To help, Centre national de la recherche scientifique in France developed a coronagraph attachment for the JWST’s MIRI instrument which can reproduce the effect observed during an eclipse. Such masking makes objects around a star easier to observe.

With infinite stars it's necessary to find targets of opportunity so astronomers focus on younger stars where the planets are still hot and the system discs can be viewed by us 'from above' - pole on.

TWA 7 has three distinct rings, one very narrow and surrounded by two empty areas with almost no matter. JWST was able to find a source within the heart of this narrow ring - an exoplanet.

The new planet is comparable in size to Saturn, but that is 10 times lighter than those captured in previous images, and has been named TWA 7 b.

Jupiter holds secrets at its heart that continue to puzzle scientists. The largest planet in our Solar System has what researchers call a "dilute core,” a central region that doesn't have sharp boundaries like once expected. Instead of a distinct rocky centre surrounded by layers of gas, Jupiter's core gradually blends into the hydrogen-rich layers above it, creating a smooth transition zone.

This unusual structure was first discovered by NASA's Juno spacecraft, which has been orbiting Jupiter since 2016. The finding surprised astronomers, who had assumed giant planets would have more clearly defined cores. The mystery deepened when observations revealed that Saturn appears to have a similar dilute core structure.

One popular explanation for Jupiter's fuzzy core involved a catastrophic collision early in the planet's history. Scientists theorised that a massive object, perhaps containing half of Jupiter's core material, crashed into the young planet with such force that it thoroughly mixed the central region. This collision would have been so violent that it scrambled the dense rock and ice at Jupiter's centre with the lighter hydrogen and helium surrounding it.

A team of researchers at Durham University decided to put this giant impact theory to the test using powerful computer simulations. Working with scientists from NASA, SETI, and the University of Oslo, they used the DiRAC COSMA supercomputer to model what would happen when massive objects collide with Jupiter sized planets. The team ran multiple simulations using cutting edge software, testing various impact scenarios including extremely violent collisions. They employed new methods to better simulate how materials would mix during such catastrophic events.

Unlike solar panels, solar thermoelectric generators can convert heat from any source into electricity. But poor efficiency has held the technology back – until now.

Scientists seeking ways to amp up the capabilities of solar power generators have discovered a method that can boost their efficiency by a factor of 15.

The breakthrough lies in a unique, laser-etched "black metal" developed by researchers over the past five years, which they now hope to use in solar thermoelectric generators (STEGs).

On this day a legend was born. 💫

Today, we remember the legacy of NASA's super computer, Katherine G. Johnson. Katherine laid the groundwork for humanity's first flight to the moon by calculating the orbital equations that would control the trajectory in John Glenn's Friendship 7 mission. She later went on to support countless missions that led to endless scientific discoveries. 🚀🌙

Katherine's hard work and dedication will continue to inspire many generations to pursue the unimaginable and make the impossible, possible.

"Do your best. But like it! Like what you do; then you will do your best."
- Katherine Johnson

Astronauts lose 1-2% of their bone mass every month in space.

Now scientists think they may have found the cellular culprit, and they are testing ways to try to stop it. Read more: https://t.co/1UvRWSL4Qy

The ways our eyes explore the world change subtly over time, affected by age and illness.

A new study now suggests some of those changes could be used to identify problems with memory and cognition.

Researchers from Canada and the West Indies built on previous work by searching for variations in eye viewing patterns in people with and without a diagnosis for a brain health issue.

Space-time is frequently described as the "fabric of reality." In some accounts, this fabric is referred to as a fixed, four-dimensional "block universe"—a complete map of all events, past, present and future.

In others, it's a dynamic field that bends and curves in response to gravity. But what does it really mean to say that space-time exists? What kind of thing is it—is space-time structure, substance or metaphor?

Hundreds of unexpectedly energetic objects have been discovered throughout the distant universe, possibly hinting that the cosmos was far more active during its infancy than astronomers once believed.

Using deep-field images from NASA's James Webb Space Telescope (JWST), researchers at the University of Missouri identified 300 unusually bright objects in the early universe. While they could be galaxies, astronomers aren't yet sure what they are for certain. Galaxies forming so soon after the Big Bang should be faint, limited by the pace at which they could form stars. Yet these candidates shine far brighter than current models of early galaxy formation predict.

Using scientific instruments in novel ways is a common practice, but still results in significant new discoveries. But sometimes, it doesn’t happen so much as a “that’s funny” moment as an intentional new use of old equipment. A new paper from researchers that Imperial College London (ICL), PhD student Solomon Hirsch and his advisor Mark Sephton, shows how the gas chromatograph-mass spectrometers that have been a mainstay of Martian probes since the Viking era could be used to find extant life there.

"It's a very, very beautiful calculation, but it's the best example I know of the relationship between these rather abstract quantities perhaps and something that you can look at in a telescope." 

What happens when you try to look too closely at the fabric of the universe? When we gaze at a Planck length, a scale so small that even light becomes useless for observation, physics pushes back.

The Planck length is not just a tiny number, it’s a boundary where gravity, quantum mechanics, and relativity collide.

Physicist Brian Cox explains why the measurement is a portal to the deep structure of reality, and why going beyond it may break the boundaries of our understanding.

0:00 Introduction
0:45 The importance of measurements
2:40 What are the fundamental quantities?
7:20 How important is the Planck length?
9:20 Why you can’t approach the Planck length
10:30 A theory with more dimensions
13:00 What keeps a star from collapsing?
14:42 The uncertainty principle
17:36 The Planck mass

Denied of sleep, we find it but impossible to keep our eyes open and our thoughts focused. A new study based on fruit flies may have pin-pointed the origins of this biological lullaby, and with it a deeper understanding of our need for rest on a cellular level.

Researchers from the University of Oxford in the UK have identified our cell's mitochondria as responsible for signaling when the body has to get some shut-eye as soon as possible.

These tiny power generators cause a kind of metabolic overload in sleep-regulating neurons, the researchers suggest, which in simple terms indicates when our brain is running on empty. Through sleep, this overload can be reset, ensuring the brain remains in a healthy state.

Rolling, rolling, rolling. See what the Curiosity rover is up to lately on Mars.
https://t.co/3pX0I7gh48

Hurricane Erin, the first Atlantic hurricane in the 2025 season, rapidly intensified from a Category 1 to a Category 5 storm in just over 24 hours.

These Suomi NPP satellite images show Erin’s path from August 14-19. https://t.co/67FQj9qxL5

A unique orbit means a unique view of our galaxy and beyond. 🔭💫

Space station provides a perfect perch for astrophysics instruments, helping us learn more about black holes, dark matter, and the very composition of our universe.

The "ink-redible" Squid Galaxy is located about 50 million light-years from Earth. This view of the Squid, roughly 29,000 light-years across, combines different types of light captured by NASA's Chandra, NASAHubble, NASAWebb, and TheNRAO's Very Large Array.🦑

Could magnets help astronauts breathe on Mars? 🧲

Living and working on Mars will require innovative technologies to produce oxygen for future explorers. That's why researchers, working with NASA's Innovative Advanced Concepts program, are developing a powerful new idea using swirling fluids and strong magnets to produce breathable air. Learn more: https://t.co/c9goHA0Lli

When NASA's Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope launches in October 2026, it won't just be peering into the distant universe to study dark energy and exoplanets. This powerful observatory will also serve as Earth's newest guardian, helping scientists track and understand potentially dangerous asteroids and comets that could threaten our planet.

The Roman Space Telescope will position itself at the Earth-Sun L2 Lagrange point, a gravitationally stable location about 1.5 million kilometres from Earth in the opposite direction of the Sun. From this vantage point, the telescope will use its sensitive near infrared vision to study near Earth objects (NEOs), the asteroids and comets whose orbits bring them close to our planet.

What makes Roman particularly valuable for planetary defence is its ability to measure the physical properties of these space rocks with unprecedented precision. While other telescopes can spot asteroids, Roman will be able to determine their size, shape, composition, and exact orbital paths. This detailed information is crucial for understanding which objects pose real threats and which are harmless.

A worldwide study involving more than 100,000 participants has found that receiving a smartphone before the age of 13 is linked with weaker mental health and lower overall wellbeing in early adulthood.

The research, published in the peer-reviewed Journal of Human Development and Capabilities, reported that individuals aged 18 to 24 who first owned a smartphone at 12 or younger were more likely to experience suicidal thoughts, heightened aggression, feelings of detachment from reality, difficulties with emotional control, and diminished self-worth.

The findings further indicate that these negative outcomes are closely tied to early exposure to social media and increased vulnerability to cyberbullying, poor sleep quality, and strained family relationships later in life.