60Year

NASA Administrator Bill Nelson inaugurated a new Earth Information Center at NASA Headquarters in Washington, which will serve both as a physical and virtual space for demonstrating how NASA’s extensive data can enhance lives by addressing disasters, environmental issues, and changes in our world. The center provides insights from NASA’s 60-year-long Earth-monitoring initiatives about diverse topics such as sea level rise, air quality, wildfires, greenhouse gases, energy, and agriculture. Credit: NASA<span…

Since their discovery 60 years ago, quasars have often been considered the brightest, most powerful objects in space. Despite decades of studying them, researchers have never understood what caused these bright events. A new study could finally shed light on the mysterious origins of quasars and how they form. The new study is published in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society, and in it researchers detail how quasars form when galaxies collide. This mystery of what triggers the brilliant and…

Illustration of a quasar and galaxy surrounding the quasar. Quasars, the Universe’s brightest and most powerful objects, are ignited by galaxy collisions, according to research by scientists at the Universities of Sheffield and Hertfordshire. This discovery provides crucial insights into understanding how quasars are triggered and fueled, contributing to our knowledge of the Universe’s history and the future of the Milky Way. Credit: NASA, ESA, CSA, Joseph Olmsted (STScI)Scientists have unlocked one of the biggest…

A new shape has been discovered which would make for a pretty unique set of bathroom tiles. Nicknamed “the Hat,” the 13-sided shape can tesselate with itself without ever repeating a pattern, solving a 60-year-old mathematical mystery.This very niche milestone was made possible by David Smith, a self-proclaimed tiling enthusiast from Yorkshire, England. Along with many others in the community, Smith had been hunting for a specific kind of shape called an aperiodic monotile or an “einstein.” That name has nothing to do…

As the DC fandom heals itself after last week’s tumultuous torrent of shocking updates, online detectives think they might’ve discovered one character James Gunn is sure to bring back to the fore in order to terrorize the Justice League. Elsewhere in the DC multiverse, Lady Gaga fans are aghast after a particularly dispiriting Joker 2 update. Meanwhile, Andor falls under a recurring Disney era Star Wars curse as Doctor Who breaks a big record. Let’s crack on… DC fans play at being Batman and may have uncovered a villain…

Solar flares and coronal mass ejections on the sun are caused by “magnetic reconnection”—when magnetic field lines of opposite directions merge, rejoin, and snap apart, creating explosions that release massive amounts of energy. Credit: NASA Conceptual Image LaboratoryIn just minutes, a flare on the Sun can release enough energy to power the entire world for 20,000 years. These solar flares are triggered by an explosive process known as magnetic reconnection, and scientists have spent the last half-century attempting to…