Astronomy and astrophysics articles within Nature Communications

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  • Article
    | Open Access

    Nearly a century after dark matter was proposed, yet its nature remains elusive. Here, authors present their dark photon dark matter search results using two atomic magnetometer arrays 1700 km apart in large magnetic shields and offer the strongest terrestrial constraint in this mass range to date.

    • Min Jiang
    • , Taizhou Hong
    •  & Jiangfeng Du

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) waves observed on the Sun help understanding solar plasma and involved processes. Here, the authors show resolved MHD waves in the solar corona displaying MHD lensing effect.

    • Xinping Zhou
    • , Yuandeng Shen
    •  & Chengrui Zhou

  • Article
    | Open Access

    The interstellar medium (ISM) is critical to galaxy evolution. Here, the authors show dust processing modelling applied to magnetohydrodynamic simulations to explicitly follow dust destruction by the combined effects of grain-grain collisions and ion-sputtering induced by a supernova blast wave in a turbulent multiphase, magnetized ISM.

    • Florian Kirchschlager
    • , Lars Mattsson
    •  & Frederick A. Gent

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Astrocombs serve as precision calibrators for astrophysical spectrographs by providing a regular sequence of optical lines on a multi-GHz grid. Here, the authors report the first broadband astrocomb in the UV to blue-green spectral region, where stellar absorption lines are most abundant.

    • Yuk Shan Cheng
    • , Kamalesh Dadi
    •  & Derryck T. Reid

  • Article
    | Open Access

    The current understanding of the origin and properties of cluster magnetic fields is limited by observational challenges. Here, the authors show that magnetic field orientations of galaxy clusters, including radio relic and radio halos, can be derived via combination of synchrotron intensity gradient technique with radio observations.

    • Yue Hu
    • , C. Stuardi
    •  & Ka Wai Ho

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Hypothetical dark photon (DP) dark matter (DM) and axion DM might resonantly convert into electromagnetic waves in the solar corona. Here, the authors show upper limits on the axion-photon coupling and on the kinetic mixing coupling of DPDM and photon within 30-80 MHz in the solar corona radio observations.

    • Haipeng An
    • , Xingyao Chen
    •  & Yan Luo

  • Article
    | Open Access

    A fundamental feature of planetary magnetospheres is internal convection induced by surrounding solar wind. Here, authors offer insights into the interplay among solar wind, magnetosphere, and ionosphere, and evidence a dayside-driven convection pattern linked to magnetic-field-aligned currents.

    • Lei Dai
    • , Minghui Zhu
    •  & Graziella Branduardi-Raymont

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Probing molecules in excited vibrational states requires precise methods to extract the spectroscopic parameters. Here the authors demonstrate optical-optical double-resonance spectroscopy of excited-bands of methane using single pass high power continuous wave pump and cavity-enhanced frequency comb probe.

    • Vinicius Silva de Oliveira
    • , Isak Silander
    •  & Aleksandra Foltynowicz

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Gamma-ray observations indicate that cosmic voids may host magnetic fields. Here, the authors show that relics of fields from the early Universe could be consistent with these observations if their decay is mediated by magnetic reconnection and conserves the mean square fluctuation level of magnetic helicity.

    • David N. Hosking
    •  & Alexander A. Schekochihin

  • Comment
    | Open Access

    The exploration of our solar system is being radically changed since the beginning of operations of the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) in mid 2022. JWST’s extraordinary sensitivity and instrumentation allow for sensitive searches for the building blocks of life and to test for habitability, also enabling new discoveries on small bodies to giant planets across our solar system and beyond.

    • G. L. Villanueva
    •  & S. N. Milam

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Models predict that giant planets should easily form around solar-type stars, but most radial velocity surveys found a rather low number of them. Here, the authors show that Jupiter-like planets may be more common than previously found, at least in low density environments.

    • Raffaele Gratton
    • , Dino Mesa
    •  & Elisabetta Rigliaco

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Axions are hypothetical particles that constitute leading candidates for the identity of dark matter. Here, the authors improve previous exclusion bounds on axion-like particles in the range of 1.4–200 peV, and report direct terrestrial limits on the coupling of protons and neutrons with axion-like dark matter.

    • Itay M. Bloch
    • , Roy Shaham
    •  & Or Katz

  • Article
    | Open Access

    It is interesting and important to understand how the properties of nuclei and their stability change with temperature. Here the authors report their theoretical study of hot nuclei and the drip lines that limit the nuclear existence at finite temperature.

    • Ante Ravlić
    • , Esra Yüksel
    •  & Nils Paar

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Blue Stragglers Stars (BSSs) are anomalously luminous main sequence stars in clusters. Here, the authors show evidence that the fraction of fast rotating BSSs increases for decreasing central density of the host system, suggesting fast spinning BSSs prefer low-density environments.

    • Francesco R. Ferraro
    • , Alessio Mucciarelli
    •  & Mario Mateo

  • Article
    | Open Access

    The origin of the diffuse gamma-ray background (DGRB) is unknown. Here, the authors show that the integrated gamma-ray flux from clusters can contribute up to 100% of the DGRB flux observed by Fermi-LAT above 100 GeV.

    • Saqib Hussain
    • , Rafael Alves Batista
    •  & Klaus Dolag

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Low stellar ultraviolet (UV) radiation leads to low ozone abundances, therefore, less planetary UV protection. Here, the authors show that planets in the habitable zones of metal-poor stars, despite their higher UV radiation than metal-rich stars, are the best targets for search for life.

    • Anna V. Shapiro
    • , Christoph Brühl
    •  & Jos Lelieveld

  • Comment
    | Open Access

    A long-standing issue in astrobiology is whether planets orbiting the most abundant type of stars, M-dwarfs, can support liquid water and eventually life. A new study shows that subglacial melting may provide an answer, significantly extending the habitability region, in particular around M-dwarf stars, which are also the most promising for biosignature detection with the present and near-future technology.

    • Amri Wandel

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Nanobowls represent building blocks of fullerenes and nanotubes as detected in combustion systems and deep space, but their formation mechanisms in these environments have remained elusive. Here, the authors explore the gas-phase formation of benzocorannulene and beyond to the C40 nanobowl.

    • Lotefa B. Tuli
    • , Shane J. Goettl
    •  & Ralf I. Kaiser

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Active field theories are powerful tools to explain phenomena such as motility-induced phase separation. The authors report an active analogue to the quantum mechanics tunneling effect, showing similarity to the Schrödinger equation, by introducing an extended model applicable to active particles with inertia.

    • Michael te Vrugt
    • , Tobias Frohoff-Hülsmann
    •  & Raphael Wittkowski

  • Article
    | Open Access

    The origins of the pair of X-ray bubbles, called eROSITA bubbles (eRBs), detected in the halo of Milky Way are debated. Here, the authors show hydrodynamical simulations suggesting circumgalactic medium wind model can explain asymmetric eRBs.

    • Guobin Mou
    • , Dongze Sun
    •  & Zhicheng He

  • Article
    | Open Access

    The abundances of small Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (PAHs) observed in interstellar clouds has surprised astronomers and confounded astrochemical models. Here, the authors show that fast radiative cooling by Recurrent Fluorescence efficiently stabilizes the small PAH cation 1-cyanonaphthalene.

    • Mark H. Stockett
    • , James N. Bull
    •  & Boxing Zhu

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Magnetized plasmas display continuous spectra of current-sheet equilibria. How they select a particular equilibrium is not well understood. Now, equilibrium selection in magnetized plasmas is studied by analytical theory, particle-in-cell simulations and spacecraft observations, highlighting the role of current-sheet relaxation processes.

    • Young Dae Yoon
    • , Deirdre E. Wendel
    •  & Gunsu S. Yun

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Red giant stars enter the clump phase as the helium in the cores start fusing. Here, the authors show evidence for large core structural discontinuities in 7% of Kepler satellite clump star data implying that the mixing region beyond the convective core boundary has a radiative thermal stratification.

    • Mathieu Vrard
    • , Margarida S. Cunha
    •  & Benoît Mosser

  • Article
    | Open Access

    One of the possible events signaling a neutrinoless double beta decay is a Xe atom decaying into a Ba ion and two electrons. Aiming at the realisation of a detector for such a process, the authors show that Ba ions can be efficiently trapped (chelated) in vacuum by an organic molecule layer on a surface.

    • P. Herrero-Gómez
    • , J. P. Calupitan
    •  & J. T. White

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Liquid water is key for life as we know it. Here, the authors show even with a modest geothermal heat flow, subglacial oceans of liquid water can form at the base of and within the ice sheets on exo-Earths, which may provide habitable conditions for an extended period.

    • Lujendra Ojha
    • , Bryce Troncone
    •  & George McDonald

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Breaking of Lorentz symmetry is related to the unification of fundamental forces and the extension of the standard model. Here the authors provide updated bounds on the Lorentz violation, by using measurements with trapped Yb+ ion, that represent an improvement over existing results.

    • Laura S. Dreissen
    • , Chih-Han Yeh
    •  & Tanja E. Mehlstäubler

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Haloscopes aim at detecting axions by converting them into photons using high-quality resonant cavities, where the cavity resonance should be tuned with the unknown axion mass. Here, the authors improve exclusion limits using four phase-matched resonant cavities and a fast frequency scanning technique.

    • C. M. Adair
    • , K. Altenmüller
    •  & K. Zioutas

  • Article
    | Open Access

    The origin of the plateau observed in the early X-ray light curves of gamma ray bursts (GRBs) is debated. Here, the authors show that the observed plateau can be explained within the classical GRB model by considering expanding shell with initial Lorentz factor of a few tens.

    • Hüsne Dereli-Bégué
    • , Asaf Pe’er
    •  & Maria G. Dainotti

  • Article
    | Open Access

    The classical stellar evolution concept assumes that when the stars arrive on the main sequence, there is no traceable mark remains about their early evolutionary history. Here, the authors show that the accretion history leaves an imprint on the interior structure of the stars that are potentially detectable via asteroseismology.

    • Thomas Steindl
    • , Konstanze Zwintz
    •  & Eduard Vorobyov

  • Article
    | Open Access

    It is known that cosmic rays could be accelerated by shock waves in supernova (SN) remnants. Here, the authors show that SN 1006 remnant is an efficient source of cosmic rays, providing observational support for the quasi-parallel acceleration mechanism.

    • Roberta Giuffrida
    • , Marco Miceli
    •  & Giovanni Peres

  • Article
    | Open Access

    The triple-alpha process plays a role in nucleosynthesis, in the formation of 12C. Here, the authors discuss the rate and role of the neutron upscattering phenomenon on the triple-alpha process in a multi-step process.

    • J. Bishop
    • , C. E. Parker
    •  & C. Wheldon

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Co-existence of several magnetohydrodynamic oscillations modes on the Sun were predicted earlier. Here, the authors show large-scale coherent oscillations in a sunspot, with a spectrum different than solar global acoustic oscillations, incorporating a superposition of many resonant wave modes.

    • M. Stangalini
    • , G. Verth
    •  & C. D. MacBride

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Direct dark matter searches need to take into account whether the total observation time is lower than the characteristic coherence time of the DM field. Analysing this generally overlooked scenario, here the authors quantify the impact on DM limits of the stochastic nature of the virialised ultralight field.

    • Gary P. Centers
    • , John W. Blanchard
    •  & Andrei Derevianko

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Ion storage rings allow reactions to be studied over orders of magnitude in time, bridging the gap between typical experimental and astronomical timescales. Here the authors observe that polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon fragments produced upon collision with He atoms at velocities typical of stellar winds and supernova shockwaves remain intact up to second timescales, thus may play an important role in interstellar chemistry.

    • Michael Gatchell
    • , João Ameixa
    •  & Henning Zettergren

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Galactic center is one of the most important cosmic-ray sources. Here, the authors show GeV-TeV cosmic ray density in the central molecular zone is lower than the cosmic ray sea component, suggesting presence of high energy particle accelerator at the galactic center and existence of barrier.

    • Xiaoyuan Huang
    • , Qiang Yuan
    •  & Yi-Zhong Fan

  • Article
    | Open Access

    Understanding the source of vibrationally excited molecular hydrogen is an essential prerequisite for understanding the chemical evolution in the universe. Here the authors report a photodissociation pathway to produce vibrationally excited H2 via the water photochemistry.

    • Yao Chang
    • , Feng An
    •  & Xueming Yang

  • Article
    | Open Access

    The photodissociation dynamics of small molecules in the vacuum ultraviolet range can have key implications for astrochemical modelling, but revealing such dynamical details is a challenging task. Here the authors, combining high resolution experimental techniques, provide a detailed description of the fragmentation dynamics of selected rotational levels of a predissociated Rydberg state of H2S.

    • Yarui Zhao
    • , Zijie Luo
    •  & Xueming Yang

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