For decades before Pluto, Eris, and other distant objects in our solar system were discovered, astronomers had posited that there must be another planet beyond Neptune that would make observed orbital calculations for Neptune and Uranus add up. This planet…
NASA Crowdsources WISE Data Mining
NASA this week announced a new website, DiskDetective.org. The website allows visitors to help NASA researchers cull through data to help uncover young systems that could one day spawn planets. “Through Disk Detective, volunteers will help the astronomical community discover…
NASA Reactivates WISE in Search For Deadly Asteroids
NASA‘s Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer (WISE) space telescope ran out of coolant in the fall of 2010. Though the telescope was used for a few more months (the NEOWISE mission), it was officially retired from service in February 2011. Now,…
Most “Centaurs” Are Comets, Say Astronomers
For years, the small objects orbiting the Sun between Jupiter and Neptune have remained a mystery to astronomers. Dubbed “centaurs,” researchers were unsure what exactly the objects were. Now, new observations using NASA’s Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer (WISE) have determined…
Enormous Galaxy Cluster Spotted by NASA’s WISE
Galaxy clusters, the rarest of galaxy groupings, can be difficult for astronomers to find. NASA‘s Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer (WISE) space telescope, however, has just found a gigantic galaxy cluster, and is expected to uncover thousands more. The new findings…
Jovian Trojan Asteroids’ Secrets Uncovered by NASA’s WISE
NASA’s Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer (WISE) may have been decommissioned last year, but the data it has provided is continuing to reveal clues about our solar system. NASA today announced that researchers using data from WISE have discovered a bit…