Could the mysteries of antimatter and dark matter be linked?

Could the profound mysteries of antimatter and dark matter be linked? Thinking that they might be, scientists from the international BASE collaboration, led by Stefan Ulmer of the RIKEN Cluster for Pioneering Research, and collaborators have performed the first laboratory experiments to determine whether a slightly different way in which matter and antimatter interact with … Read more

Western-led team investigates interstellar bodies originating from beyond our solar system

Astonishingly, not one but two interstellar asteroids have been detected entering our solar system since 2017. The first was given the Hawaiian name ‘Oumuamua, meaning ‘messenger from afar,’ after its discovery by Canadian astronomer Robert Weryk. The second, 2I/Borisov, was named for its discoverer Gennadiy Borisov. Paul Wiegert from Western University’s Institute for Earth & … Read more

New cracks in the cosmological scenario

An international research team has found strong discordances between astrophysical data, revealing a cosmological crisis where disparate observed properties of the Universe appear to be mutually inconsistent. The discovery, recently published in the journal Nature Astronomy, pointed out that the new, precise measurements of Cosmic Microwave Background anisotropies made by the Planck satellite strongly prefer … Read more

Researchers apply the squeeze to better detect stellar-mass black holes

Stellar-mass black holes are formed by the gravitational collapse of a star. Their collisions are some of the most violent events in the universe, creating gravitational waves or ripples in space-time. These ripples are miniscule and detected using laser interferometers. Until now, many signals have been drowned out by so-called quantum noise on the laser … Read more

ESO telescope reveals what could be the smallest dwarf planet yet in the solar system

Astronomers using ESO’s SPHERE instrument at the Very Large Telescope (VLT) have revealed that the asteroid Hygiea could be classified as a dwarf planet. The object is the fourth largest in the asteroid belt after Ceres, Vesta and Pallas. For the first time, astronomers have observed Hygiea in sufficiently high resolution to study its surface … Read more

Eliciting an energetic secret from the Crab Nebula

The Crab Nebula is the remnant of a supernova in our Galaxy which was observed almost 1000 years ago. Although it corresponds to one of the most studied celestial objects, its extension in very high energy gamma-rays has up to now remained unknown. The international team of scientists of the H.E.S.S. telescopes now finally succeeded … Read more