National Aeronautics and Space Administration

Princeton astrophysicist helps find record-smashing black hole born in the universe’s infancy
Nov. 6, 2023
Author
Written by Liz Fuller-Wright, Office of Communications

An international team of astrophysicists including Princeton’s Andy Goulding has discovered the most distant supermassive black hole ever found, using two NASA space telescopes: the Chandra X-ray Observatory (Chandra) and the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST).

The black…

Researchers demystify the unusual origin of the Geminids meteor shower
June 15, 2023
Author
Written by Alaina O'Regan, Office of the Dean for Research

Princeton researchers used observations from NASA’s Parker Solar Probe mission to deduce that it was likely a violent, catastrophic event – such as a high-speed collision with another body or a gaseous explosion – that created the Geminids meteoroid stream, which produces one of the most intense meteor showers in our night sky each winter.

Exploring the origins of the universe through engineering
Feb. 27, 2023
Author
Written by Julia Schwarz, Office of Engineering Communications

The sun never sets in the Antarctic summer, which is quite convenient for solar powered science. Susan Redmond, who has spent the last three months helping to launch a solar powered balloon the size of a hockey arena into space, is one of those scientists relying on the endless sunshine of the southernmost continent.

“It’s pretty wild,”…

Princeton in space: NASA’s IMAP mission clears critical hurdle to launch
Feb. 13, 2023
Author
Written by Lindsay Bartolone, IMAP Communications Lead

NASA’s Interstellar Mapping and Acceleration Probe (IMAP) mission, led by Princeton’s David McComas, recently crossed a vital threshold. On Jan. 27, NASA officials reviewed all aspects of the mission design and approved the mission to continue toward launch, currently…

'The Sky is for Everyone': Princeton astrophysics luminaries Jill Knapp and Neta Bahcall will give a book talk Thursday at the Princeton Public Library
Feb. 4, 2023
Author
Written by Liz Fuller-Wright, Office of Communications

As the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) delights stargazers with breathtaking images and groundbreaking discoveries — like the recent revelation that a planet 700 light-years away has a carbon dioxide…

Breakthrough laboratory confirmation of key theory behind the formation of planets, stars and supermassive black holes
Feb. 3, 2023
Author
Written by John Greenwald, Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory

The first laboratory realization of the longstanding but never-before confirmed theory of the puzzling formation of planets, stars and supermassive black holes by swirling surrounding matter has been produced at the Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory (PPPL). This breakthrough confirmation caps more than 20 years of experiments at PPPL, which…