Right now, we are focusing on improving three-dimensional visualization in both astronomy and medicine," said Harvard’s Alyssa Goodman who heads the Astronomical Medicine project. "This project with Cas A is exactly what we have hoped would come out of it.... Read more about Cassiopeia A Comes Alive Across Time and Space

The space between stars is not empty—it contains copious amounts of gas and dust. Astronomers estimate that about 5-10% of the total mass of our Milky Way galaxy is contained in the interstellar gas and dust, and about 1% is in the form of tiny dust grains made predominantly of silicates, rather like fine sand. Some grains are also composed of carbon and other elements.... Read more about All about dust

Astronomers have found what may be considered a piece of a galactic skeleton; a dark structure of gas and dust that might provide a backbone on which one of the spiral arms extend from the central bar of the Milky Way galaxy.... Read more about Astronomers Finds “Spine” Along Spiral Arms of the Milky Way

A Yale-led research group has created the most detailed maps yet of a vast seedbed of stars similar to Earth's Sun.

The maps provide unprecedented detail of the structure of the Orion A molecular cloud, the closest star-forming region of high-mass stars. Orion A hosts a variety of star-forming environments, including dense star clusters similar to the one where Earth's Sun is believed to have formed.... Read more about Press Release: A new map for a birthplace of stars