For decades, planet formation existed mostly in theory and simulations. Now, astronomers have captured direct evidence ...

The origin of super-Earths and sub-Neptunes has been revealed in a system of four young planets that are dramatically losing ...

Thanks to the discovery of thousands of exoplanets to date, we know that planets bigger than Earth but smaller than Neptune orbit most stars. Oddly, our sun lacks such a planet. That's been a source ...

Far from Earth, drifting between the stars, lies a quiet ocean of carbon. Astronomers call it the interstellar medium, a vast realm where simple and complex molecules float through cold clouds of gas ...

Cold cosmic dust grains can link amino acids into protein‑like chains in deep space, suggesting life’s chemistry may begin ...

Korean researchers have uncovered the secret to how planets and comets could form far from a star — considered a mystery until now — by finding the key in a substance named crystalline silicates as ...

The long-standing idea of planets forming in perfectly flat, orderly discs has been challenged by new research. Instead of calm, pancake-shaped structures of dust and gas, astronomers have now ...

Thanks to the discovery of thousands of exoplanets to date, we know that planets bigger than Earth but smaller than Neptune orbit most stars. Oddly, our sun lacks such a planet. That’s been a source ...