Space Physics News Explained for Pupils
Recent astronomy, cosmology, telescope and exoplanet stories explained using GCSE, AS and A Level Physics ideas.
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Space archive
Week beginning 20 July 2026
Euclid discovers the most ancient quasars: how redshift lets us see the early Universe
ESA's Euclid telescope has found 31 extremely early quasars, including the record-holder at redshift 7.77. Their stretched light shows how spectra and infrared observations let physicists study the young Universe.
CERN sees a wake in quark-gluon plasma
CMS scientists at CERN have observed a diffusion wake left by fast quarks and gluons in quark-gluon plasma, giving physicists a new way to study matter that filled the Universe shortly after the Big Bang.
Week beginning 6 July 2026
TESS discovers its first planet using gravitational microlensing
NASA's TESS telescope has found its first gravitational microlensing planet: a super-Jupiter nearly 40,000 light-years away whose gravity briefly magnified a more distant star.
Optical-fibre experiment reveals Hawking radiation backreaction
A fibre-optic analogue of a black-hole horizon has revealed a direct process for stimulated Hawking-like radiation and measured how that radiation changes the light field that produced it.
Week beginning 22 June 2026
European XFEL test shows electrons behave differently in warm dense matter
An experiment at the European XFEL found that a widely used model overestimated electron oscillation energies in hot, compressed aluminium by up to 25%, improving how physicists study planets, materials and fusion fuel.
Hubble sees an early galaxy clearing the Universe's hydrogen fog
Hubble observations of the early galaxy MXDFz4.4 show young stars letting ultraviolet light escape, helping explain how the early Universe became transparent.
Week beginning 15 June 2026
Quantum atom sensor clears a path to dark matter and gravitational wave searches
A prototype atom interferometer has shown how laser noise can be cancelled, making future quantum sensors more useful for fundamental physics.
Webb watches an exoplanet heat up during a close pass by its star
The James Webb Space Telescope has observed a giant planet on a stretched orbit as it is heated strongly by its star.
Week beginning 25 May 2026
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