Theory says that during some SMBH mergers, the merger remnant receives a recoil kick from gravitational waves. Instead of sitting placidly in the galactic center, these recoiled SMBH are sent on a pendulum-like motion, back and forth through the galactic center. New research has found statistical evidence supporting their existence.
Solar flaring is complex behaviour triggered by reconnection, when magnetic field lines break and then snap back to the Sun's surface. The flaring is complex behaviour, and its details are difficult to observe. Researchers found a new way to study flaring behaviour.
Stellar-mass black holes should be in our neighbourhood within about 50 light years of the Solar System. But they're likely isolated, without much to feed on, making them difficult to find. Gaia found some candidates, but confirming them is tough.
Stellar-mass black holes should be in our neighbourhood within about 50 light years of the Solar System. But they're likely isolated, without much to feed on, making them difficult to find. Gaia found some candidates, but confirming them is tough.
It may not be as obvious, but just like Earth, Mars has seasons. And every day of every summer, an 1,800 kilometer long thin white cloud appears to the west of Arsia Mons, a 20 kilometer high extinct shield volcano. At least for a few hours, before it dissipates until it reappears the next morning. Scientists have known about this feature, which they call the Arsia Mons Elongated Cloud (AMEC), for decades, but planetary scientists have been unable to explain it using traditional atmospheric models. But a new paper, published in Nature Geoscience by a research team led by Dr. Jorge Hernández-Bernal of the Sorbonne, suggests that the cloud could be the first documented real-world example of a cloud flash-freezing out of thin air.
Billions of years ago, rain may have helped shape where the chemistry of life could begin on Mars. A new study maps how formaldehyde, an important prebiotic molecule, may have reached the surface. This map could help guide future missions searching for signs of past life on Mars.
JAXA successfully launched its Martian Moon eXplorer on its way to Mars and Phobos. It'll reach Mars in about six months, and will orbit the planet for about a month before transferring to an orbit around Phobos. It will deploy a small lander, which will help select a sample-gathering location for the main part of the mission. By 2031, the regolith sample from Phobos should be back on Earth.
