The formation of massive stars and planets. The deaths of stars and galaxies. The extreme and violent behaviors of black hole jets and quasars. An up-close and personal radar view of the Moon. These mysteries and more were unraveled in 2021 by radio astronomers leveraging the scientific and technological power of National Radio Astronomy Observatory (NRAO) facilities.

Astronomers used the VLA to trace a corkscrew-shaped magnetic field in a powerful jet of material ejected from the core of a massive galaxy farther away from the central galaxy’s central black hole than ever seen before. The new images provide clues that will help understand the mechanics of such jets, which are seen throughout the Universe.

A system designed to provide streaming data from the VLA to SETI Institute equipment to search for radio transmissions possibly generated by extraterrestrial civilizations has successfully completed its first test.

The National Radio Astronomy Observatory congratulates four astronomers who earned Breakthrough Prize Foundation awards for their outstanding research on a collision between two neutron stars. Their work made extensive use of the VLA and VLBA.

The Very Large Array Sky Survey gave astronomers the first clue that ultimately revealed a dramatic story — the remnant of a star that exploded long ago had plunged into the core of its companion star causing it, too, to explode as a supernova.

The National Radio Astronomy Observatory has named Dr. Patricia (Trish) Henning as its next Assistant Director for New Mexico Operations. In that role, she will lead the operations of the Very Large Array, the Very Long Baseline Array, and the Domenici Science Operations Center in Socorro, NM.

A new survey of our home galaxy, the Milky Way, combines the capabilities of the Very Large Array and the Effelsberg telescope in Germany to provide astronomers with valuable new insights into how stars much more massive than the Sun are formed.

A highly-detailed VLA image indicates that the jets of material propelled outward by young stars much more massive than the Sun may be very different from those ejected by less-massive young stars.

New, high-resolution VLA images of a giant molecular cloud where new stars are being born show changes since a set of observations made more than two decades ago. Tracking changes in this region over time can reveal new details about the process of star formation and the interactions of outflows from young stars.

The Very Large Array can’t image a big section of sky all at once. Instead, it must scan the sky over time. The VLA Sky Survey is using this method to create a map of nearly 80% of the observable sky. Join our host Summer Ash of the National Radio Astronomy Observatory as she talks about how the VLA is taking the time to see the big picture of the radio sky.