Galactic archaeology: astronomers are using stars as fossils to study the Milky Way

Our Milky Way is thought to be home to as many as 400 billion stars, one of which is, of course, our own sun. But how and when did these stars form, and where did they come from?  Understanding the stellar population of our galaxy could reveal a great deal, not only about our own home … Read more

Q&A: It’s time to rethink the Milky Way

How stars and planets form, and how special is the Milky Way, are among the as-yet unanswered questions about our galaxy. Image credit - Oliver Griebl/Wikimedia, licenced under CC BY 3.0

by Kelly Oakes The Milky Way might be right on our cosmic doorstep, but a group of astronomers suspect that the way we currently study it is stunting our understanding. Professor Ralf Klessen at Heidelberg University in Germany is one of four researchers who have recently begun a six-year project, ECOGAL, to try something new: imagine … Read more

How life on Earth could help us find life on Mars

The conditions on early Mars were habitable, says Dr Alberto Fairén. Image credit - NASA

Jonathan O’Callaghan In our continuing search for other life in the universe, one place has always looked promising – Mars. It is a rocky planet like Earth, orbiting the same star, and at a distance where water could have been present on the planet. Today, however, Mars is a barren wasteland. Any water it once … Read more