Planets are not perfect spheres. For example, Jupiter's equatorial radius is larger than its polar radius by 7%, and this aspherical shape is due to the fast spin of Jupiter, as one day on Jupiter is only 10 hr long. The shape of a planet therefore provides a measure of the rate and the orientation of its spin, which are ultimately related to the formation and evolution history of the planet as...
Dwarf galaxies are the smallest, most numerous, and most abundant galaxies in the universe, making them an essential component of the cosmic ecosystem. Over the past decade, observations of the nearby universe have revealed a multitude of diverse and peculiar dwarf galaxies, whose formation and evolution remain one of the most enigmatic puzzles in galaxy formation. Due to their low mass and sha...
The Greenbank Telescope and the related research highlight report can be found @ https://greenbankobservatory.org/news/u-s-national-science-foundation-green-bank-telescope-records-fastest-fast-radio-burst-yet/ Fast radio bursts (FRB) are intense radio transients from deep space, lasting only a few milliseconds. These bursts release an extraordinary amount of energy, with a single burst able to ...
Exoplanet's atmosphere contains the information where the planet is formed and how it accretes and evolves. Probing the atmosphere from the molecular lines in the transmission and emission spectrum unveils the chemical composition of the planet. However, an uncertain factor in retrieving exoplanet spectra is the presence of clouds. Clouds affect the transmission and emission spectrum by smearin...
Images of the area of the microlensing event, indicated by perpendicular white lines two weeks after peak magnification of the background star in 2020, taken by CFHT with seeing of ~ 0.5 arcsec (Left) and in 2023 after its disappearance, obtained by Keck-II with seeing of ~0.08 arcsec (Right). The planetary system with a white dwarf, a two-Earth-mass planet and brown dwarf cannot be seen; the p...