EurekAlert! In the Spotlight - Global Astronomy Month

In honor of Global Astronomy Month, we’re exploring the science of space. Learn how astronomy connects us through curiosity, discovery, and a shared wonder for what lies beyond.

University of Surrey launches Space Institute to drive the UK's small satellite boom and tackle urgent global challenges

University of Surrey
Business Announcement

With the UK's £19 billion space economy surging, government and industry urgently need faster research, innovation and skilled talent – yet more than half of space organisations report critical shortages, a challenge now being tackled by the newly launched Surrey Space Institute at the University of Surrey. The Institute will convert the University's 45-year small satellite leadership into mission-ready solutions for climate, resilience and secure global connectivity.

16-Jul-2025

For the first time, astronomers witness the dawn of a new solar system

ESO
Peer-Reviewed Publication

International researchers have, for the first time, pinpointed the moment when planets began to form around a star beyond the Sun. Using the ALMA telescope, in which the European Southern Observatory (ESO) is a partner, and the James Webb Space Telescope, they have observed the creation of the first specks of planet-forming material — hot minerals just beginning to solidify. This finding marks the first time a planetary system has been identified at such an early stage in its formation and opens a window to the past of our own Solar System.

Journal: Nature

16-Jul-2025

Lunar soil could support life on the Moon

Cell Press
Peer-Reviewed Publication

Scientists have developed a technology that may help humans survive on the Moon. In a study publishing July 16 in the Cell Press journal Joule, researchers extracted water from lunar soil and used it to convert carbon dioxide into oxygen and chemicals for fuel—potentially opening new doors for future deep space exploration by mitigating the need to transport essential resources like water and fuel all the way from Earth.

Journal: Joule
Funder: National Key R&D Program of China, National Natural Science Foundation of China, The Program for Guangdong Introducing Innovative and Entrepreneurial Teams, Special Fund for the Sci-tech Innovation Strategy of Guangdong Province, Guangdong Basic Research Center of Excellence for Aggregate Science, The Shenzhen Natural Science Foundation, Shenzhen Key Laboratory of Eco-materials and Renewable Energy, NSF of Jiangsu Province, University Development Fund

16-Jul-2025

Paper examines role of seasonal frost in brine formation on Mars

University of Arkansas
Peer-Reviewed Publication

After twenty years of careful investigation, a researcher feels he has enough evidence to confirm brines can form on Mars.

Journal: Communications Earth & Environment

15-Jul-2025

Ultra-hot Jupiter’s death spiral could reveal stellar secrets

Macquarie University
Peer-Reviewed Publication

Macquarie astronomers confirm massive planet TOI-2109b is spiralling towards its star, facing destruction via tidal forces, stellar consumption, or atmospheric stripping.

Journal: The Astrophysical Journal
Funder: European Union Horizon Europe research and innovation program, Minciencias, NASA Exoplanet Science Institute

15-Jul-2025

To ‘Infinity’ and beyond — a look at a newborn black hole

Yale University
Peer-Reviewed Publication

New Haven, Conn. — Yale astronomer Pieter van Dokkum and a team of researchers have discovered an object in space they call the “Infinity” galaxy — two recently-collided galaxies that, together, look like the symbol for infinity.

And at the center of “Infinity,” embedded in a cloud of gas, they say, is a supermassive black hole.

The findings are described in a new study to be published in The Astrophysical Journal Letters.

Journal: The Astrophysical Journal Letters

Welcome to In the Spotlight, where each month we shine a light on something exciting, timely, or simply fascinating from the world of science.

Latest News Releases

University of Surrey launches Space Institute to drive the UK's small satellite boom and tackle urgent global challenges

For the first time, astronomers witness the dawn of a new solar system

Lunar soil could support life on the Moon

Paper examines role of seasonal frost in brine formation on Mars

Ultra-hot Jupiter’s death spiral could reveal stellar secrets

To ‘Infinity’ and beyond — a look at a newborn black hole