What's up in
Astrophysics
Latest Articles
The Universe Is Not a Simulation, but We Can Now Simulate It
Computer simulations have become so accurate that cosmologists can now use them to study dark matter, supermassive black holes and other mysteries of the real evolving cosmos.
CRISPR Gene-Editing Pioneers Win Kavli Prize for Nanoscience
The inventors of a “Swiss army knife” for genome editing received prestigious honors, as did pioneering scientists in astrophysics and neuroscience.
Stellar Disks Reveal How Planets Get Made
Detailed images of disks swirling around young stars show the details of how solar systems come to be.
A New World’s Extraordinary Orbit Points to Planet Nine
Astronomers argue that there’s an undiscovered giant planet far beyond the orbit of Neptune. A newly discovered rocky body has added evidence to the circumstantial case for it.
What Astronomers Are Learning From Gaia’s New Milky Way Map
A roundup of some of the most important discoveries gleaned so far from the Gaia space observatory’s new map of the galaxy.
A Radically Conservative Solution for Cosmology’s Biggest Mystery
Two ways of measuring the universe’s expansion rate yield two conflicting answers. Many point to the possibility of new physics at work, but a new analysis argues that unseen errors could be to blame.
Troubled Times for Alternatives to Einstein’s Theory of Gravity
New observations of extreme astrophysical systems have “brutally and pitilessly murdered” attempts to replace Einstein’s general theory of relativity.
A Revealer of Secrets in the Data of Life and the Universe
The statistician Donald Richards lives to uncover subtle patterns hiding in real-world data.
Whisper From the First Stars Sets Off Loud Dark Matter Debate
A surprise discovery announced a month ago suggested that the early universe looked very different than previously believed. Initial theories that the discrepancy was due to dark matter have come under fire.