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A prominent under-density in the observed radius distribution separates small exoplanets in two categories. The study demonstrates, through planet formation and evolution simulations, that the larger planets, whose composition has been disputed, may be water-rich planets migrating towards the star, where they become steam worlds.
While turbulent dissipation is prevalent in astrophysics, the processes that convert turbulent energy into heat are often unclear. This study shows that plasma waves are fundamental to heating the solar wind and similar turbulent astrophysical systems.
A comparison of observations and simulations of satellite galaxies around massive galaxy groups reveals significant differences, including correlated motions of pairs of satellite galaxies, which challenge the standard model of cosmology.
Chemical disequilibrium is a known biosignature, and it is important to determine the conditions for its remote detection. A thermodynamical model coupled with atmospheric retrieval shows that a disequilibrium can be inferred for a Proterozoic Earth-like exoplanet in reflected light at a high O2/CH4 abundance case and signal-to-noise ratio of 50.
A combination of JWST/NIRCam observations and magnetohydrodynamic simulations indicates that frequent mergers with close companions give rise to bursty star formation and hence the unexpectedly high Lyman-α emission detected from early galaxies.
This Article provides evidence for apatite in a ferroan anorthosite clast in a lunar meteorite, allowing direct measurement of the volatile systematics of the primary products of the lunar magma ocean and the earliest lunar crust.
High spatial resolution ALMA observations reveal a group of gravitationally bound quintuple, quadruple, triple and binary protostellar systems in the early stages of formation in a high-mass protocluster. This finding provides a direct measurement of the multiplicity of high-mass star formation.
Multiwavelength observations of a galactic nucleus exhibit quasi-periodic X-ray eruptions (QPEs) that repeat every 22 days, a timescale intermediate between those of other QPEs and so-called repeating nuclear transients. The eruptions are likely to be driven by the interaction between an orbiting body and a central massive black hole.
Fe/Ni and Fe/Co ratios in iron meteorites indicate that the earliest inner Solar System planetesimals were oxidized and water-bearing, having formed beyond the point at which water condensed in the solar protoplanetary disk.
High-energy radiation originating in the wind termination shock of young star clusters has been observed, without contamination from other sources such as supernovae. This adds the winds of star clusters to the list of cosmic-ray accelerators within the Galaxy.
Cold ice-covered dust grains grow during their journey from the interstellar medium to protoplanetary disks. JWST observations show that this growth begins before the protostellar phase and provide quantitative insights into the grain growth process.
Experiments using high-intensity X-ray pulses incident on high-pressure hydrocarbons suggest that diamond formation can occur at shallower depths in icy planets and may play a role in the internal convection that generates their magnetic fields.
Chemical abundances derived from infrared nebular lines reveal strongly depressed metallicities in interacting galaxies, suggesting that in luminous infrared galaxies chemical enrichment and stellar-mass growth take place through mergers, which drive these galaxies out of equilibrium.
Nuclear experiments become the latest ‘messenger’ to help with unravelling the mysteries of neutron stars. Combining information from astronomical observations and laboratory experiments reveals how nucleons interact in both nuclei and stars.
Researchers have detected the elusive dark matter component of cosmic filaments near the Coma galaxy cluster using gravitational lensing. This supports the idea that galaxy clusters grow at the intersection of cosmic filaments, shedding light on the structure of our universe.
A hyperactive fast radio burst source has been observed for thousands of hours using relatively small telescopes. The energy distribution of the brightest bursts detected suggests a possible link between repeating and apparently non-repeating burst sources.
The dark surface of Mercury can be explained by <1 wt% of microcrystalline graphite and similar amounts of Fe0. Low-reflectance materials may be secondary crust and carbon was not completely drained from the mantle during early differentiation.
When stars like our Sun die, they expel their outer layers in a dramatic stellar wind. This study of an unusual chemical signature in one particular stellar wind reveals that the signature is due to the presence of a binary system whose components had a close approach around 200 years ago.
