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Did ancient space weather influence how early humans lived?

In an exciting blend of archaeology and geophysics, researchers are uncovering how ancient cosmic events shaped human progress. Did spectacular auroras and invisible radiation 41,000 years ago push our ancestors to change their very lifestyles and survival strategies? Let’s explore the profound effects of space weather on early human existence.

Sandeep K S

Jul 20

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JWST's cosmic revelation exposes an 'overmassive' black hole within what seemed to be an ordinary young galaxy, challenging previous theories of synchronized growth by showing how black holes can outpace their host galaxies.

Meet Virgil, the galaxy that is rewriting black hole history

In visible light, it looks like a normal galaxy. In infrared, it reveals a monster. Meet Virgil, the galaxy that is rewriting black hole history. Before JWST, astronomers believed galaxies grew first, nurturing small black holes that grew slowly over time. Virgil breaks this rule. Its black hole is "Overmassive"—far larger than its host galaxy should be able to support. It's like finding a skyscraper engine inside a compact car.

The fiery illustration of exoplanet TOI-561 b shows a tidally locked world with an intense magma ocean, orbiting its star in under 11 hours. This ancient, iron-poor planet features a volatile-rich atmosphere, resulting in unexpectedly low density and a puzzling temperature disparity observed by Webb.

JWST has found evidence of a thick atmosphere on the ultra-hot Super-Earth TOI-561 b

JWST has found evidence of a thick atmosphere on the ultra-hot Super-Earth TOI-561 b, challenging the idea that such close-in worlds are barren rocks. TOI-561 b is an "Ultra-Short Period" planet, orbiting its star in less than 11 hours. It is tidally locked, meaning one side faces the star forever.

Illustration depicting the discovery of a cosmic particle outflow from Westerlund 1, featuring a TeV ring detected by the H.E.S.S. telescope and a GeV gamma-ray signal located by the Fermi telescope. An unexplained "tail" connects these phenomena, illustrating high-energy electrons creating a nascent outflow.

Westerlund 1 is the biggest star cluster in our galaxy.

Westerlund 1 is the biggest star cluster in our galaxy. New data reveals it acts as a colossal particle accelerator, blasting a hole through the Milky Way's disk.

Discovering the ancient supernova SN 2025wny, 10 billion light-years away, sheds light on dark energy. This cosmic explosion is exceptionally bright, with gravitational lensing by an intervening galaxy bending its light and creating multiple images. The varied light paths reveal crucial data, helping solve the Hubble tension by recalculating the universe's expansion rate.

A supernova from 10 billion years ago solved the mystery of the universe's expansion rate

A rare, magnified supernova from 10 billion years ago might finally solve the mystery of the universe's expansion rate. We know the universe is expanding, but we don't agree on how fast. This disagreement is called the Hubble Tension. Early Universe (CMB): Says ~67 km/s/Mpc. Late Universe (Supernovae): Says ~73 km/s/Mpc. SN 2025wny is a "Goldilocks" object. It's an independent test. By measuring the time delay between its lensed images, we can calculate the expansion rate d

Recent studies highlight how interactions with cosmic environments cause galaxies to exhibit "S" and "U" shaped warps, driven by the clustering and alignment of satellite galaxies with cosmic filaments. This evidence points to cosmic tides as the key force shaping these large-scale structures.

Galaxies aren't always flat disks. Many are warped, bent by invisible forces.

Galaxies aren't always flat disks. Many are warped, bent by invisible forces. New research links these shapes to the satellite galaxies that surround them. Using data from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey, researchers led by Prof. Woong-bae Zee examined hundreds of warped galaxies. They compared them to a "control group" of flat galaxies. The goal: To see if the neighbors (satellite galaxies) had anything to do with the warping.