UNLV geoscientist Arya Udry shares what motivates her in studying space, her work on the Mars Perseverance mission, and the world of knowledge a meteorite can bring.

The European Space Agency's XMM-Newton is playing a crucial role in investigating the longest and most energetic bursts of X-rays seen from a newly awakened black hole. Watching this strange behaviour unfold in real time offers a unique opportunity to learn more about these powerful events and the mysterious behaviour of massive black holes.

Two-dimensional transition metal dichalcogenides (TMDCs), as a new generation of semiconductors with the potential to surpass the limitations of silicon-based technology, have long lacked empirical research on their stability in space environments. The Chinese research team, leveraging the “Shijian-19” recoverable satellite, has pioneered in-orbit verification experiments for 2D semiconductor materials and devices. The study demonstrates that these materials can maintain excellent optical and electrical performance even under extreme space conditions, providing critical experimental evidence for the development of high-performance space electronic devices.

Earth’s rocky layers are mysteriously low in nitrogen compared with carbon and argon. A scientific team explored our planet’s molten youth using advanced quantum mechanical simulations, revealing nitrogen’s secret: under extreme pressure, it chose to hide in the iron core 100 times more than the mantle. This solved why Earth’s volatile ratios involving nitrogen look odd. The findings suggest the necessary ingredients for developing a habitable world may have been settled in the early Earth.

A team at Nagoya University in Japan has revealed new insights into the motion of massive stars in the Small Magellanic Cloud (SMC), a small galaxy neighboring the Milky Way. Their findings suggest that the gravitational pull of the Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC), the SMC’s larger companion, may be tearing the smaller one apart. This discovery reveals a new pattern in the motion of these stars that could transform our understanding of galaxy evolution and interactions.