Artist’s concept of cosmic filaments - made of galaxies and dark matter - forming a bridge between clusters of galaxies. These are strands in the cosmic web. The galaxies are now known to funnel on corkscrew paths into the large galaxy clusters at intersection points on the web. Image via AIP/ A. Khalatyan/ J. Fohlmeister.
Astronomers said this month that they've discovered a rotation - a spin - on an enormous scale never seen before. They made the discovery by mapping the motion of galaxies in huge filaments or strands of what's called the cosmic web. They were looking at the universe on the grandest scale, in which there are great filaments made of galaxies, separated by giant voids. And they found that these long tendrils of galaxies and dark matter - these vast cosmic filaments of the cosmic web - rotate or spin on the scale of hundreds of millions of light-years. Read more.
Little shrimplike krill lie at the base of the Southern Ocean food web. Many sea creatures in this ocean, which surrounds Antarctica, eat krill. That includes penguins, seals, fish and whales. But krill populations are projected to decline about 30% this century, due to human-driven climate change. And natural variability in climate will also play a role. A new study, one of the first of its kind, tries to tease apart the effects of natural climate variation from human-caused climate change. One result, according to these scientists: it'll be hard to tell the difference between natural and human-caused effects on krill until late in the 21st century. Here's why that's important.
With its global subsurface water ocean, Saturn's moon Enceladus is considered to be one of the best places to search for life. Now, new research from a team of biologists suggests life on Enceladus might indeed be quite possible ... and that we might already have evidence for it. Something is producing a lot of methane on Enceladus, or rather in its subsurface ocean. And methane can be a life sign. Read more.
Are you prepared for warmer weather? Refresh your wardrobe with a new out-of-this-world shirt, or swap your beanie for a trucker cap to keep your eyes shaded from our neighborhood star. ☀️ Find space-themed tools, tees, accessories and more over at the EarthSky Store.
On June 18, 19 and 20 - as the setting sun closes the curtain on the day, and the darkening sky reveals a myriad of far-off suns - let the moon introduce you to a special star. The bright star close to the moon on these dates is none other than Spica, the sole 1st-magnitude star in the constellation Virgo the Maiden. The moon will be closest to Spica Saturday evening. Read more.
View at EarthSky Community Photos. | Stephanie Becker in the San Francisco Bay Area caught this shot on June 15. She wrote, "This Ash-throated Flycatcher was foraging for insects low to the ground (as they often do). I've been told that they don't drink water, so insects are able to give them the moisture they need. Since they fly low, I was able to get this nice eye-level shot." Beautiful shot, Stephanie! Thank you.
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