The massive star Eta Carinae has been observed in the infrared for over forty years. Between 1976 and 1998, astronomers saw a linear increase in the star’s brightness. But Eta Carinae has been steadily heating up ever since a close approach with its companion star in 1998, and astronomers want to know why.
The Crab Nebula ups its game when it’s found to host the first molecule containing a noble gas to be found in space.
Cataclysmic variables are binary star systems where one of the stars—a white dwarf—devours its main sequence partner over time. Kepler proves yet again that it can find a lot more than just exoplanets by identifying a cataclysmic variable with a period of less than an hour.