Cosmology is big-picture astronomy — the universe on its grandest scales. From the mysteries of dark matter and dark energy to the vast cosmic web, modern cosmology probes what makes the cosmos tick.
Here you’ll find Sky & Telescope’s coverage of the latest discoveries in cosmology. Want to know about evidence for the Big Bang or hints of new physics? What about the expansion of the universe and the effects of dark matter? Interested in knowing what happened a long, long time ago in galaxies far, far away? What can we learn about galaxy formation at the very beginning if we gather enough photons? We bring you in-depth reports on the early universe, ancient galaxies, and the cosmic microwave background, the leftover radiation of the universe’s birth. As scientists peer farther back in time and space, pushing the limits of the knowable, we’ll be your guides on the quest to reach the cosmic dawn.
Teaming up with LIGO, Europe’s Virgo detector has bagged its first gravitational waves. The three-observatory detection enabled scientists to better pinpoint the merging black holes’ location.
Our galaxy's center region is producing gamma rays, but astronomers are still debating whether pulsars or dark matter are the source. Three recent studies tackle the debate head-on.
A new galaxy survey suggests that a supervoid isn’t responsible for the Cold Spot seen in the cosmic microwave background — the oddity may have a far more ancient origin.
A new study of six young, star-forming galaxies suggests they have less dark matter than expected. But the results may say more about galaxy evolution than about the nature of dark matter.
Hubble has spotted more than 100 small, faint galaxies in the young universe, common as dust bunnies but previously out of reach of even the best telescopes.
Observations of lensed quasars suggest the universe is expanding more quickly than we thought. But they contradict what we know about the young universe.
From the discovery of gravitational waves to the building evidence that a massive planet could exist beyond Pluto, it has been a thrilling year for astronomy research. We recap.
Astronomers analyzing a new sky survey have found that the distribution of dark matter in the modern universe is smoother than predicted from observations of a far younger universe.
For the first time, astronomers have discovered a (potential) high-energy counterpart to a fast radio burst, and also used a different burst to probe the cosmic web.
A team of theoretical physicists thinks a fifth force could explain an anomaly spotted in a nuclear physics experiment. If true, it could have huge ramifications for particle physics and dark matter — but that’s a pretty big if.
The Antarctic observatory known as IceCube has ruled out the existence of a fourth type of neutrino particle — and one-time dark matter contender — known as the light sterile neutrino.
The Kavli Foundation hosted a Q&A with three astronomers to probe the recent discovery of hard-to-produce heavy elements in a nearby dwarf galaxy. The discovery sheds light on stellar histories and galactic evolution.