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The NASA/ESA/CSA James Webb Space Telescope has verified a decades-old mystery regarding planet formation in the early universe. According to The Astrophysical Journal, findings indicate that planet-forming disks around stars endured far longer than previously theorised, even in environments with minimal heavy elements.

Reportedly, in 2003, the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope observed the presence of massive planets around ancient stars. This was surprising as these stars lacked heavier elements like carbon and iron, essential for planet formation. The discovery raised questions about how such planets could form and grow so early in the universe’s history.

Revisiting a Longstanding Puzzle

To explore this further, the Webb Telescope focused on NGC 346, a massive star cluster in the Small Magellanic Cloud. As one of the Milky Way’s nearest neighbours, its chemical composition, dominated by hydrogen and helium, closely resembles conditions in the early universe. The cluster’s stars, estimated to be between 20 to 30 million years old, were found to retain planet-forming disks far beyond the expected timeframes seen in our galaxy.

Findings Challenge Existing Models

Guido De Marchi, study lead from the European Space Research and Technology Centre (ESTEC), stated to ESA sources that they see that disks indeed surround these stars and are still in the process of gobbling material, even at the relatively old age of 20 or 30 million years. This finding challenges current models, which predict that planet-forming disks dissipate within a few million years. Elena Sabbi, co-investigator and chief scientist at NOIRLab’s Gemini Observatory, explained in a statement that models suggested disks would not survive in environments with low metal content. Webb has now proven that planets in such conditions can form and evolve for longer periods.

Why Do Disks Persist Longer?

Two possible explanations have been proposed for the extended lifespans of these disks. The first suggests that radiation pressure, which typically disperses disks, is less effective in environments with minimal heavier elements. These elements are needed for radiation to interact with the surrounding gas efficiently.

The second explanation considers the initial size of gas clouds. Stars forming in low-metal environments might originate from larger clouds of gas, leading to bigger disks. Larger disks take significantly longer to disperse, providing more time for planet formation.

Implications for Planet Formation Theories

These observations provide new insights into planet formation in the early universe, indicating that planets may have had extended growth periods even under conditions once thought unfavourable. With Webb’s unprecedented resolution, astronomers now have tangible evidence that planet-forming disks are far more resilient than previously understood, reshaping long-standing theories about planetary evolution.

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Two Spacecraft Recreate Artificial Solar Eclipses to Observe the Sun’s Superhot Corona

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June 27, 2025

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Two Spacecraft Recreate Artificial Solar Eclipses to Observe the Sun’s Superhot Corona

Two spacecraft have achieved a rare milestone: recreating a total solar eclipse in space. The European Space Agency’s (ESA) Proba-3 mission released the first images on June 16 from a successful test where one satellite blocked the sun’s light, allowing the other to capture the blazing outer atmosphere—the corona. Unlike fleeting eclipses on Earth, this artificial version offers prolonged, repeated observations. “We could see the corona without any special image processing,” said Andrei Zhukov of the Royal Observatory of Belgium. “It was just visible there, like during a natural total solar eclipse.”

ESA’s Proba-3 Spacecraft Recreates Eclipses to Study Sun’s Million-Degree Corona in Unprecedented Detail

As per ESA reports, the Proba-3 spacecraft orbits Earth in an elliptical path, up to 60,000 kilometres at the far end. During alignment, they float a mere 150 metres apart, one satellite casting an accurate shadow on the other. This method allows scientists to block the sun’s brightly radiant disk and view the faint, million-degree corona, which is some 200 times hotter than the sun’s visible surface and can be observed only during total eclipses. The middle layer is where scientists think answers to why this outer region is so blisteringly hot may be found.

So far, the twin satellites have completed nine test eclipses, with the goal of performing two per week. While natural eclipses only happen every 18 months or so and last just a matter of minutes, Proba-3 could replicate an eclipse every 20 hours and prolong it for up to six hours. This capability gives scientists a unique opportunity to investigate in detail the solar corona’s dynamic and magnetic activity.

Proba-3 was lifted off to orbit from India on December 5. Over the next two years, the spacecraft is anticipated to provide upwards of 1,000 hours of eclipse data. The discovery not only makes it possible to systematically observe solar behavior but also helps to enhance the forecasts of solar weather needed to protect satellites and power grids.

ESA officials view this as a new era in heliophysics, where man-made eclipses will fill the observational gap left by the rarity of total solar eclipses on Earth. With each orbit and eclipse, scientists inch closer to solving the long-standing mysteries of our star’s fiery halo.

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Breakthrough Laser Tech Enhances LiDAR Accuracy and Gas Detection

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June 27, 2025

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Breakthrough Laser Tech Enhances LiDAR Accuracy and Gas Detection

Laser technology underpins many modern applications requiring precise measurement and communication. Scientists led by NTNU’s Johann Riemensberger have developed a new integrated laser that is fast, powerful, relatively inexpensive, and easy to use. The work is a collaboration with Switzerland’s École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL) and chip specialist Luxtelligence. This approach overcomes key limitations of conventional precision lasers, which are typically large, costly and difficult to adjust. According to Riemensberger, such lasers could enable small, affordable, high-performance instruments and communication systems.

Advanced materials, microscopic circuits

According to the study published in Nature Photonics, the new laser is implemented on a photonic chip using advanced materials such as thin-film lithium niobate, leveraging its electro-optic (Pockels) effect for ultrafast, mode-hop-free frequency tuning. It combines the lithium niobate circuit with a commercial semiconductor gain chip, yielding a laser that is both powerful and robust.

It emits a stable beam and allows the frequency to be adjusted quickly and smoothly without mode hops. Notably, the device can be operated using a single tuning knob instead of multiple controls. Because it relies on standard chip fabrication processes, the laser can be mass-produced inexpensively. “Our findings make it possible to create small, inexpensive and user-friendly measuring instruments and communication tools with high performance,” Riemensberger says.

Self-driving cars and air quality detectors

Conventional precision lasers are often large, expensive and difficult to tune. Riemensberger notes that “our new laser solves several of these problems”. The team demonstrated the device in LiDAR (light detection and ranging) systems for self-driving cars, where lasers measure distance by timing reflected pulses. This laser achieved a range precision of about four centimeters, enabling very high-resolution environmental mapping.

Its rapid, mode-hop-free tuning allowed it to sweep across gas absorption lines, enabling sensitive detection of trace hydrogen cyanide, demonstrating potential for rapid gas sensing in safety and environmental monitoring. In fact, Simone Bianconi of EPFL notes that the laser’s combination of tunable, low-noise output makes it well-suited for coherent LiDAR and precision gas sensing.

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Honor X9c India Launch Confirmed; to Get 108-Megapixel Rear Camera, 1.5K Curved AMOLED Display



NASA and ISRO Confirm Japan’s Moon Lander Resilience Crashed at Mare Frigoris

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Axiom-4 Mission Successfully Docks on the ISS, Shubhanshu Shukla Makes History

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June 26, 2025

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Axiom-4 Mission Successfully Docks on the ISS, Shubhanshu Shukla Makes History

Axiom 4 Mission carrying the crew members has now reached the International Space Station (ISS) after getting launched from Kennedy Space Centre at 12:01 PM IST on June 25, 2025. Dragon has Commander Peggy Whitson, Mission Specialists Sławosz Uznański-Wiśniewski and Tibor Kapu, and Pilot Shubhanshu Shukla. It will dock to the Harmony module space-facing port on Thursday at 7 a.m. The flight engineers at NASA, Anne McClain and Nichole Ayers, will be on duty and monitor Dragon during the automated approach of it, and also for the manoeuvres.

Dragon Capsule to Dock at Harmony Module on June 27

As per the confirmation by NASA, after docking, the Ax-4 astronauts will meet with the seven Expedition 73 crewmates. They will further participate in a safety briefing with the residents of the station. McClain and Ayers, with the rest of the crew, had a normal shift on Wednesday doing the microgravity research and lab maintenance.

McClain went through the research hardware and processed samples in the Destiny lab module, further photographed the work for ground analysis. Ayers performed the study on fluid physics in the Microgravity Science Glovbox, which can benefit pharmaceutical manufacturing techniques and 3D printing in space.

Expedition 73 Crew Prepares for Ax-4 Arrival with Routine Duties

NASA Fight Engineer Jonny Kim and Commander Takuya Onishi tested a specialised thigh cuff that can reverse the space-caused fluid shifts towards the upper body of the crew member. Both of them took turns wearing the biomedical device in the Columbus lab module as ultrasound 2 scans and measured blood pressure with cardiac output, heart rate and more to know the effectiveness of the thigh cuff concerning the health of the crew.

Scientific Research and Biomedical Tests Continue Aboard the ISS

Sergey Ryzhikov, the veteran cosmonaut and thrice a space visitor, started his shift in the Zvezda service lab module and replaced computer components before the day closed. Further, he charges science experiment batteries and activates an Earth observation camera. Alexey Zubritskiy, flight engineer at NASA, reorganised cargo inside the Nauka science module and stowed trash, and also discarded gear in the Progress 90 cargo craft because they had to depart the Poisk module after seven days. Another flight engineer, Kirill Peskov, cleaned the Nauka ventilation system and checked the exposure data of radiation while orbiting the Earth.

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