Artificial intelligence can make it possible to see astrophysical phenomena that were previously beyond reach. This has now been demonstrated by scientists from the CNRS, IRAM, Observatoire de Paris-PSL, Ecole Centrale Marseille and Ecole Centrale Lille, working together in the ORION-B program. In a series of three papers published in Astronomy & Astrophysics on 19 November 2020, they present the most…
Tag: Marseille
Surprisingly mature galaxies in the early universe
When the universe was only a tenth of its current age its galaxies experienced a growth spurt. It was this period that the scientists in the ALPINE project focused on when they used ESO’s ALMA telescope to carry out the first ever large survey of distant galaxies. To their surprise, these galaxies observed in the early stages of their life were…
Could mini-Neptunes be irradiated ocean planets?
Many exoplanets known today are ‘super-Earths,’ with a radius 1.3 times that of Earth, and ‘mini-Neptunes,’ with 2.4 Earth radii. Mini-Neptunes, which are less dense, were long thought to be gas planets, made up of hydrogen and helium. Now, scientists at the Laboratoire d’Astrophysique de Marseille (CNRS/Aix-Marseille Université/Cnes) have examined a new possibility, namely that the low density of mini-Neptunes could…
Jupiter’s red spot thickness remains steady as surface area decreases
A team of researchers affiliated with Aix-Marseille Université has found evidence that suggests the thickness of Jupiter’s red spot has remained relatively stable as its surface area has decreased. In their paper published in the journal Nature Physics, the group describes how they estimated the thickness of the spot and why they believe it is not going to disappear anytime soon….
Is Hygiea now the smallest dwarf planet?
New images from ESO’s Very Large Telescope show that asteroid Hygiea is round, meaning that it may now be classified as the smallest-known dwarf planet in our solar system. Source: https://earthsky.org/space/asteroid-hygiea-smallest-known-dwarf-planet-very-large-telescope-eso…
Meet WASP-121b, a hot ‘heavy metal’ exoplanet
For the first time, heavy metal gases like magnesium and iron have been detected floating away from an exoplanet, a planet orbiting a distant sun. Why? Because the planet – which is about as big as Jupiter – is orbiting perilously close to its star. Source: https://earthsky.org/space/wasp-121b-exoplanet-football-shaped-heavy-metal…