The sun s influence over the solar system and life on Earth is undeniable, but what is the mass of the sun in terms of the material it contains, and how will this change over time?
Imagine three stars orbiting each other in deep space with each of them being the size of at least 12 suns! That is the discovery that has become a popular topic among astronomers who are looking to use the information to understand the cosmos a bit better.
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The Atlantic
They have noticed something intriguing coming from the direction of Proxima Centauri.
Ian Waldie / Alamy
Last month, as 2020 drew to a close and we on Earth completed one of our strangest orbits around the sun, news broke that astronomers had picked up a mysterious signal from another star.
Astronomers could tell, from the specific properties of the beam of radio waves, that it wasn’t made by an act of nature, such as a cosmic explosion. The signal coming from the star’s direction was produced by technology.
The signal, known as BLC1, was intriguing, but when news of its detection leaked to
Illustration shows how the star s motion around the center of mass between it and the planet causes a wobble in its motion through space. The VLBA s ability to detect this minuscule effect revealed the presence of the planet.
Itâs been a year of adaptation for everyone. The pandemic has upended many of the ways we function as an organization, from the easy communication gleaned from informal office chats to how our crews might implement a configuration change moving many of the Very Large Array’s 230-ton antennas (adding many employee safety protocols). There were unanticipated events that had to be addressed on the fly: ALMA Observatory had to shut down its 66-antenna array in March. And there was a much anticipated celebrationâthe Very Large Array turned 40 on October 10! The commemoration of this amazing milestone (the VLA is one of the most productive ground-based radio telescopes ever) had to be reconfigured by our STEAM Education team, from an in-person