Dust Shells around WR 140 from WebbWhat are those strange rings? Rich in dust, the rings are likely 3D shells — but how they were created remains a topic of research. Where they were created is well known: in a binary star system that lies about 6,000 light years away toward the constellation of the Swan (Cygnus) — a system dominated by the…Read More

Comet G3 ATLAS over UruguayComets can be huge. When far from the Sun, a comet’s size usually refers to its hard nucleus of ice and rock, which typically spans a few kilometers — smaller than even a small moon. When nearing the Sun, however, this nucleus can eject dust and gas and leave a thin tail that can spread to an enormous length — even…Read More

Pleiades over Half DomeStars come in bunches. The most famous bunch of stars on the sky is the Pleiades, a bright cluster that can be easily seen with the unaided eye. The Pleiades lies only about 450 light years away, formed about 100 million years ago, and will likely last about another 250 million years. Our Sun was likely born in a star…Read More