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Until now, radio astronomers had to choose between sensitivity or field of view. The new Apertif system provides both, enabling studies of low-mass galaxies, galaxy interactions and fast radio bursts, write Betsey Adams and Joeri van Leeuwen.
Palomar Gattini-IR is the first of a number of infrared transient surveyors that will search the skies nightly, looking for ephemeral phenomena such as novae, supernovae and neutron star merger events, explain Co-lead Researchers Anna Moore and Mansi Kasliwal.
A former ALMA prototype antenna has a new lease of life in the harsh conditions of Greenland, where it will play a key role in very-long-baseline interferometry observations of supermassive black holes, explain Nimesh Patel and Paul Ho.
The Australian Square Kilometre Array Pathfinder will be a key tool in future searches for fast radio bursts and other transient phenomena, and is already reaping rewards, explains Principal Engineer Keith Bannister.
After 60 years of technological and materials development, in August this year the Parker Solar Probe set off on its journey to skim the atmosphere of the Sun. Mission Scientist Adam Szabo summarizes this ambitious adventure.
HaloSat, NASA’s first astrophysics-focused CubeSat mission — the size of a small briefcase — will survey the Milky Way’s halo in order to assess its complement of hot baryons, explains Principal Investigator Philip Kaaret.
The HESS array in Namibia waits for a split-second flash of blue light — Cherenkov radiation — that signals an atmospheric shower of charged particles caused by cosmic rays, explains Director Mathieu de Naurois.
A powerful new radio telescope will improve our understanding of galaxy formation and evolution, and other key questions in astrophysics, says Fernando Camilo, on behalf of the MeerKAT team.
The Hayabusa2 spacecraft will soon rendezvous with asteroid Ryugu in order to study its composition using remote sensing, a lander, rovers and sample return, explains Elizabeth Tasker.
Observational astronomy in Iran has witnessed a rise over the past two decades that has led to investment in its own astronomical identity, the Iranian National Observatory, and a flagship 3.4-m optical telescope.
The SPECULOOS project aims to detect terrestrial exoplanets well suited for detailed atmospheric characterization, explains Principal Investigator Michaël Gillon.
The MICROSCOPE experiment has set the best upper bound to date on the weak equivalence principle, proving Einstein’s postulate with an unprecedented precision, as explained by Principal Investigator Pierre Touboul and team members Manuel Rodrigues and Joel Bergé.
The Dark Matter Particle Explorer (DAMPE) satellite is currently in orbit measuring cosmic rays to research their origin and propagation and also to find possible hidden signatures of dark matter, emphasizes Principal Investigator Jin Chang.
Forty years ago, the two Voyager spacecraft left Earth to begin one of the most rewarding voyages of human discovery ever to have been undertaken. Project Scientist Ed Stone recounts his treasured moments from the mission.
The Neutron star Interior Composition Explorer (NICER) is looking for neutron stars and pulsars from its perch on the International Space Station. Keith Gendreau and Zaven Arzoumanian provide an overview of its capabilities.
The Gravitational-wave Optical Transient Observer telescope will provide a rapid response to gravitational wave event triggers in order to locate optical counterparts for subsequent multi-wavelength follow-up, explains Danny Steeghs.
The Event Horizon Telescope, an Earth-sized interferometer, aims to capture an image of a black hole’s event horizon to test the theory of general relativity and probe accretion processes, explains project director Shep Doeleman.
The NASA/ESA/ASI Cassini–Huygens mission ends in a ‘Grand Finale’ this month, after 13 years in orbit around Saturn. The ESA and NASA JPL project scientists Nicolas Altobelli, Linda J. Spilker and Scott G. Edgington give an overview of the last moments of Cassini’s operational lifetime.
NASA's New Horizons mission to the outer Solar System has revolutionized our understanding of the Pluto–Charon system. But, Richard P. Binzel explains, this is only half the story of this intrepid spacecraft, as it voyages even further through the Kuiper Belt.
NASA's Juno mission to Jupiter has just returned its early science results after spending a year orbiting the ‘King of the Solar System’. Principal Investigator Scott Bolton summarizes what we have learnt.
