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Showing results 11 - 20 of 259
The U.S. National Science Foundation Very Large Array on the plains of San Agustin, New Mexico
Hidden Giants of the Early Universe: NSF NRAO Telescopes Help Reveal Divergent Fates of the Most Massive Galaxies
January 5, 2026 at 11:56 am | News Release

Astronomers using the U.S. National Science Foundation National Radio Astronomy Observatory (NSF NRAO) instruments Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) and, the U.S. National Science Foundation Very Large Array (NSF VLA), and the W. M. Keck Observatory have uncovered the hidden lives of some of the most massive galaxies in the early Universe, revealing that while some shut down star formation quickly, others continue forming stars behind thick veils of cosmic dust.

A “tomographic” ALMA view revealing how the supersonic protostellar jet from SVS 13 interacts with the surrounding ambient medium. In the background, a Hubble Space Telescope (HST) image shows the cavity carved out by the outflow, along with the striking Herbig–Haro knots visible at optical wavelengths.
NSF VLA and ALMA Reveal Time-Stamps of Star Birth in Dazzling Cosmic Jet
December 16, 2025 at 2:58 pm | News Release

An international group of astronomers has uncovered the clearest evidence yet that the powerful jets launched by newborn stars dependably record a star’s most violent growing pains, confirming a long‑standing model of how these jets plow through their surroundings.​​

A star explodes into a dense disk of helium-rich material, generating strong radio waves for the first time. How did this happen? One idea is that years before any explosion, a small star stripped of its hydrogen and made of mostly helium orbits an even smaller ultra-dense star made of neutrons. As the stars approach each other, the helium star begins to lose more and more mass to the neutron star, forming a chaotic disk of material around the system. Eventually, there is an explosion, with the exact cause unclear. The ejected material in the explosion slams into the disk of mass lost, creating shocks which produce strong radio emission. This emission was then observed by astronomers using the Very Large Array.
Astronomers Make First Radio Detection of Rare Supernova Type, Revealing Secrets of Stellar Death
December 12, 2025 at 2:55 pm | News Release

Astronomers using the U.S. National Science Foundation Very Large Array (NSF VLA)  have made an unprecedented discovery, capturing the first-ever radio signals from a rare class of stellar explosion known as a Type Ibn supernova. This achievement brings fresh insight into the death throes of massive stars and provides a rare glimpse into the final years of a star’s life, previously hidden from view.

Artist’s interpretation of two massive black holes (MBHs) within a galaxy. A tidal disruption event unfolds around the MBH that resides away from the galactic center and matter from a disrupted star swirls into a bright accretion disk, launching an energetic outflow and resulting in two bright radio flares.
Astronomers Discover Fastest-Evolving Radio Signals Ever Observed from Black Hole Tearing Apart Star
October 15, 2025 at 12:00 pm | News Release

An international team of astronomers has discovered the first radio-bright tidal disruption event (TDE) occurring outside a galaxy’s center using the U.S. National Science Foundation National Radio Astronomy Observatory (NSF NRAO) Very Large Array (NSF VLA) and Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA), along with several partner telescopes,. The event, designated AT 2024tvd, revealed the fastest-evolving radio signals ever observed from this type of cosmic catastrophe.

Artist’s interpretation of two massive black holes (MBHs) within a galaxy. A tidal disruption event unfolds around the MBH that resides away from the galactic center and matter from a disrupted star swirls into a bright accretion disk, launching an energetic outflow and resulting in two bright radio flares.
A Million Reasons to Celebrate: NSF NRAO Hits One Million Citations
September 8, 2025 at 11:07 am | News Release

The U.S. National Science Foundation National Radio Astronomy Observatory (NSF NRAO) is celebrating a historic achievement: research using our…

Researchers who participated in the NSF SpectrumX field experiment stand in front of a VLA antenna.
NSF NRAO Hosts SpectrumX Field Experiment at the Very Large Array
September 2, 2025 at 2:53 pm | News Release

The U. S. National Science Foundation’s National Radio Astronomy Observatory (NSF NRAO) recently collaborated with NSF SpectrumX, the Spectrum Innovation Center, to host a large-scale spectrum research experiment at the U.S. National Science Foundation Very Large Array (NSF VLA) in New Mexico.

Top panel: the cluster of galaxies (white/violet) and its hot gaseous atmosphere (blue); bottom right panel: NSF VLBA image of the recently awakened central black hole and its tiny jets; bottom left panel: the first author of the article, Francesco Ubertosi, with one of the NSF VLBA antennas (Owens Valley, CA) used for the observations in the background.
Astronomers Catch Supermassive Black Hole in the Act of “Waking Up”
August 8, 2025 at 11:00 am | News Release

Astronomers using the U.S. National Science Foundation’s Very Long Baseline Array (NSF VLBA) and U.S. National Science Foundation’s Very Large Array (NSF VLA) have caught a supermassive black hole in the act of awakening from a long slumber, providing an unprecedented glimpse into the earliest stages of black hole activity.

Schematic of circular polarization being detected in radio waves from a massive protostar surrounded by a disk and driving a bipolar jet. This is an artistic image, not drawn to scale.
Groundbreaking Magnetic Field Discovery Near Massive Protostar Made Possible by NSF NRAO’s Very Large Array
July 18, 2025 at 2:00 pm | News Release

An international team, led by astronomers from the Indian Institute of Space Science and Technology (IIST) and the Indian Institute of Science (IISc), has for the first time detected circular polarization in radio emission originating from a massive protostar, IRAS 18162-2048—unveiling fresh clues about the cosmic forces shaping our universe.

An artist’s impression of the Long Period Transit, CHIME J1634+44, believed to be the brightest and most polarised LPT ever found.
Space’s Spinning Enigma: A ‘Unicorn’ Object Defies Astrophysics
July 17, 2025 at 2:00 am | News Release

Astronomers have made a groundbreaking discovery using some of the world’s most advanced radio telescopes. Researchers, led by Fengqiu Adam Dong, a Jansky Fellow at the NSF Green Bank Observatory (NSF GBO), have identified an exceptionally unusual cosmic object known as a Long Period Radio Transient (LPT), named CHIME J1634+44. This object stands out as one of the most polarized LPTs ever discovered, and it is the only one observed to be spinning up (meaning its rotation is speeding up) a phenomenon never seen before in this class of astronomical objects.

VLA Smithsonian
National Radio Astronomy Observatory Announces Bipartisan Capital Outlay Funding for Next Generation Learning Center
July 14, 2025 at 3:30 pm | Announcement

The U.S. National Science Foundation National Radio Astronomy Observatory (NSF NRAO) is proud to announce a significant milestone in advancing STEAM education in rural New Mexico. This achievement is the result of dedicated advocacy by Socorro County and Associated Universities, Inc., whose efforts—combined with bipartisan support from state legislators and Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham—have secured $1.78 million in capital outlay funding for the Next Generation Learning Center at the U.S. National Science Foundation Very Large Array in Socorro County.

Showing results 11 - 20 of 259