Astronomers discover unusual spindle-like galaxies

Astronomers discover unusual spindle-like galaxies

Using the CALIFA survey, astronomer Athanasia Tsatsi (Max Planck Institute for Astronomy) and her colleagues studied the spindle-like galaxies and found that these slender galaxies, which rotate along their longest axis, are much more common than previously thought….

An infrared atlas of interacting galaxies

An infrared atlas of interacting galaxies

Most galaxies, including our own Milky Way, have been influenced by an interaction with another galaxy at some time in their past. Interactions between galaxies can trigger an increase in star-formation activity as well an increased level of activity around the nuclear

Amazing timelapse video by Very Large Telescope

Amazing timelapse video by Very Large Telescope

This timelapse video shows the sky spinning over the Very Large Telescope observatory in Chile, one of the finest observatories in one of the darkest sites on the planet. Set the resolution to 720p to see it properly unpixelated. At 1:10 into the video, you see…

First cosmic census estimates there are 50 billion planets in Milky Way

First cosmic census estimates there are 50 billion planets in Milky Way

Scientists have estimated the first cosmic census of planets in our galaxy and the numbers are astronomical – at least 50 billion planets in the Milky Way. And some 500 million of those planets are in what is known as the Goldilocks zone, where the climate is thought