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Supernova

17 April 1998

Seven planets for seven stars - Just as astronomers were losing all hope, new worlds beyond the Solar System have started to turn up, says Gabrielle Walker

14 June 1996

Meteorites – the children of the asteroids

10 February 1996

Next week, a spacecraft should set off on a three-year journey to a lump of flying rock the size of a city. The Near Earth Asteroid Rendezvous (NEAR), scheduled for launch by NASA on 16 February, will be the first mission to study an asteroid

Fighting fire with fire

14 July 1995

If we are going to stop the planet from turning into a giant tinderbox, we have to learn how to use fire at least as well as our ancestors

New eyes for an ageing star

14 January 1995

By the mid-1980s, light pollution from Los Angeles was just too much for the venerable Hooker Telescope. Now some smart technology is restoring its sight

The Other Australia

29 October 1994

There are two Australias, say marine scientists: the one where everyone lives, and the one where nobody lives, the four points on Australia's compass

A death in the neighbourhood: Why did a giant red star turn orange before it died? Who stole its hydrogen? And what does it mean for the astronomers on the case?

26 March 1994

The Galactic empire

1 December 1990

Our Milky Way is more than just a huge spiral galaxy, it is also the centre of a vast empire that spans more than a million light-years and governs at least 10 other galaxies

The death throes of a red giant: Astronomers have known for years that old stars swell up to become red giants. Now they are beginning to understand how these stars cook up many important elements, such as carbon

24 March 1990

Good vibrations from the stars: Our planet rings like a bell after a large earthquake. Stars can ring, too. Astronomers use these vibrations to probe stellar interiors and even estimate the age of the Universe

27 January 1990