Using data from the NASA/ESA/CSA James Webb Space Telescope, astronomers have discovered that IRS 3—a bloated giant star orbiting just 0.55 light-years from the Milky Way’s central supermassive black hole, Sagittarius A*—is actively forging silicate dust and harboring water molecules despite one of the most extreme radiation environments in the galaxy, according to a study … Read more
The AGN Channel: A New Theory for Planet and Star Formation Astronomers have identified a novel environment for celestial formation: the dust-rich tori surrounding active galactic nuclei (AGN). According to research published in the Astrophysical Journal, these energetic cores—powered by feeding supermassive black holes—may host millions of planetary-mass objects. A team from New Mexico State … Read more
Astronomers using the James Webb Space Telescope have identified a strange red object dating from 660 million years after the Big Bang that MIT researchers believe is a newly identified class of object: a black hole star, a massive black hole wrapped in a dense hydrogen gas cocoon that shines with the power of 100 … Read more