Press Releases: Gemini Observatory

3 May 2023: Astronomers using the Gemini South telescope in Chile, operated by NSF NOIRLab, have observed the first evidence of a dying Sun-like star engulfing an exoplanet. The “smoking gun” of this event was seen in a long and low-energy outburst from the star — the telltale signature of a planet skimming along a star’s surface. This never-before-seen process may herald the ultimate fate of Earth when our own Sun nears the end of its life in about five billion years.

5 April 2023: Astronomers using an array of ground- and space-based telescopes, including Gemini North on Hawai‘i, have uncovered a closely bound duo of energetic quasars — the hallmark of a pair of merging galaxies — seen when the Universe was only three billion years old. This discovery sheds light on the evolution of galaxies at “cosmic noon,” a period in the history of the Universe when galaxies underwent bursts of furious star formation. This merger also represents a system on the verge of becoming a giant elliptical galaxy.

29 March 2023: The Gemini North telescope, one half of the International Gemini Observatory, operated by NSF NOIRLab, captured this dazzling image of UGC 12914 and UGC 12915, which are nicknamed the Taffy Galaxies. Their twisted shape is the result of a head-on collision that occurred about 25 million years prior to their appearance in this image. A bridge of highly turbulent gas devoid of significant star formation spans the gap between the two galaxies.

16 February 2023: Journey Through the Universe — a partnership among NSF NOIRLab/Gemini, the Hawaiʻi Department of Education Hilo-Waiākea Complex Area, and the TMT International Observatory — returns to its in-person format to share with Hawai‘i students the wonders of the Universe and awareness of careers in science and technology. This year’s exciting program includes classroom presentations, career panels, a teacher workshop and more!

19 January 2023: A startling analysis from Globe at Night — a citizen science program run by NSF NOIRLab — concludes that stars are disappearing from human sight at an astonishing rate. The study finds that, to human eyes, artificial lighting has dulled the night sky more rapidly than indicated by satellite measurements. The study published in the journal Science showcases the unique contributions that citizen scientists can make in essential fields of research.

7 December 2022: While studying the aftermath of a long gamma-ray burst (GRB), two independent teams of astronomers using a host of telescopes in space and on Earth, including the Gemini North telescope on Hawai‘i and the Gemini South telescope in Chile, have uncovered the unexpected hallmarks of a Kilonova, the colossal explosion triggered by colliding neutron stars. This discovery challenges the prevailing theory that long GRBs exclusively come from supernovae, the end-of-life explosions of massive stars.

4 November 2022: Astronomers using the International Gemini Observatory, operated by NSF NOIRLab, have discovered the closest-known black hole to Earth. This is the first unambiguous detection of a dormant stellar-mass black hole in the Milky Way. Its close proximity to Earth, a mere 1600 light-years away, offers an intriguing target of study to advance our understanding of the evolution of binary systems.

14 October 2022: In the early-morning hours of today, 14 October 2022, astronomers using the Gemini South telescope in Chile operated by NSF NOIRLab observed the unprecedented aftermath of one of the most powerful explosions ever recorded, Gamma-Ray Burst GRB221009A. This record-shattering event, which was first detected on 9 October 2022 by orbiting X-ray and gamma-ray telescopes, occurred 2.4 billion light-years from Earth and was likely triggered by a supernova explosion giving birth to a black hole.

28 September 2022: Astronomers may have discovered the ancient chemical remains of the first stars to light up the Universe. Using an innovative analysis of a distant quasar observed by the 8.1-meter Gemini North telescope on Hawai‘i, operated by NSF NOIRLab, the scientists found an unusual ratio of elements that, they argue, could only come from the debris produced by the all-consuming explosion of a 300-solar-mass first-generation star.

18 August 2022: By harnessing the capabilities of the 8.1-meter Gemini South telescope in Chile, which is part of the International Gemini Observatory operated by NSF NOIRLab, astronomers have obtained the sharpest image ever of the star R136a1, the most massive known star in the Universe. Their research, led by NOIRLab astronomer Venu M. Kalari, challenges our understanding of the most massive stars and suggests that they may not be as massive as previously thought.

9 August 2022: An evocative new image captured by the Gemini North telescope in Hawai‘i reveals a pair of interacting spiral galaxies — NGC 4568 and NGC 4567 — as they begin to clash and merge. These galaxies are entangled by their mutual gravitational field and will eventually combine to form a single elliptical galaxy in around 500 million years. Also visible in the image is the glowing remains of a supernova that was detected in 2020.

26 July 2022: A number of mysterious gamma-ray bursts appear as lonely flashes of intense energy far from any obvious galactic home, raising questions about their true origins and distances. Using data from some of the most powerful telescopes on Earth and in space, including the twin Gemini telescopes, astronomers may have finally found their true origins — a population of distant galaxies, some nearly 10 billion light-years away.

20 July 2022: Gemini South, one of the world’s most productive and powerful optical-infrared telescopes, received a major capability boost with the successful installation of a new high-resolution spectrograph called GHOST constructed by an international consortium. This cutting-edge scientific instrument will expand our understanding of the earliest stars, the chemical fingerprints of distant planetary systems, and the formation and evolution of galaxies. Gemini South in Chile is one half of the International Gemini Observatory, operated by NSF NOIRLab.

14 July 2022: NSF NOIRLab’s Teen Astronomy Café educational program is proud to present its newest initiative: Teen Astronomy Café — To Go! This online, free program provides complete digital education packages, aligned with the Next Generation Science Standards, suitable for informal use by students alone and by classroom educators. Using science-grade data actively engages students and encourages them to think and act like scientists. Five ‘Instant Packs’ are now available, each focusing on a different astronomy research topic.

30 June 2022: An unusual ultra-faint dwarf galaxy has been discovered on the outer fringes of the Andromeda Galaxy thanks to the sharp eyes of an amateur astronomer examining archival data processed by NSF NOIRLab’s Community Science and Data Center. Follow-up by professional astronomers using the International Gemini Observatory, a Program of NSF NOIRLab, revealed that the dwarf galaxy — Pegasus V — contains very few heavier elements and is likely to be a fossil of the first galaxies.

15 June 2022: This mosaic of dusty, swirling disks shows a sample of images captured from the International Gemini Observatory, a Program of NSF NOIRLab, as part of an unprecedented survey of 44 young massive stars. An international team used Gemini South in Chile to investigate planet formation and uncovered a potential young Jupiter-mass planet, and confirmed the existence of two brown dwarfs. The images will be presented in sessions today at the 240th American Astronomical Society meeting.

31 May 2022: Astronomers may now understand why the similar planets Uranus and Neptune are different colors. Using observations from the Gemini North telescope, the NASA Infrared Telescope Facility, and the Hubble Space Telescope, researchers have developed a single atmospheric model that matches observations of both planets. The model reveals that excess haze on Uranus builds up in the planet’s stagnant, sluggish atmosphere and makes it appear a lighter tone than Neptune.

22 March 2022: The overdeveloped spiral arm of the galaxy NGC 772, which was created by tidal interactions with an unruly neighbor, dominates this observation made by astronomers using the Gemini North telescope located near the summit of Maunakea in Hawai‘i. NGC 772’s peculiar appearance has earned it a place as the 78th entry in the Atlas of Peculiar Galaxies — a rogues’ gallery of weird and wonderful galaxy structures.

22 February 2022: This image, taken by astronomers using the US Department of Energy-fabricated Dark Energy Camera at Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory, a Program of NSF NOIRLab, captures the galaxy NGC 1566 as it twirls, flinging its arms through the vastness of space. Colloquially nicknamed the Spanish Dancer, this spiral galaxy is often studied by astronomers learning about galaxy groups, stars of different ages, and galactic black holes.

15 February 2022: NOIRLab's Journey Through the Universe — returning with an online program this year — will share the wonders of the Universe and career awareness in science and technology with Hawaiʻi students. In partnership with the Hawaiʻi Department of Education Hilo-Waiakea Complex Area, this year’s implementation of the flagship astronomy outreach program consists of a week of virtual programming along with a new cultural exchange program between classrooms in NOIRLab’s host cities in Hawaiʻi, Chile, and Arizona.