Astronomers have directly imaged a massive planet orbiting two stars
Sandeep K S
Dec 14, 2025
1 min read
Astronomers have directly imaged a record-breaking "Tatooine-like" exoplanet orbiting two suns. Discovered through decade-old data analysis of the Gemini Planet Imager, this young giant planet, six times the size of Jupiter, orbits six times closer to its binary stars than any similar planets. The stars orbit each other every 18 days, while the planet takes 300 years to complete its orbit.
Scientists have uncovered the first robust evidence of a black hole and neutron star crashing together while orbiting in an oval path, challenging long-standing assumptions about cosmic pair formation.
Most neutron star-black hole pairs are expected to adopt circular orbits long before merging, their orbits slowly rounded out by the constant emission of gravitational waves over millions of years.
Far from the warmth of any star, moons orbiting rogue gas giants might harbor oceans of liquid water—and potentially complex life—for billions of years.
Liquid water is considered essential for life. Surprisingly, however, stable conditions that are conducive to life could exist far from any sun.
Look up on a clear night and you'll see the streaks of our modern satellite networks. What you don't see is the growing fallout for the atmosphere that keeps us alive.
A wave of satellite launches and reentries is changing the chemistry and physics of the middle and upper atmosphere. Studies warn of ozone depletion, stratospheric heating, and new metal aerosols from burning spacecraft.
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