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AAS Press Office
@press.aas.org
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Astronomy news curated by the Press Office of the American Astronomical Society. Note: Posting is not endorsing, only informing. aas.org/press Header Image: https://shorturl.at/vb7A1
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press.aas.org
Royal Astronomical Society (RAS): Winners of 2026 RAS Awards Revealed ras.ac.uk/news-and-pre...
Winners of 2026 RAS Awards revealed
An astronomer who has made ground-breaking discoveries about millisecond pulsars, gamma-ray bursts and supernovae and an "exemplary" mathematical geophysicist specia...
ras.ac.uk
January 9, 2026 at 7:29 PM
press.aas.org
For resources related to the Thursday press conferences at #AAS247, including presenter slides, press releases, and video recordings of the briefings, see the updated press kit: aas.org/meetings/aas...
AAS 247: 2nd Media Advisory (Press Kit) | American Astronomical Society
aas.org
January 9, 2026 at 1:06 AM
press.aas.org
Washington University in St. Louis: The Electrifying Science Behind Martian Dust eeps.wustl.edu/news/electri...
The Electrifying Science Behind Martian Dust
eeps.wustl.edu
January 9, 2026 at 12:55 AM
press.aas.org
SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory: This Exotic Form of Ice Just Got Weirder www6.slac.stanford.edu/news/2026-01...
This exotic form of ice just got weirder
Researchers find evidence of coexisting atomic stacking patterns in superionic water.
www6.slac.stanford.edu
January 9, 2026 at 12:52 AM
press.aas.org
University of Oxford: New Study Simulates Asteroid Impact — and Reveals the Hidden Strength of Space Rocks www.ox.ac.uk/news/2026-01...
New study simulates asteroid impact – and reveals the hidden strength
Physicists at the University of Oxford have contributed to a new study which has found that iron-rich asteroids can tolerate far more energy than previously thought without breaking apart - a
www.ox.ac.uk
January 9, 2026 at 12:43 AM
press.aas.org
University of Colorado Boulder: New Study Examines a Gravitational Wave Mystery www.colorado.edu/today/2026/0...
New study examines a gravitational wave mystery
Ripples in space and time constantly churn through the universe, forming what's called the "gravitational wave background." A new study examines why these waves
www.colorado.edu
January 9, 2026 at 12:42 AM
press.aas.org
University of Copenhagen: How Many Ghost Particles All the Milky Way’s Stars Send Towards Earth news.ku.dk/all_news/202...
How Many Ghost Particles All the Milky Way’s Stars Send Towards Earth
Every second, a trillion of the elusive ghost particles, the neutrinos, pass straight through your body. Now, astrophysicists from the University of Copenhagen have mapped how many ghost particles all...
news.ku.dk
January 9, 2026 at 12:40 AM
press.aas.org
University of California, Santa Cruz: How Quiet Galaxies Stay Quiet: Cool Gas Feeds Black Holes in “Red Geysers” news.ucsc.edu/2026/01/red-... #AAS247
How quiet galaxies stay quiet: cool gas feeds black holes in ‘red geysers’
New paper led by UC Santa Cruz undergraduate suggests that long-dormant galaxies deemed to be dead may actually be stunted by the dynamics of supermassive black holes at their center
news.ucsc.edu
January 8, 2026 at 9:37 PM
press.aas.org
Center for Astrophysics | Harvard & Smithsonian: Scientists Find More Active Black Holes in Dwarf and Milky Way-Sized Galaxies by Cutting Through Glare of Star Formation www.cfa.harvard.edu/news/scienti... #AAS247
Scientists Find More Active Black Holes in Dwarf and Milky Way-sized Galaxies By Cutting Through Glare of Star Formation | Center for Astrophysics | Harvard & Smithsonian
Cambridge, MA (January 8, 2025) —Astronomers have completed the most comprehensive census of active galactic nuclei (AGN) to date, providing the clearest picture yet of the probability that galaxies o...
www.cfa.harvard.edu
January 8, 2026 at 9:23 PM
press.aas.org
Sloan Digital Sky Survey: Black Holes Flip Galaxies www.sdss.org/black-holes-... #AAS247
Black Holes Flip Galaxies - SDSS
Astronomers have discovered that many small galaxies hosting active supermassive black holes have their stars and gas spinning out of sync - sometimes in completely opposite directions.
www.sdss.org
January 8, 2026 at 9:18 PM
press.aas.org
#AAS247 press conference “Active Galactic Nuclei Across the Universe” begins at 2:15 pm MST in Room 129A. See the speaker lineup at #Thu_pmit#Thu_pm" class="hover:underline text-blue-600 dark:text-sky-400 no-card-link" target="_blank" rel="noopener" data-link="bsky">https://aas.org/meetings/aas247/press-kit#Thu_pm and watch live on YouTube at https://www.youtube.com/c/AASPressOffice
Graphic announcing the Active Galactic Nuclei Across the Universe press conference at AAS 247
January 8, 2026 at 8:45 PM
press.aas.org
American Astronomical Society (AAS): AAS Names 23 New Fellows for 2026 aas.org/press/aas-na...
AAS Names 23 New Fellows for 2026 | American Astronomical Society
The American Astronomical Society is honoring 23 members for extraordinary achievement and service by naming them AAS Fellows. Congratulations to the Class of 2026!
aas.org
January 8, 2026 at 8:30 PM
press.aas.org
American Astronomical Society (AAS): AAS Names Recipients of 2026 Awards & Prizes aas.org/press/aas-na...
AAS Names Recipients of 2026 Awards & Prizes | American Astronomical Society
The AAS has announced the recipients of its 2026 prizes for outstanding achievements in research and education.
aas.org
January 8, 2026 at 8:29 PM
press.aas.org
UMass Amherst: Astronomers Find One of the Oldest Barred-Spiral Galaxies in the Universe www.umass.edu/news/article... #AAS247
Astronomers Find one of the Oldest Barred-Spiral Galaxies in the Universe | UMass Amherst
Research led by alumnus Daniel Ivanov, along with Professor of Astronomy Mauro Giavalisco and fellow alumni Yingjie Cheng and John Weaver, helps constrain the timeframe in which bars, a sometimes-stri...
www.umass.edu
January 8, 2026 at 6:36 PM
press.aas.org
University of Pittsburgh: Pitt Student Finds Familiar Structure Just 2 Billion Years After the Big Bang www.newswise.com/articles/pit... #AAS247
Pitt Student Finds Familiar Structure Just 2 Billion Years After the Big Bang | Newswise
This spectroscopically confirmed finding helps constrain the timeframe in which bars could have first emerged in the universe.
www.newswise.com
January 8, 2026 at 6:36 PM
press.aas.org
National Radio Astronomy Observatory: Radio Telescopes Uncover “Invisible” Gas Around Record-Shattering Cosmic Explosion public.nrao.edu/news/radio-t... #AAS247
Radio telescopes uncover “invisible” gas around record-shattering cosmic explosion - National Radio Astronomy Observatory
Astronomers using the NSF Very Large Array and ALMA have uncovered dense, “invisible” gas surrounding AT2024wpp—the brightest known fast blue optical transient—revealing that a massive star was torn a...
public.nrao.edu
January 8, 2026 at 5:39 PM
press.aas.org
National Radio Astronomy Observatory: The NSF Very Large Array Helps Reveal Record-Breaking Stream of Super-Heated Gas from Nearby Galaxy public.nrao.edu/news/record-... #AAS247
The NSF Very Large Array Helps Reveal Record-Breaking Stream of Super-Heated Gas from Nearby Galaxy - National Radio Astronomy Observatory
Astronomers using the NSF Very Large Array and NASA James Webb Space Telescope have discovered a massive, precessing jet of super-heated gas erupting from nearby galaxy VV 340a, revealing how black ho...
public.nrao.edu
January 8, 2026 at 5:33 PM
press.aas.org
W. M. Keck Observatory: Astronomers Discover the First Galaxy-Wide Wobbling Black Hole Jet in a Disk Galaxy keckobservatory.org/vv340a/ #AAS247
Astronomers Discover the First Galaxy-wide Wobbling Black Hole Jet in a Disk Galaxy – W. M. Keck Observatory
keckobservatory.org
January 8, 2026 at 5:27 PM
press.aas.org
Liverpool John Moores University: Colossal Explosion as Distant “Super Sun” Shredded by Black Hole www.ljmu.ac.uk/about-us/new... #AAS247
Colossal explosion as distant 'super sun' shredded by black hole
Astrophysics, ARI, Space, Black Holes, Stars, Explosions, Liverpool Telescope, Conference, Paper, Research
www.ljmu.ac.uk
January 8, 2026 at 5:21 PM
press.aas.org
University of California, Santa Cruz: American Astronomical Society Honors Four UC Santa Cruz Affiliates news.ucsc.edu/2026/01/aas-...
American Astronomical Society honors four UC Santa Cruz affiliates
At this week’s national gathering, astronomy and astrophysics professors Bryan Gaensler, Enrico Ramirez-Ruiz, and Connie Rockosi were honored for outstanding contributions to the field, as was alumna ...
news.ucsc.edu
January 8, 2026 at 5:17 PM
press.aas.org
Space Telescope Science Institute (STScI): 2026 Beatrice M. Tinsley Prize Awarded to STScI Astronomer Kailash Sahu www.stsci.edu/contents/new...
2026 Beatrice M. Tinsley Prize Awarded to STScI Astronomer Kailash Sahu
www.stsci.edu
January 8, 2026 at 5:15 PM
press.aas.org
Southwest Research Institute (SwRI): SwRI’s Dr. Alan Stern Named AAS Fellow www.swri.org/newsroom/pre...
SwRI’s Dr. Alan Stern named AAS Fellow | Southwest Research Institute
The honor recognizes members for their leadership in space science
www.swri.org
January 8, 2026 at 5:14 PM
press.aas.org
#AAS247 press conference “High Redshifts and High Energies” begins at 10:15 am MST in Room 129A. See the speaker lineup at #Thu_amit#Thu_am" class="hover:underline text-blue-600 dark:text-sky-400 no-card-link" target="_blank" rel="noopener" data-link="bsky">https://aas.org/meetings/aas247/press-kit#Thu_am and watch live on YouTube at https://www.youtube.com/c/AASPressOffice
Graphic announcing the High Redshifts and High Energies press conference at AAS 247
January 8, 2026 at 4:45 PM
press.aas.org
For resources related to the Wednesday press conferences at #AAS247, including presenter slides, press releases, and video recordings of the briefings, see the updated press kit: aas.org/meetings/aas...
AAS 247: 2nd Media Advisory (Press Kit) | American Astronomical Society
aas.org
January 8, 2026 at 3:41 PM
press.aas.org
New Jersey Institute of Technology: Researchers Discover Long-Hidden Source of Gamma Rays Unleashed by Solar Flares news.njit.edu/njit-researc...
NJIT Researchers Discover Long-Hidden Source of Gamma Rays Unleashed by Solar Flares | NJIT News
news.njit.edu
January 8, 2026 at 5:12 AM