Sharp-edged rings of dust around stars are not necessarily carved by planets, as was thought, but can take shape on their own

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With the last transit of Venus of the 21st century weeks away, authors trace how this rare event sparked international scientific collaboration in 1761

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The Herschel Space Observatory has shown galaxies with the most powerful, active black holes at their cores produce fewer stars than galaxies with less active black holes.(author unknown)

Supernovae leave glowing embers behind – see some of the most beautiful remnants of exploding stars in our gallery

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The Vesta asteroid is the only remaining example of the original objects that came together to form the rocky planets like Earth, say scientists.(author unknown)

Why is an artist about to sent tweets into space? Nathaniel Stern, associate professor at the University of Wisconsin, and Anu Ojha, Director of the National Space Academy in Leicester, explain.(author unknown)

The NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope has made detailed observations of the dwarf galaxy NGC 2366. While it lacks the elegant spiral arms of many larger galaxies, NGC 2366 is home to a bright, star-forming nebula and is close enough for astronomers to discern its individual stars.(author unknown)

For the first time archaeologists have found astronomical writings dating from the height of the Maya civilisation in the 9th century

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Our star is moving through a cloud of interstellar gas too slowly to create a "sonic boom" that would shield the solar system from some galactic cosmic rays

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ESA's Herschel Space Observatory has captured a new, stunning image of Cygnus X, one of the richest star-forming regions in our cosmic neighbourhood. The image reveals in unprecedented detail the intricate network of filaments, pillars and bubbles present in the region. These structures have been carved by the powerful effects of the many young, massive stars being born in this stellar nursery.(author unknown)

Ultra-cool companion helps reveal giant planets. New paper in MNRAS by David Pinfield et al. http://www.ras.org.uk/news-and-press/219-news-2012/2121-ultra-cool-companion-helps-reveal-giant-planets


Ultra-cool companion helps reveal giant planets
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The Royal Astronomical Society, encourages and promotes the study of astronomy, solar-system science, geophysics and closely related branches of science. The RAS organizes scientific meetings in Burlington House, its London HQ, and throughout the country, publishes international research and review ...

NASA's Dawn spacecraft has provided researchers with the first orbital analysis of the giant asteroid Vesta, yielding new insights into its creation and relation to the terrestrial planets and Earth's moon.(author unknown)

The first instrument to be completed for the James Webb Space Telescope, MIRI, was handed over by the European consortium that built it to ESA at a ceremony held in London today, and will now be delivered to NASA aiming for launch in 2018.(author unknown)

BBC correspondent Jonathan Amos gets to see the Mid-Infrared Instrument (Miri) close up before its shipment to the US.(author unknown)

A survey of galaxies performed with ESA's Herschel Space Observatory has shown that only the most powerful black holes in the early Universe were able to quench the formation of stars in their host galaxies. This finding is an important contribution to our understanding of one of the most hotly debated phases of galaxy evolution.(author unknown)

Two rival theories for how supernovae form are both right – a finding that will boost the search for mysterious dark energy

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A new image of Messier 55 from ESO's VISTA infrared survey telescope shows tens of thousands of stars crowded together like a swarm of bees. Besides being packed into a relatively small space, these stars are also among the oldest in the Universe. Astronomers study Messier 55 and other ancient objects like it, called globular clusters, to learn how galaxies evolve and stars age.(author unknown)

Dr Eric Smith, deputy director for the James Webb Space Telescope at Nasa, on plans to build a space telescope that's bigger and better than the Hubble.(author unknown)

NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO) has revealed that movement in sand dune fields on the Red Planet occurs on a surprisingly large scale, about the same as in dune fields on Earth.(author unknown)

NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope has detected light emanating from a "super-Earth" beyond our solar system for the first time.(author unknown)