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The behaviour of minerals under high pressure affects the bulk properties of exoplanets and planets with rocky components, possibly influencing their observable radii. Obtaining a wide range of experimental data is key to understanding observations and informing planetary interior models.
Turmoil has engulfed the solar community for decades about which physical mechanisms are sufficient to trigger and drive solar eruptions. New high-resolution numerical magnetohydrodynamic simulations bring an old idea back into the light: the reconnection jet from the tether-cutting model.
Novel observational evidence appears to confirm that when mass is supplied to massive black holes at low rates, only a fraction is actually accreted. Much of the gas may be lost in a low-speed magnetohydrodynamic wind.
The fate of galaxies is predominantly determined by their dark matter halo mass. However, recent simulations confirm an important role for the formation history, revealing an intricate relation between galaxies’ central supermassive black holes and the colours of their hosts.
Observations from the brand-new CHEOPS mission reveal a third long-period transiting planet around the naked-eye star ν2 Lupi. Precise measurements of the masses and radii of planets around this star show a diversity of planetary compositions possibly ranging from bare rock to a significant volatile atmosphere.
The short lifespan of software puts a time limit on the reproducibility of computational research. To extend software longevity, guidelines and tools to preserve scientific workflows and analysis are helpful, but the challenge is to get researchers to use them.
Cassini measurements suggest hydrothermal activity on Enceladus that could support methanogenesis. Bayesian analysis of models simulating an abiotic or biotic ocean indicates the latter is more probable so long as abiogenesis is sufficiently likely to occur.
The short and regular bursts in massive black hole systems known as quasi-periodic eruptions have intrigued — and puzzled — astronomers since their discovery. Two such sources recently discovered by SRG/eROSITA suggest that they could be the electromagnetic counterparts to a type of gravitational-wave sources called extreme mass-ratio inspirals.
The detection of two transition metals in the remnant of a supernova lends support to a mechanism for the explosion of a massive star called the neutrino-driven convective supernova engine, where a plume of hot material re-invigorates a stalled shockwave.
Modelling future trajectories in astrophysics finds it will take 60 years before women form even a third of academic workforces. Targets and affirmative action reduce the wait, but systemic cultural change is needed for more immediate equity.
Planets assemble by energetic collisions between rocky bodies, releasing energy sufficient to generate primitive atmospheres. New laboratory experiments capture this process in action by direct measurement of gases released from heated meteorites.
Tidal disruption events are an excellent probe for supermassive black holes in distant inactive galaxies because they emit bright multi-wavelength flares that last several months to years. AT2019dsg represents the first potential association of neutrino emission with such an explosive event.
The largest ever simulation of astrophysical turbulence substantially improves our understanding of how energy injection on large interstellar scales governs how stars form on small scales.
