The Solar System’s largest planet and a gas giant
Scientists have captured the Sun’s surface at unprecedented resolution with the Daniel K. Inouye Solar Telescope and other instruments and have identified widespread Kelvin–Helmholtz vortices—500–2,000km spirals of magnetised plasma. The team has linked these instabilities to how magnetic energy cascades to smaller scales and feeds flares and coronal mass ejections that produce space weather.
A partial lunar eclipse has occurred, with up to about 93% of the Moon entering Earth’s umbra and taking on a reddish hue. The eclipse has reached maximum around 05:12 BST while the Moon has been low in the south‑west, making it appear larger. Cloud and low horizon may limit views across parts of the UK and Ireland.
Archaeologists uncover a mastaba at Saqqara dating to Egypt’s Fifth Dynasty, built for Yunmen, a high-ranking official, and his father Ity. The site includes two chapels, painted reliefs, and a false door, with colors well-preserved after more than 4,000 years. The find supports ongoing efforts to boost Egypt’s tourism through new discoveries.
Scientists have identified a 222‑metre‑wide, up to 43‑metre‑deep crater on the Moon formed in spring 2024 and first spotted in LRO images in 2025. The impact churned material across more than 100 km, produced a roughly 7‑km cold spot and has provided rare data scientists say will inform risk assessments for planned lunar bases.
Astronomers have measured a magnetosphere on exoplanet Beta Pictoris b using MeerKAT, finding a magnetic field about 1,250 gauss. This marks the first such measurement and suggests auroral activity drives radio bursts from the young gas giant about 64 light-years away. The team hopes to apply the method to other giants.
Recent findings show white dwarfs can display vibrant colors beyond their expected white glow, with a green WD reflecting light altered by atmospheric elements. A second-generation planet around a dying star is also a possibility under investigation, prompting questions about planetary formation around white dwarfs.