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A UA-led team of astronomers has discovered inner asteroid belts and outer comet-filled belts similar to the arrangement found in our solar system around nearby stars Vega and Fomalhaut. A wide gap between the inner and outer belts strongly hints at the existence of yet undiscovered planets circling the bright stars.

http://uanews.org/story/asteroid-belt-found-around-vega
A team of University of Arizona astronomers has produced the clearest visible- light pictures of stars and an exoplanet ever taken, using an adaptive-optics system to take out the blurring effects of Earth’s atmosphere.
http://azstarnet.com/news/science/university-of-arizona-astronomers-see-more-clearly-than-ever/article_ba3373b0-d06f-5193-abc3-103c77562e33.html

Black holes are essentially invisible, but astronomers are developing technology to image the immediate surroundings of these enigmas like never before. Within a few years, experts say, scientists may have the first-ever picture of the environment around a black hole, and could even spot the theorized "shadow" of a black hole itself.

https://www.as.arizona.edu/incredible-technology-how-see-invisible-black-hole
Are we alone in the universe, and what if we're not? A new book published by the University of Arizona Press and edited by UA scientists brings to the table the ethical and societal implications of encountering life elsewhere in the universe.

New UA Astrobiology Book Asks the Big Questions

Are we alone in the universe? This is the central question posed by a new book edited by scientists at the University of Arizona. "Encountering Life in the Universe: Ethical Foundations and Social Implications of Astrobiology" is a compilation of works by authors ranging from philosophers and theologians to astronomers and astrobiologists, edited by UA researchers and writers and published by the University of Arizona Press. The book explores the ethical and societal implications of finding life elsewhere in the universe. 

Read full article here

Artist's conception of the Milky Way galaxy. (Image: Nick Risinger)

UA-Led Research Maps Where Stars Are Born

A team of astronomers led by Yancy Shirley at the University of Arizona, Steward Observatoryhas completed the largest-ever survey of dense gas clouds in the Milky Way – pockets shrouded in gas and dust where new stars are being born. Cataloging and mapping more than 6,000 gas clouds, the survey allows astronomers to better understand the earliest phases of star formation.

When you look at the Milky Way on a clear summer night, you'll notice it's not a continuous stream of stars," said Shirley. "Instead, you'll notice all those little dark patches where there seem to be no stars. But those regions are not devoid of stars – they're dark clouds containing dust and gas, the raw material from which stars and planets are forming in our Milky Way today."

veiw website

Amy Phelps/ Arizona Daily Wildcat George Rieke and Marcia Rieke, astronomy professors, work on developing the Webb telescope for NASA

The testing of one of four instruments for a large-scale telescope was put on pause last week due to the federal government shutdown that began on Oct. 1.

http://www.wildcat.arizona.edu/article/2013/10/government-shutdown-halts-testing-of-instrument-for-james-webb-space-telescope
Astrophotographer Adam Block captured this view of Comet ISON on the morning of Oct. 8 with the 0.8-meter Schulman Telescope at the University of Arizona SkyCenter atop Mount Lemmon. Check out the SkyCenter gallery for the technical details.

It's not at all clear whether Comet ISON will become "the comet of the century," as skywatchers hoped a year ago, but it's certainly become a beautiful sight for photographers with the right kind of telescope. Adam Block captured a stunner on Tuesday morning, just before sunrise, using the 0.8-meter Schulman Telescope at the University of Arizona's SkyCenter atop Mount Lemmon. 

http://photoblog.nbcnews.com/_news/2013/10/08/20873766-green-light-for-ison-comet-blazes-in-stunning-shots?lite
In the sky with diamonds? A so-called Super-Earth, planet 55 Cancri e was believed to be the first known planet to consist largely of diamond, due in part to the high carbon-to-oxygen ratio of its host star. (Artist's concept: Haven Giguere/Yale University)

Diamond 'Super-Earth' May Not be Quite as Precious.

A planet 40 light years from our solar system, believed to be the first-ever discovered planet to consist largely of diamond, may in fact be of less exquisite nature, according to new research led by University of Arizona astronomy graduate student Johanna Teske. 

Click here to view full aticle

 

The 4th Annual My Arizona Lecture Presents Chris Impey
"From My Arizona Sky to the Edge of the Universe"
Friday, October 18, 2013
3:30 - 5:00 p.m.**
Aerospace & Mechanical Engineering Building, Room S202
**Reception to Follow

http://geography.arizona.edu/content/4th-annual-my-arizona-lecture-chris-impey

Welders and machinists at the University of Arizona's Machining and Welding Center have been recognized by NASA with an award for "extraordinary dedication and contributions" to the James Webb Space Telescope project.

http://uaatwork.arizona.edu/story/ua-machining-and-welding-center-wins-nasa-award

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