Astronomers are raising alarms over SpaceX’s Starlink satellite constellation, which is leaking unintended radio signals that could severely interfere with cosmic observations. While Starlink satellites are designed to beam internet across the globe, researchers have discovered that these spacecraft are also emitting low-level radio frequencies outside their intended transmission bands. This unintentional leakage could hinder the ability of radio telescopes to detect faint signals from the early universe, effectively masking some of the oldest and most distant cosmic phenomena.

Despite SpaceX’s efforts—like disabling signal beams over major observatories—the growing swarm of satellites continues to pose a challenge. With over 6,000 Starlink units already in orbit, and tens of thousands more planned, the scale of potential interference is massive. This issue underscores a rising conflict between tech innovation and scientific exploration, sparking urgent calls for stronger regulations and international coordination to protect the integrity of space-based astronomy.

#Starlink #AstronomyThreat #RadioInterference #SpaceScience #ProtectAstronomy

A Planet with Two Suns… and Endless Sandstorms!

Meet VHS 1256 b — a mysterious, fiery world located just 70 light-years away, orbiting a pair of stars.
Thanks to the James Webb Space Telescope, we now know this isn’t your typical exoplanet—it sits right on the edge between a giant planet and a brown dwarf.

Temperatures? Around 830°C (1,526°F).
Weather? Non-stop silicate sandstorms raging across its skies.

JWST's powerful instruments detected a mix of methane, carbon monoxide, water, and even signs of carbon dioxide—the most molecules ever detected at once in a single alien atmosphere!

Its skies are chaotic:

Heavy silicate grains sink back down.

Lighter particles ride up.
This vertical dance creates wild brightness swings over its 22-hour day—like watching an alien sunset on fast-forward.

And because VHS 1256 b orbits far from its two stars, its light can be studied in isolation, giving astronomers an unfiltered view of its dynamic, dusty atmosphere.

But the biggest mystery?
Did it form like a planet—or like a star?
We still don’t know.

RESEARCH PAPER:
Brittany E. Miles et al., The Astrophysical Journal Letters, 2023

#JamesWebb #Exoplanets #VHS1256b #AstronomyNews #BrownDwarf #PlanetWithTwoSuns #SpaceWeather

A groundbreaking study suggests that our early Sun may have been encircled by massive rings of dust—structures that shaped the very layout of our Solar System and may have prevented Earth from becoming a super-Earth.

According to researchers, these dusty rings were created by pressure “bumps”—high-pressure zones caused as particles spiraled inward, heated up, and released gases through vaporization.

These zones formed sublimation lines, where materials like silicates, water ice, and carbon monoxide turned from solid to gas. As a result, dust got trapped instead of falling into the Sun, clumping into planetesimals—the seeds of planets.

Simulations showed that:

The inner ring gave rise to Mercury, Venus, Earth, and Mars

The middle ring helped birth the gas giants

The outer ring contributed to comets, asteroids, and Kuiper Belt objects

Interestingly, had the middle ring formed a bit later, more material could have gathered in the inner Solar System—potentially allowing super-Earths to form. Their absence is one of the mysteries that sets our planetary system apart from others across the galaxy.

RESEARCH PAPER
Andre Izidoro et al., Planetesimal rings as the cause of the Solar System’s planetary architecture, Nature Astronomy (2022)

WASP-121 b, an exoplanet located 855 light-years from Earth, is one of the most extreme worlds ever discovered. This scorching hot Jupiter is tidally locked to its star, with one side eternally scorched and the other cloaked in night.

On its blistering day side, temperatures soar above 3,000 K (2,700°C / 4,900°F), while the night side cools to around 1,500 K (1,226°C / 2,240°F). This dramatic contrast fuels violent winds that rip across the planet at incredible speeds, dragging atoms and water molecules from day to night.

On the cooler night side, metal clouds begin to form—composed of vanadium, iron, chromium, calcium, sodium, magnesium, and nickel. Scientists believe aluminum and oxygen may bond to create corundum—the mineral that, when laced with traces of other metals, forms liquid rubies and sapphires that may rain down from the sky.

Researchers aim to use the James Webb Space Telescope to search for carbon monoxide, unlocking new clues about the formation of hot Jupiters like WASP-121 b.

RESEARCH PAPER
Thomas Mikal-Evans et al., Diurnal variations in the stratosphere of the ultrahot giant exoplanet WASP-121b, Nature Astronomy (2022)

Earth, a tiny blue dot framed by Saturn’s majestic rings.

#EarthFromSpace #SaturnRings #Astronomy