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<title><![CDATA[Universe Today]]></title>
<description><![CDATA[Space and Astronomy News from Universe Today]]></description>
<link>https://www.universetoday.com</link>
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<title><![CDATA[For the First Time, Scientists Detect Molecule Critical to Life in Interstellar Space]]></title>
<link>https://www.universetoday.com/articles/for-the-first-time-scientists-detect-molecule-critical-to-life-in-interstellar-space</link>
<guid isPermaLink="true">https://www.universetoday.com/articles/for-the-first-time-scientists-detect-molecule-critical-to-life-in-interstellar-space</guid>
<pubDate>Sat, 31 Jan 2026 00:12:41 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator><![CDATA[Matthew Williams]]></dc:creator>
<author>Matthew Williams (https://www.universetoday.com/authors/houseofwilliams)</author>
<description><![CDATA[<p><img src="https://www.universetoday.com/article_images/original_20260131_000957.jpg" alt="In the heart of our Galaxy, scientists discovered the first sulfur-bearing six-membered ring molecule hiding in an interstellar cloud. Credit & ©: MPE/ NASA/JPL-Caltech" width="1280" height="720" /></p><p>For the first time, a complex, ring-shaped molecule containing 13 atomsâincluding sulfurâhas been detected in interstellar space, based on laboratory measurements. The discovery closes a critical gap by linking simple chemistry in space with the complex organic building blocks found in comets and meteorites. This represents a major step toward explaining the cosmic origins of the chemistry of life.</p>]]></description>
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<item>
<title><![CDATA[Cracks on Europa Sport Traces of Ammonia]]></title>
<link>https://www.universetoday.com/articles/cracks-on-europa-sport-traces-of-ammonia</link>
<guid isPermaLink="true">https://www.universetoday.com/articles/cracks-on-europa-sport-traces-of-ammonia</guid>
<pubDate>Sat, 31 Jan 2026 00:07:08 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator><![CDATA[Carolyn Collins Petersen]]></dc:creator>
<author>Carolyn Collins Petersen (https://www.universetoday.com/authors/cc-petersen)</author>
<description><![CDATA[<p><img src="https://www.universetoday.com/article_images/PIA26546_20260130_235104.png" alt="Red pixels mark places on Europaâs surface where ammonia-bearing compounds were detected by the Galileo spacecraft. Purple indicates no such detection. NASA/JPL-Caltech" width="1280" height="720" /></p><p>The search for life-supporting worlds in the Solar System includes the Jovian moon Europa. Yes, it's an iceberg of a world, but underneath its frozen exterior lies a deep, salty ocean and a nickel-iron core. It's heated by tidal flexing, and that puts pressure on the interior ocean, sending water and salts to the surface. As things turn out, there's also evidence of ammonia-bearing compounds on the surface. All these things combine to provide a fascinating look at Europa's geology and potential as a haven for life.</p>]]></description>
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<item>
<title><![CDATA["Red Geyser" Galaxies Have Plenty of Star-Forming Gas But Don't Form Stars]]></title>
<link>https://www.universetoday.com/articles/red-geyser-galaxies-have-plenty-of-star-forming-gas-but-dont-form-stars</link>
<guid isPermaLink="true">https://www.universetoday.com/articles/red-geyser-galaxies-have-plenty-of-star-forming-gas-but-dont-form-stars</guid>
<pubDate>Fri, 30 Jan 2026 22:27:54 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator><![CDATA[Evan Gough]]></dc:creator>
<author>Evan Gough (https://www.universetoday.com/authors/ion23drive)</author>
<description><![CDATA[<p><img src="https://www.universetoday.com/article_images/red-geyser-galaxies_20260130_222237.jpg" alt="These illustrations show what happens to prevent Red Geyser galaxies from forming new stars. Mergers can send clouds of cool gas toward a galaxy's center. The gas can feed the galaxy's black hole so that the black hole's feedback heats up the gas. Hot gas is the enemy of star formation, so despite having plenty of gas, Red Geysers are quenched. Image Credit: UC Santa Cruz" width="1280" height="720" /></p><p>Red Geysers are an unusual class of galaxy that contain only old stars. Despite having plenty of star-forming gas, Red Geysers are quenched. Astronomers have mapped the flow of gas in these galaxies and figure out why they're dormant.</p>]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[New Measurements of Europa's Ice Shell Taint the Icy Moon's Potential Habitability]]></title>
<link>https://www.universetoday.com/articles/nasas-juno-measures-thickness-of-europas-ice-shell</link>
<guid isPermaLink="true">https://www.universetoday.com/articles/nasas-juno-measures-thickness-of-europas-ice-shell</guid>
<pubDate>Fri, 30 Jan 2026 17:00:43 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator><![CDATA[Evan Gough]]></dc:creator>
<author>Evan Gough (https://www.universetoday.com/authors/ion23drive)</author>
<description><![CDATA[<p><img src="https://www.universetoday.com/article_images/e---IAXXXXX---Europa_Ice_CutAway-crop.width-1320_20260129_232427.jpg" alt="This illustration shows a cut-away view of Europa's icy shell, with the gas giant Jupiter in the background. New research shows that the icy shell is up to 39 km thick. That's a significant barrier to life-supporting surface chemicals reaching the ocean. Image Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/SwRI/Koji Kuramura/ Gerald Eichstädt (CC BY)" width="1280" height="720" /></p><p>Jupiter's icy moon Europa is a tantalizing target in the search for habitability in our Solar System. Its thick, global ice sheet overlies a warm, salty, chemically-rich ocean. But for life to exist in that ocean, nutrients need to find their way from the surface to the ocean. New research says that may be very difficult.</p>]]></description>
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<item>
<title><![CDATA[Boron Could Be Astrobiologyâs Unsung Hero]]></title>
<link>https://www.universetoday.com/articles/boron-could-be-astrobiologys-unsung-hero</link>
<guid isPermaLink="true">https://www.universetoday.com/articles/boron-could-be-astrobiologys-unsung-hero</guid>
<pubDate>Fri, 30 Jan 2026 16:25:00 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator><![CDATA[Bruce Dorminey]]></dc:creator>
<author>Bruce Dorminey (https://www.universetoday.com/authors/bruce)</author>
<description><![CDATA[<p><img src="https://www.universetoday.com/article_images/PIA14293_20260131_000810.jpg" alt="Daybreak at Mars'Gale Crater Credits: NASA/JPL-Caltech" width="1280" height="720" /></p><p>The light, rare element boron, better known as the primary component of borax, a longtime household cleaner, was almost mined to exhaustion in parts of the old American West. But boron could arguably be an unsung hero in cosmic astrobiology, although it's still not listed as one of the key elements needed for the onset of life.</p>]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[Perseverance Rover Discovers an Ancient Martian Beach, Complete with Waves]]></title>
<link>https://www.universetoday.com/articles/perseverance-rover-discovers-an-ancient-martian-beach-complete-with-waves</link>
<guid isPermaLink="true">https://www.universetoday.com/articles/perseverance-rover-discovers-an-ancient-martian-beach-complete-with-waves</guid>
<pubDate>Fri, 30 Jan 2026 15:06:00 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator><![CDATA[Andy Tomaswick]]></dc:creator>
<author>Andy Tomaswick (https://www.universetoday.com/authors/andy-tomaswick)</author>
<description><![CDATA[<p><img src="https://www.universetoday.com/article_images/3000X2000px_20260128_150610.webp" alt="Image of Perseverance's landing site in Jezero crater. Credit - Kevin Gill" width="1280" height="720" /></p><p>When the rover now named Perseverance landed in Jezero crater in early 2021, scientists already knew they had picked an interesting place to scope out. From space, they could see what looked like a bathtub ring around the crater, indicating there could once have been water there. But there was some debate about what exactly that meant, and itâs taken almost five years to settle it. A new paper from PhD student Alex Jones at Imperial College London and his co-authors has definitively settled the debate on the source of that feature - part of it was once a beach.</p>]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[A Laser Ruler for Sharper Black Hole Images]]></title>
<link>https://www.universetoday.com/articles/a-laser-ruler-for-sharper-black-hole-images</link>
<guid isPermaLink="true">https://www.universetoday.com/articles/a-laser-ruler-for-sharper-black-hole-images</guid>
<pubDate>Fri, 30 Jan 2026 08:34:10 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator><![CDATA[Mark Thompson]]></dc:creator>
<author>Mark Thompson (https://www.universetoday.com/authors/mark)</author>
<description><![CDATA[<p><img src="https://www.universetoday.com/article_images/960px-BH_LMC_20260129_214543.png" alt="Artist impression of a black hole warping the space around it (Credit : Alain r)" width="1280" height="720" /></p><p>Researchers at KAIST have developed a breakthrough technology that could dramatically improve our ability to image black holes and other distant objects. The team created an ultra precise reference signal system using optical frequency comb lasers to synchronise multiple radio telescopes with unprecedented accuracy. This laser based approach solves long standing problems with phase calibration that have plagued traditional electronic methods, particularly at higher observation frequencies.</p>]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[Venus Might Harbor Massive Subsurface Lava Tunnels]]></title>
<link>https://www.universetoday.com/articles/venus-might-harbor-massive-subsurface-lava-tunnels</link>
<guid isPermaLink="true">https://www.universetoday.com/articles/venus-might-harbor-massive-subsurface-lava-tunnels</guid>
<pubDate>Fri, 30 Jan 2026 04:43:35 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator><![CDATA[Laurence Tognetti, MSc]]></dc:creator>
<author>Laurence Tognetti, MSc (https://www.universetoday.com/authors/laurencetognetti)</author>
<description><![CDATA[<p><img src="https://www.universetoday.com/article_images/ezgif-4079b16ffcf6055b_750_20260130_044324.jpg" alt="Computer-generated 3D model of the summit of Maat Mons on Venus. (Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech)" width="1280" height="720" /></p><p>Itâs 2050 and youâre living on Venus. This might come as a surprise due to the planetâs crushing surface pressures (~92 times of Earth) and searing surface temperatures (~465 degrees Celsius/870 degrees Fahrenheit), which is equivalent to ~900 meters (3,000 feet) underwater and hot enough to melt lead, respectively. But youâre not living on the surface. Instead, youâre safe and sound inside a lava tube habitat scanning data from the latest orbiter images while sipping on some habitat-made espresso.</p>]]></description>
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<item>
<title><![CDATA[A New Theory for What Really Powers a Flare]]></title>
<link>https://www.universetoday.com/articles/a-new-theory-for-what-really-powers-a-flare</link>
<guid isPermaLink="true">https://www.universetoday.com/articles/a-new-theory-for-what-really-powers-a-flare</guid>
<pubDate>Fri, 30 Jan 2026 03:29:32 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator><![CDATA[Andy Tomaswick]]></dc:creator>
<author>Andy Tomaswick (https://www.universetoday.com/authors/andy-tomaswick)</author>
<description><![CDATA[<p><img src="https://www.universetoday.com/article_images/Zooming_in_on_magnetic_reconnection_article_20260128_132131.gif" alt="Images taken by Solar Orbiter showing the formation of a solar flare in September 2024. Credit - ESA / L. P. Chitta et al." width="1280" height="720" /></p><p>Solar flares are one of the most closely watched processes in solar physics. Partly thatâs because they can prove hazardous both to life and equipment around Earth, and in extreme cases even on it. But also, itâs because of how interestingly complex they are. A new paper from Pradeep Chitta of the Max Planck Institute for Solar System Research and his co-authors, available in the latest edition of Astronomy & Astrophysics, uses data collected by ESAâs Solar Orbiter spacecraft to watch the formation process of a massive solar flare. They discovered the traditional model used to describe how solar flares form isnât accurate, and they are better thought of as being caused by miniaturized âmagnetic avalanches.â</p>]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[New Research Reveals the Ingredients for Life Form on Their Own in Space]]></title>
<link>https://www.universetoday.com/articles/new-research-reveals-the-ingredients-for-life-form-on-their-own-in-space</link>
<guid isPermaLink="true">https://www.universetoday.com/articles/new-research-reveals-the-ingredients-for-life-form-on-their-own-in-space</guid>
<pubDate>Fri, 30 Jan 2026 00:01:00 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator><![CDATA[Matthew Williams]]></dc:creator>
<author>Matthew Williams (https://www.universetoday.com/authors/houseofwilliams)</author>
<description><![CDATA[<p><img src="https://www.universetoday.com/article_images/AA1UBFoi_20260130_190407.jpeg" alt="The Ice Chamber for AstrophysicsâAstrochemistry (ICA) ultra-high vacuum chamber at Atomki, Hungary. This was a chamber used to process glycine with high-energy protons. Credit: Béla Sulik / HUN-REN Institute for Nuclear Research (Atomki)" width="1280" height="720" /></p><p>A new study led by researchers from Aarhus University showed that amino acids spontaneously bond in space, producing peptides that are essential to life as we know it. Their findings suggest that the building blocks of life are far more common throughout space than previously thought, with implications for astrobiology and SETI.</p>]]></description>
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<item>
<title><![CDATA[The Star That Wasn't Dying After All]]></title>
<link>https://www.universetoday.com/articles/the-star-that-wasnt-dying-after-all</link>
<guid isPermaLink="true">https://www.universetoday.com/articles/the-star-that-wasnt-dying-after-all</guid>
<pubDate>Thu, 29 Jan 2026 22:06:36 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator><![CDATA[Mark Thompson]]></dc:creator>
<author>Mark Thompson (https://www.universetoday.com/authors/mark)</author>
<description><![CDATA[<p><img src="https://www.universetoday.com/article_images/1280px-Artists_impression_of_the_dying_star_WOH_G64_eso2417c_20260129_214911.jpg" alt="Artist's impression of the dusty torus and elliptical cocoon of dust surrounding WOH G64 (Credit : ESO)" width="1280" height="720" /></p><p>Astronomers have solved a bit of a mystery that had them questioning whether one of the most extreme stars ever observed was about to explode. WOH G64, a massive red supergiant in the Large Magellanic Cloud, began behaving so strangely that researchers suspected it had evolved into a rare yellow hypergiant on the brink of supernova. But new observations from the Southern African Large Telescope reveal the star is still very much a red supergiant, yet still exhibiting strange behaviour.</p>]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[NASA Fires Up Nuclear Future for Deep Space Travel]]></title>
<link>https://www.universetoday.com/articles/nasa-fires-up-nuclear-future-for-deep-space-travel</link>
<guid isPermaLink="true">https://www.universetoday.com/articles/nasa-fires-up-nuclear-future-for-deep-space-travel</guid>
<pubDate>Thu, 29 Jan 2026 22:01:17 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator><![CDATA[Mark Thompson]]></dc:creator>
<author>Mark Thompson (https://www.universetoday.com/authors/mark)</author>
<description><![CDATA[<p><img src="https://www.universetoday.com/article_images/Screenshot_2026-01-29_at_21.54.15_20260129_215748.png" alt="Engineers install a flight reactor engineering development unit into Test Stand 400 in preparation for cold flow testing (Credit : NASA/Adam Butt)" width="1280" height="720" /></p><p>NASA has completed its first major testing of nuclear reactor hardware for spacecraft propulsion in over 50 years, marking a crucial step toward faster, more capable deep space missions. Engineers at Marshall Space Flight Center conducted more than 100 âcold flowâ tests on a full scale reactor engineering development unit throughout 2025, gathering vital data on how propellant flows through the system under various conditions.</p>]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[Finding A Frozen Earth In Old Data]]></title>
<link>https://www.universetoday.com/articles/finding-a-frozen-earth-in-old-data</link>
<guid isPermaLink="true">https://www.universetoday.com/articles/finding-a-frozen-earth-in-old-data</guid>
<pubDate>Thu, 29 Jan 2026 20:23:02 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator><![CDATA[Evan Gough]]></dc:creator>
<author>Evan Gough (https://www.universetoday.com/authors/ion23drive)</author>
<description><![CDATA[<p><img src="https://www.universetoday.com/article_images/HD_137010_b_FINAL_20260129_170526.jpg" alt="This artist's illustration shows HD 137010 b, a so-called Cold Earth detected around a Sun-like star about 146 light-years away. It's only slightly larger than Earth, and has nearly the same length orbit. It's on the outskirts of the star's habitable zone, and is even colder than Mars. It's a good target for meaningful follow-up observations. Image Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/Keith Miller (Caltech/IPAC)" width="1280" height="720" /></p><p>Finding Earth-like planets is the primary driver of exoplanet searches because as far as we know, they're the ones most likely to be habitable. Astronomers sifting through data from NASA's Kepler Space Telescope have found a remarkably Earth-like planet, but with one critical difference: it's as cold as Mars.</p>]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[The Milky Way's Center is a Difficult Target, But It Can't Deter the Roman Telescope]]></title>
<link>https://www.universetoday.com/articles/the-milky-ways-center-is-a-difficult-target-but-it-cant-deter-the-roman-telescope</link>
<guid isPermaLink="true">https://www.universetoday.com/articles/the-milky-ways-center-is-a-difficult-target-but-it-cant-deter-the-roman-telescope</guid>
<pubDate>Thu, 29 Jan 2026 16:59:29 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator><![CDATA[Evan Gough]]></dc:creator>
<author>Evan Gough (https://www.universetoday.com/authors/ion23drive)</author>
<description><![CDATA[<p><img src="https://www.universetoday.com/article_images/ssc2006-02a_0_20260128_213957.jpg" alt="This is an infrared image of the Milky Way's galactic bulge from NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope. The region is dense with stars and their planets, but is obscured by thick dust and gas. It can't be viewed in optical light, but infrared telescopes can see some of its detail. The upcoming Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope, an infrared unit, is designed to survey parts of the bulge in great detail. Image Credit: NASA, JPL-Caltech, Susan Stolovy (SSC/Caltech) et al." width="1280" height="720" /></p><p>The Milky Way's Galactic Center and Bulge are shrouded in thick dust and tightly-packed with stars. It's a tough region to observe, but the Nancy Gracy Roman Space Telescope is built for the task. Its Galactic Bulge Time-Domain Survey will find more than 100,000 exoplanets, along with stars, black holes, neutron stars, and even rogue planets.</p>]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[Whatâs Really Going On Inside Jupiter? New Models Offer Clues]]></title>
<link>https://www.universetoday.com/articles/whats-really-going-on-inside-jupiter-new-models-offer-clues</link>
<guid isPermaLink="true">https://www.universetoday.com/articles/whats-really-going-on-inside-jupiter-new-models-offer-clues</guid>
<pubDate>Thu, 29 Jan 2026 04:04:46 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator><![CDATA[Laurence Tognetti, MSc]]></dc:creator>
<author>Laurence Tognetti, MSc (https://www.universetoday.com/authors/laurencetognetti)</author>
<description><![CDATA[<p><img src="https://www.universetoday.com/article_images/ezgif-jupiter_clouds_750_20260129_040438.jpg" alt="Image of Jupiter's atmosphere and clouds by NASA's Juno spacecraft. (Credit: NASA / JPL-Caltech / SwRI / MSSS / Kevin M. Gill)" width="1280" height="720" /></p><p>Jupiterâs atmosphere and clouds have mesmerized stargazers for centuries, as their multi-colored, swirling layers can easily be viewed from powerful telescopes on Earth. However, NASAâs Juno spacecraft has upped the ante regarding our understanding of Jupiterâs atmospheric features, having revealed them in breathtaking detail. This includes images of massive lightning storms, clouds swallowing clouds, polar vortices, and powerful jet streams. Yet, despite its beauty and wonder, scientists are still puzzled about the processes occurring deep inside Jupiterâs atmosphere that result in these incredible features.</p>]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[Dark Energy Survey Data Reveals the Tightest Estimates Yet on Cosmic Expansion]]></title>
<link>https://www.universetoday.com/articles/dark-energy-survey-data-reveals-the-tighest-estimates-yet-on-cosmic-expansion</link>
<guid isPermaLink="true">https://www.universetoday.com/articles/dark-energy-survey-data-reveals-the-tighest-estimates-yet-on-cosmic-expansion</guid>
<pubDate>Thu, 29 Jan 2026 00:19:00 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator><![CDATA[Matthew Williams]]></dc:creator>
<author>Matthew Williams (https://www.universetoday.com/authors/houseofwilliams)</author>
<description><![CDATA[<p><img src="https://www.universetoday.com/article_images/noirlab2603a_20260128_232454.jpg" alt="Image of the Bullet Cluster, two merging galaxy clusters, taken with the 570-megapixel Dark Energy Camera (DECam). Credit: CTIO/NOIRLab/DOE/NSF/AURA" width="1280" height="720" /></p><p>The Dark Energy Survey Collaboration collected information on hundreds of millions of galaxies across the Universe using the U.S. Department of Energy-fabricated Dark Energy Camera, mounted on the U.S. National Science Foundation VÃctor M. Blanco 4-meter Telescope at CTIO, a Program of NSF NOIRLab. Their completed analysis combines all six years of data for the first time and yields constraints on the Universe's expansion history that are twice as tight as past analyses.</p>]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[Chile's Paranal Observatory Saved from Industrial Development]]></title>
<link>https://www.universetoday.com/articles/chiles-paranal-observatory-saved-from-industrial-development</link>
<guid isPermaLink="true">https://www.universetoday.com/articles/chiles-paranal-observatory-saved-from-industrial-development</guid>
<pubDate>Wed, 28 Jan 2026 21:33:20 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator><![CDATA[Mark Thompson]]></dc:creator>
<author>Mark Thompson (https://www.universetoday.com/authors/mark)</author>
<description><![CDATA[<p><img src="https://www.universetoday.com/article_images/1280px-Paranal_top_20260128_213158.jpg" alt="The Paranal Observatory" width="1280" height="720" /></p><p>After months of protests led by Nobel laureate Reinhard Genzel, the American energy company AES Andes has abandoned plans to build a massive solar and wind facility just kilometres from one of the world's premier telescope sites. The decision preserves the pristine night skies above Chile's Paranal Observatory, where the European Southern Observatory operates some of humanity's most powerful eyes on the universe.</p>]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[Solving the Century Old Puzzle of Our Galaxy's Neighborhood]]></title>
<link>https://www.universetoday.com/articles/solving-the-century-old-puzzle-of-our-galaxys-neighborhood</link>
<guid isPermaLink="true">https://www.universetoday.com/articles/solving-the-century-old-puzzle-of-our-galaxys-neighborhood</guid>
<pubDate>Wed, 28 Jan 2026 21:28:58 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator><![CDATA[Mark Thompson]]></dc:creator>
<author>Mark Thompson (https://www.universetoday.com/authors/mark)</author>
<description><![CDATA[<p><img src="https://www.universetoday.com/article_images/1280px-High-redshift_galaxy_candidates_in_the_Hubble_Ultra_Deep_Field_2012_20260128_212836.jpg" alt="High redshift galaxy candidates in the Hubble Ultra Deep Field, 2012 reveal the large scale expansion of the universe (Credit : NASA, ESA, R. Ellis-Caltech)" width="1280" height="720" /></p><p>Nearly a century after Edwin Hubble discovered the universe's expansion, astronomers have finally explained the nagging mystery of why most nearby galaxies rush away from us as if the Milky Way's gravity doesn't exist? The answer lies in a vast, flat sheet of dark matter stretching tens of millions of light years around us, with empty voids above and below that make the expansion appear smoother than it should.</p>]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[Mercury May Not Be "Dead" After All]]></title>
<link>https://www.universetoday.com/articles/mercury-may-not-be-dead-after-all</link>
<guid isPermaLink="true">https://www.universetoday.com/articles/mercury-may-not-be-dead-after-all</guid>
<pubDate>Wed, 28 Jan 2026 21:16:29 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator><![CDATA[Mark Thompson]]></dc:creator>
<author>Mark Thompson (https://www.universetoday.com/authors/mark)</author>
<description><![CDATA[<p><img src="https://www.universetoday.com/article_images/Mercury_in_true_color_20260128_211600.jpg" alt="Mercury in true colour captured by Messenger in 2008 (Credit : NASA/John Hopkins University)" width="1280" height="720" /></p><p>Researchers using machine learning have discovered hundreds of mysterious bright streaks on Mercury's surface that appear to be caused by gases escaping from the planet's interior. The finding suggests the Solar System's smallest planet isn't the static, geologically dead world we thought it was, Mercury might still be active today, continuously releasing material into space even billions of years after its formation.</p>]]></description>
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<title><![CDATA[Do Dwarf Galaxies Merge In The Milky Way's Halo?]]></title>
<link>https://www.universetoday.com/articles/do-dwarf-galaxies-merge-in-the-milky-ways-halo</link>
<guid isPermaLink="true">https://www.universetoday.com/articles/do-dwarf-galaxies-merge-in-the-milky-ways-halo</guid>
<pubDate>Wed, 28 Jan 2026 19:48:38 +0000</pubDate>
<dc:creator><![CDATA[Evan Gough]]></dc:creator>
<author>Evan Gough (https://www.universetoday.com/authors/ion23drive)</author>
<description><" width="1280" height="720" /></p><p>Our current understanding of the Cosmos shows that structures emerge hierarchically. First there are dark matter densities, then dwarf galaxies. Those dwarfs then merge to form more massive galaxies, which merge together into even larger galaxies. Evidence of dwarf galaxy mergers is difficult to obtain, but new research found some in the Milky Way's halo.</p>]]></description>
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