Astronomy

Ever since the first protoplanetary disk was discovered in 1984 around the star Beta Pictoris, these objects have presented astronomers with laboratories to study the births and evolution of worlds around distant stars. A team at France's National Center for Scientific Research (CNRS) and the University of Bordeaux, made a breakthrough in understanding these planetary birthplaces when they directly observed the rotation of a protoplanetary disk around the young star AB Aurigae.

A team in the US has reported promising results after using an improved form of CRISPR to gene-edit human embryos, but a major issue remains unsolved

A team in the US has reported promising results after using an improved form of CRISPR to gene-edit human embryos, but a major issue remains unsolved

Using data from NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope, astronomers led by researchers at the University of California, Riverside have produced the most detailed map of the cosmic web ever made, tracing the network of galaxies all the way back to when the universe was one billion years old.

According to theory, all active black holes should produce winds or jets. Astronomers have long searched for wind around the Milky Way’s central supermassive black hole. New images reveal a vacant, cone-shaped region pointing to the black hole. According to new research, only a supermassive black hole could've created this region.

The maker of Claude wants AI labs, including itself, to prepare for a coordinated slowdown if models begin building their own successors

Stephen Hawking predicted that stars can capture primordial black holes (PBH). The PBH find their way to the stellar core, creating a Hawking star. There are two possible outcomes, both deadly for the star. Either it explodes rapidly, or it's slowly consumed by the parasitic PBH.

Scientists warn that the Trump administration's push to dismantle a vital network of ocean-sensing instruments will stymie crucial weather and climate monitoring in the Pacific and Atlantic

Scientists warn that the Trump administration's push to dismantle a vital network of ocean-sensing instruments will stymie crucial weather and climate monitoring in the Pacific and Atlantic

A year after America’s first spacewalk, Gemini IX-A Eugene Cernan stepped outside his spacecraft for an ambitious extravehicular activity scheduled for 167 minutes. The challenges he faced led NASA to reevaluate plans, equipment, and training for future spacewalks.

NASA ordered its astronauts to take refuge inside a docked SpaceX Crew Dragon spacecraft and to prepare for potential evacuation of the International Space Station. But the crew returned to normal operations shortly afterward

The modern world depends on open-source software maintained by volunteers, but the added demands of checking and fixing AI-written submissions are causing some to burn out and quit

The modern world depends on open-source software maintained by volunteers, but the added demands of checking and fixing AI-written submissions are causing some to burn out and quit

Mice that contain cells with an added rat chromosome have been created by scientists. The next step is to try this with frozen elephant tissue – and if that works, the team will try it with frozen mammoths

Mice that contain cells with an added rat chromosome have been created by scientists. The next step is to try this with frozen elephant tissue – and if that works, the team will try it with frozen mammoths

The FDA’s ongoing review of mifepristone could skip over established science, health experts warn

Week in images: 01-05 Jun 2026

Discover our week through the lens

Video: 00:02:40

English

How does Europe study the Sun? Discover the missions revealing the secrets of our closest star, from SOHO and Solar Orbiter to Proba-3, which is creating artificial solar eclipses in space to unlock new insights into the Sun's mysterious corona.

Featuring ESA Reserve Astronaut Sara García Alonso.

Spanish 

¿Cómo se estudia el Sol desde Europa? Acompaña a Sara García Alonso en un recorrido por las misiones de la ESA que observan nuestra estrella, desde SOHO y Solar Orbiter hasta Proba-3, que está creando eclipses solares artificiales en el espacio para investigar la misteriosa corona solar.

Con Sara García Alonso, astronauta de reserva de la ESA.