest radio observatory is finally under way
Two giant telescopes — one in Australia, the other in South Africa — will comprise the supersensitive Square Kilometre Array.
- Sarah Wild
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News |
JWST’s best images: spectacular stars and spiralling galaxies
Nature’s pick of the sharpest science shots this month is dedicated to the James Webb Space Telescope, which began peering into the Universe earlier this year.
- Alexandra Witze
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News Round-Up |
Moon flyby, European Mars rover and elites’ advantage
The latest science news, in brief.
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NASA really, really won’t rename Webb telescope despite community pushback
Investigation by agency historian finds no evidence explicitly linking former director James Webb with anti-LGBT+ actions.
- Alexandra Witze
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JWST spots some of the most distant galaxies ever seen
Premier observatory offers a glimpse of the early Universe.
- Alexandra Witze
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Private companies race to the Moon: Japan spacecraft set to take early lead
The mission, carrying the United Arab Emirates’ first rover, is aiming to be the first of several private ventures to land on the lunar surface next year.
- Elizabeth Gibney
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World’s largest solar telescope array is now complete
China’s Daocheng Solar Radio Telescope is among a suite of instruments the country has built in the past three years to study the Sun.
- Yvaine Ye
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Research Briefing |
Snapshots capture the early stages of a distant stellar explosion
Analyses of archival imaging data from the Hubble Space Telescope in 2010 reveal multiple images of a star that exploded about 11.5 billion years ago. An image sequence starting 6 hours after the explosion shows the supernova cooling rapidly during its very early phases.
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Renowned Arecibo telescope won’t be rebuilt — and astronomers are heartbroken
The US National Science Foundation has decided to instead open an educational centre at the site.
- Alexandra Witze
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Article
| Open AccessRadiation-driven acceleration in the expanding WR140 dust shell
Multiepoch imagery of the circumstellar dust shell in WR140 is modelled to trace the expansion of the dust plume, which seems to be subject to radiation-driven acceleration.
- Yinuo Han
- , Peter G. Tuthill
- & Anthony Soulain
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China’s first solar observatory aims to solve mysteries of the Sun’s eruptions
The mission, scheduled to launch on Sunday, will also help to improve forecasts of damaging space weather.
- Elizabeth Gibney
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News |
‘Bit of panic’: Astronomers forced to rethink early Webb telescope findings
Revised instrument calibrations are bedevilling work on the distant Universe.
- Alexandra Witze
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News Round-Up |
First exoplanet image, cancer deaths and pandemic preparation
The latest science news, in brief.
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News |
Webb telescope wows with first image of an exoplanet
Astronomers see it as the start of a bonanza of studies exploring planets outside the Solar System.
- Alexandra Witze
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News |
Webb telescope spots CO2 on exoplanet for first time: what it means for finding alien life
Report heralds what’s to come from the landmark observatory, which is set to explore 76 worlds during its first year.
- Shannon Hall
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News Round-Up |
Mild-COVID drugs, Omicron protection and disco-ball satellite
The latest science news, in brief.
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News |
Four revelations from the Webb telescope about distant galaxies
Astronomers are rapidly analysing spectacular snapshots of the faraway Universe.
- Alexandra Witze
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News |
Disco-ball satellite will put Einstein’s theory to strictest test yet
Scientists hope a laser-reflecting sphere will produce the most accurate measure so far of how Earth’s rotation warps space.
- Davide Castelvecchi
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Hawaii law could break years-long astronomy impasse
A group including Native Hawaiians will now manage the mountain Maunakea, where Indigenous rights and astronomy have collided.
- Alexandra Witze
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Nature Podcast |
Ancient mud reveals the longest record of climate from the tropics
A sediment core from Peru unlocks thousands of years of climate data, and the first glimpses from the James Webb Space Telescope.
- Nick Petrić Howe
- & Shamini Bundell
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Stunning new Webb images: baby stars, colliding galaxies and hot exoplanets
Anticipation of future science grows as NASA releases unprecedented glimpses of the night sky.
- Alexandra Witze
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News |
Landmark Webb telescope releases first science image — astronomers are in awe
Galaxies from near the dawn of time pepper the deepest-ever look into the night sky.
- Alexandra Witze
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News |
Surprising dust strike on Webb telescope has scientists on alert
Weeks after being hit by a micrometeoroid, the landmark observatory prepares to release its first scientific images.
- Alexandra Witze
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Review Article |
X-ray astronomy comes of age
The highlights of a wide range of studies using data from the Chandra X-ray Observatory and the X-ray Multi-Mirror Mission (XMM-Newton) are reviewed.
- Belinda J. Wilkes
- , Wallace Tucker
- & Maria Santos-Lleo
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Where I Work |
Pico pioneer: building tiny satellites for the Internet of Things
Julián Fernández Barcellona provides affordable, space-based connectivity for companies looking to monitor remote assets in real time.
- Virginia Gewin
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News |
‘Unsustainable’: how satellite swarms pose a rising threat to astronomy
SpaceX and other companies are still struggling to make their satellites darker in the night sky.
- Alexandra Witze
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News |
Costly SOFIA telescope faces termination after years of problems
NASA and the German space agency ground the telescope on a plane, citing the astronomy community’s concerns over cost and productivity.
- Alexandra Witze
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News |
Exclusive: Documents reveal NASA’s internal struggles over renaming Webb telescope
E-mails show agency’s controversial response to astronomers concerned about past LGBT+ discrimination.
- Alexandra Witze
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Research Highlight |
Astronomy’s carbon footprint is sky-high
Among the most intensive sources are the Hubble Space Telescope and, on Earth, the Very Large Telescope.
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Where I Work |
Campaign supernova: why I need a finely tuned antenna
Julia Casanueva enhances the sensitivity of the Virgo interferometer to better detect distant stellar explosions.
- Virginia Gewin
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News |
Russia’s invasion of Ukraine is redrawing the geopolitics of space
The International Space Station is operating as normal, but other partnerships are unravelling.
- Alexandra Witze
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News |
Ukraine conflict jeopardizes launch of Europe’s first Mars rover
Sanctions mean joint Russian–European ExoMars mission is likely to be postponed for a third time.
- Elizabeth Gibney
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Article |
Thermal imaging of dust hiding the black hole in NGC 1068
Mid-infrared observations of the dusty structures of the galaxy NGC 1068 support the unified model of active galactic nuclei.
- Violeta Gámez Rosas
- , Jacob W. Isbell
- & Gerard Zins
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Earth-like planet spotted orbiting Sun’s closest star
Shifts in starlight from Proxima Centauri, observed over more than 2 years, reveal its third planet.
- Davide Castelvecchi
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Nature Podcast |
RNA test detects deadly pregnancy disorder early
RNA in blood reveals signs of pre-eclampsia before symptoms occur, and the issue of urine in our sewage and what can be done about it.
- Nick Petrić Howe
- & Shamini Bundell
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Major African radio telescope will help to image black holes
US$25-million facility in Namibia will be Africa’s first millimetre-range radio telescope.
- Sarah Wild
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Omicron’s origins, where’s Webb — the week in infographics
Nature highlights three key graphics from the week in science and research.
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Editorial |
NASA’s Webb telescope is an initial success — despite formidable odds
Science stands to make huge gains from the James Webb Space Telescope, but there are also lessons to learn from the epic management failures that beset the project.
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Webb telescope reaches its final destination far from Earth
The ambitious observatory has arrived at its home — near a gravitationally special spot called L2 — for a premier view of the Universe.
- Alexandra Witze
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News Round-Up |
Webb telescope success, WHO chief and Omicron versus antibody therapies
The latest science news, in brief.
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Nature Podcast |
Webb Space Telescope makes history after tense launch
We highlight some recent stories from the Nature Briefing, including the latest on the James Webb Space Telescope, an ichthyosaur fossil find, and more.
- Benjamin Thompson
- , Noah Baker
- & Flora Graham
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News |
Landmark Webb observatory is now officially a telescope
The observatory has flawlessly unfurled its mirrors and sunshield — although more steps are needed before the science can begin.
- Alexandra Witze