We present high-definition observations with the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) of >1000 Cepheids in a geometric anchor of the distance ladder, NGC 4258, and in five hosts of eight Type Ia supernovae, a far greater sample than previous studies with JWST. These galaxies individually contain the largest samples of Cepheids, an average of >150 each, producing the strongest statistical comparison to those previously measured with the Hubble Space Telescope (HST) in the near-infrared (NIR). They also span the distance range of those used to determine the Hubble constant with HST, allowing us to search for a distance-dependent bias in HST measurements. The superior resolution of JWST negates crowding noise, the largest source of variance in the NIR Cepheid period–luminosity relations (Leavitt laws) measured with HST. Together with the use of two epochs to constrain Cepheid phases and three filters to remove reddening, we reduce the dispersion in the Cepheid P–L relations by a factor of 2.5. We find no significant difference in the mean distance measurements determined from HST and JWST, with a formal difference of −0.01 ± 0.03 mag. This result is independent of zero-points and analysis variants including metallicity dependence, local crowding, choice of filters, and slope of the relations. We can reject the hypothesis of unrecognized crowding of Cepheid photometry from HST that grows with distance as the cause of the "Hubble tension" at 8.2σ, i.e., greater confidence than that of the Hubble tension itself. We conclude that errors in photometric measurements of Cepheids across the distance ladder do not significantly contribute to the tension.

We present a long-period radio transient (GLEAM-X J0704−37) discovered to have an optical counterpart, consistent with a cool main-sequence star of spectral type M3. The radio periodicity occurs at the longest period yet found, 2.9 hr, and was discovered in archival low-frequency data from the Murchison Widefield Array. High time resolution observations from MeerKAT show that pulsations from the source display complex microstructure and high linear polarisation, suggesting a pulsar-like emission mechanism occurring due to strong, ordered magnetic fields. The timing residuals, measured over more than a decade, show tentative evidence of a ∼6 yr modulation. The high Galactic latitude of the system and the M-dwarf star excludes a magnetar interpretation, suggesting a more likely M-dwarf/white dwarf binary scenario for this system.

Near-Earth object 2024 MK was discovered on 2024 June 16, less than 2 weeks before it made a sub-lunar-distance close approach. This close approach provided an ideal opportunity to determine how planetary encounters affect asteroid surfaces in preparation for the numerous missions to (99942) Apophis during its close approach in 2029. We collected spectroscopic data before and after its close approach to determine if planetary encounters induce spectral changes due to surface refreshing. We used NASA's Infrared Telescope Facility's (IRTF) near-infrared spectrometer SpeX prism mode (0.7–2.5 μm) to observe 2024 MK pre and postapproach. We also observed the asteroid before its close approach using Las Cumbres Observatory's FLOYDS visible spectrometer and after its close approach using IRTF's SpeX long-wavelength cross-dispersed short grating mode, resulting in full spectral coverage from 0.32 to 4.2 μm. 2024 MK is an S-type asteroid that is compositionally most analogous to an L-ordinary chondrite. Spectral analysis of the 3 μm region indicates no surficial water or hydroxide within the level of noise. Band parameter analysis of the pre and postapproach data shows the planetary encounter did not induce any significant spectral changes, suggesting that surface refreshing did not occur on a measurable scale. Similar studies of other targets at smaller encounter distances are required to determine if the lack of spectral changes on 2024 MK indicates it was not close enough to Earth to affect its surface or if the spectral similarity pre and postapproach instead indicates planetary encounters do not cause surface refreshing.

The solar system's distant reaches exhibit a wealth of anomalous dynamical structure, hinting at the presence of a yet-undetected, massive trans-Neptunian body—Planet Nine (P9). Previous analyses have shown how orbital evolution induced by this object can explain the origins of a broad assortment of exotic orbits, ranging from those characterized by high perihelia to those with extreme inclinations. In this work, we shift the focus toward a more conventional class of TNOs and consider the observed census of long-period, nearly planar, Neptune-crossing objects as a hitherto-unexplored probe of the P9 hypothesis. To this end, we carry out comprehensive N-body simulations that self-consistently model gravitational perturbations from all giant planets, the Galactic tide, as well as passing stars, stemming from initial conditions that account for the primordial giant planet migration and Sun's early evolution within a star cluster. Accounting for observational biases, our results reveal that the orbital architecture of this group of objects aligns closely with the predictions of the P9-inclusive model. In stark contrast, the P9-free scenario is statistically rejected at a ∼5σ confidence level. Accordingly, this work introduces a new line of evidence supporting the existence of P9 and further delineates a series of observational predictions poised for near-term resolution.

New emerging flux (NEF) has long been considered a mechanism for solar eruptions, but the detailed process remains an open question. In this work, we explore how NEF drives a coronal magnetic configuration to erupt. This configuration is created by two magnetic sources of strengths M and S embedded in the photosphere, one electric-current-carrying flux rope (FR) floating in the corona, and an electric current induced on the photospheric surface by the FR. The source M is fixed, accounting for the initial background field, and S changes, playing the role of NEF. We introduce the channel function C to forecast the overall evolutionary behavior of the configuration. The location, polarity, and strength of NEF govern the evolutionary behavior of the FR before eruption. In the case of ∣S/M∣ < 1, with reconnection occurring between new and old fields, the configuration in equilibrium evolves to the critical state, invoking the catastrophe. In this case, if the polarities of the new and old fields are opposite, reconnection occurs as NEF is close to the FR, and if the polarities are the same, reconnection happens as NEF appears far from the FR. With different combinations of the relative polarity and the location, the evolutionary behavior of the system gets complex, and the catastrophe may not occur. If ∣S/M∣ > 1 and the two fields have opposite polarity, the catastrophe always takes place, but if the polarities are the same, the catastrophe occurs only as NEF is located far from the FR; otherwise, the evolution ends up either with a failed eruption or without a catastrophe at all.

We report on the discovery of a very prominent mid-infrared (18–25 μm) excess associated with the trans-Neptunian dwarf planet (136472) Makemake. The excess, detected by the Mid-Infrared Instrument of the James Webb Space Telescope, along with previous measurements from the Spitzer and Herschel space telescopes, indicates the occurrence of temperatures of ∼150 K, much higher than what solid surfaces at Makemake's heliocentric distance could reach by solar irradiation. We identify two potential explanations: a continuously visible, currently active region powered by subsurface upwelling and possibly cryovolcanic activity covering ≤1% of Makemake's surface or an as-yet-undetected ring containing very small carbonaceous dust grains, which have not been seen before in trans-Neptunian or Centaur rings. Both scenarios point to unprecedented phenomena among trans-Neptunian objects and could greatly impact our understanding of these distant worlds.

When surrounded by a transparent emission region, black holes are expected to reveal a dark shadow caused by gravitational light bending and photon capture at the event horizon. To image and study this phenomenon, we have assembled the Event Horizon Telescope, a global very long baseline interferometry array observing at a wavelength of 1.3 mm. This allows us to reconstruct event-horizon-scale images of the supermassive black hole candidate in the center of the giant elliptical galaxy M87. We have resolved the central compact radio source as an asymmetric bright emission ring with a diameter of 42 ± 3 μas, which is circular and encompasses a central depression in brightness with a flux ratio ≳10:1. The emission ring is recovered using different calibration and imaging schemes, with its diameter and width remaining stable over four different observations carried out in different days. Overall, the observed image is consistent with expectations for the shadow of a Kerr black hole as predicted by general relativity. The asymmetry in brightness in the ring can be explained in terms of relativistic beaming of the emission from a plasma rotating close to the speed of light around a black hole. We compare our images to an extensive library of ray-traced general-relativistic magnetohydrodynamic simulations of black holes and derive a central mass of M = (6.5 ± 0.7) × 10⁹ M_⊙. Our radio-wave observations thus provide powerful evidence for the presence of supermassive black holes in centers of galaxies and as the central engines of active galactic nuclei. They also present a new tool to explore gravity in its most extreme limit and on a mass scale that was so far not accessible.

On 2017 August 17 a binary neutron star coalescence candidate (later designated GW170817) with merger time 12:41:04 UTC was observed through gravitational waves by the Advanced LIGO and Advanced Virgo detectors. The Fermi Gamma-ray Burst Monitor independently detected a gamma-ray burst (GRB 170817A) with a time delay of $\sim 1.7\,{\rm{s}}$ with respect to the merger time. From the gravitational-wave signal, the source was initially localized to a sky region of 31 deg² at a luminosity distance of ${40}_{-8}^{+8}$ Mpc and with component masses consistent with neutron stars. The component masses were later measured to be in the range 0.86 to 2.26 $\,{M}_{\odot }$. An extensive observing campaign was launched across the electromagnetic spectrum leading to the discovery of a bright optical transient (SSS17a, now with the IAU identification of AT 2017gfo) in NGC 4993 (at $\sim 40\,{\rm{Mpc}}$) less than 11 hours after the merger by the One-Meter, Two Hemisphere (1M2H) team using the 1 m Swope Telescope. The optical transient was independently detected by multiple teams within an hour. Subsequent observations targeted the object and its environment. Early ultraviolet observations revealed a blue transient that faded within 48 hours. Optical and infrared observations showed a redward evolution over ∼10 days. Following early non-detections, X-ray and radio emission were discovered at the transient's position $\sim 9$ and $\sim 16$ days, respectively, after the merger. Both the X-ray and radio emission likely arise from a physical process that is distinct from the one that generates the UV/optical/near-infrared emission. No ultra-high-energy gamma-rays and no neutrino candidates consistent with the source were found in follow-up searches. These observations support the hypothesis that GW170817 was produced by the merger of two neutron stars in NGC 4993 followed by a short gamma-ray burst (GRB 170817A) and a kilonova/macronova powered by the radioactive decay of r-process nuclei synthesized in the ejecta.

Some accreting binary systems containing a white dwarf (such as classical novae or persistent supersoft sources) are seen to emit low-energy X-rays with temperatures of  ∼ 10⁶ K and luminosities exceeding 10³⁵ erg s^−1. These X-rays are thought to originate from nuclear burning on the white dwarf surface, either caused by a thermonuclear runaway (classical novae) or a high mass-accretion rate that sustains steady nuclear burning (persistent sources). The discovery of transient supersoft X-rays from ASASSN-16oh challenged these ideas, as no clear signatures of mass ejection indicative of a classical nova eruption were detected, and the origin of these X-rays remains controversial. It was unclear whether this star was one of a kind or representative of a larger, as yet undiscovered, group. Here, we present the discovery of 29 stars located in the direction of the Magellanic Clouds exhibiting long-duration, symmetrical optical outbursts similar to that seen in ASASSN-16oh. We observed one of these objects during an optical outburst and found it to be emitting transient supersoft X-rays, while no signatures of mass ejection (indicative of a classical nova eruption) were detected. We therefore propose that these objects form a homogeneous group of transient supersoft X-ray sources, which we dub "millinovae" because their optical luminosities are approximately a 1000 times fainter than those of ordinary classical novae.

The NASA New Horizons Venetia Burney Student Dust Counter (SDC) measures dust particle impacts along the spacecraft's flight path for grains with mass ≥10^−12 g, mapping out their spatial density distribution. We present the latest SDC dust density, size distribution, and flux measurements through 55 au and compare them to numerical model predictions. Kuiper Belt objects (KBOs) are thought to be the dominant source of interplanetary dust particles in the outer solar system due to both collisions between KBOs and their continual bombardment by interstellar dust particles. Continued measurements through 55 au show higher than model-predicted dust fluxes as New Horizons approaches the putative outer edge of the Kuiper Belt (KB). We discuss potential explanations for the growing deviation: radiation pressure stretches the dust distribution to further heliocentric distances than its parent body distribution; icy dust grains undergo photosputtering that rapidly increases their response to radiation pressure forces and pushes them further away from the Sun; and the distribution of KBOs may extend much further than existing observations suggest. Ongoing SDC measurements at even larger heliocentric distances will continue to constrain the contributions of dust production in the KB. Continued SDC measurements remain crucial for understanding the Kuiper Belt and the interpretation of dust disks around other stars.

We present the first X-ray polarization measurements of GX 339–4. IXPE observed this source twice during its 2023–2024 outburst, once in the soft-intermediate state and again during a soft state. The observation taken during the intermediate state shows a significant (4σ) polarization degree P_X = 1.3% ± 0.3% and polarization angle θ_X = −74° ± 7° only in the 3–8 keV band. FORS2 at the Very Large Telescope observed the source simultaneously, detecting optical polarization in the B, V, R, and I bands (between ∼0.1% and ∼0.7%), all roughly aligned with the X-ray polarization. We also detect a discrete jet knot from radio observations with the Australia Telescope Compact Array taken later in time; this knot would have been ejected from the system around the same time as the hard-to-soft X-ray state transition, and a bright radio flare occurred ∼3 months earlier. The proper motion of the jet knot provides a direct measurement of the jet orientation angle on the plane of the sky at the time of the ejection. We find that both the X-ray and optical polarization angles are aligned with the direction of the ballistic jet.

In this Letter, we investigate the turbulence and energy injection in the extended nebulae surrounding two luminous obscured quasars, WISEA J100211.29+013706.7 (z = 1.5933) and SDSS J165202.64+172852.3 (z = 2.9489). Utilizing high-resolution data from the NIRSpec integral field unit onboard the James Webb Space Telescope, we analyze the velocity fields of line-emitting gas in and around these quasars and construct the second-order velocity structure functions (VSFs) to quantify turbulent motions across different spatial scales. Our findings reveal a notable flattening in the VSFs from  ≈ 3 kpc up to a scale of 10–20 kpc, suggesting that energy injection predominantly occurs at a scale  ≲ 10 kpc, likely powered by quasar outflows and jet-driven bubbles. The extended spatial range of flat VSFs may also indicate the presence of multiple energy injection sources at these scales. For J1652, the turbulent energy in the host interstellar medium (ISM) is significantly higher than in tidally stripped gas, consistent with the expectation of active galactic nucleus (AGN) activities stirring up the host ISM. Compared to the VSFs observed on spatial scales of 10–50 kpc around lower-redshift UV-bright quasars, these obscured quasars exhibit higher turbulent energies in their immediate surroundings, implying different turbulence drivers between the ISM and halo-scale gas. Future studies with an expanded sample are essential to elucidate further the extent and the pivotal role of AGNs in shaping the gas kinematics of host galaxies and beyond.

Helium nuclei (alpha particles) strongly influence the momentum and energy balance in the solar wind, comprising up to 20% of the solar wind mass density. In fast Alfvénic wind at heliocentric distances greater than 0.3 au, the alpha particles' bulk flow speed is systematically different to that of the protons. This relative drift speed is of unknown origin and is often close to the local Alfvén wave speed. Novel Parker Solar Probe measurements of the solar wind below 0.3 au show that, closer to the Sun, the alpha–proton drift speed remains on the order of 100–200 km s^−1, even where the Alfvén speed is greater than 600 km s^−1. This relative speed is quantitatively similar to oxygen–hydrogen drift speeds observed in the transition region by remote sensing, suggesting similar selective acceleration processes in the corona. Due to the relative speed of the Alfvén wave to each particle population close to the Sun, the alphas fluctuate with velocity amplitudes comparable to those of the protons, altering the energy balance of the wave. As a result, alpha particles carry a significant fraction of the total kinetic energy in Alfvénic fluctuations in the near-Sun solar wind. The alpha–proton drift speed is comparable to the proton speed in the near-Sun wind, making the bulk flow of the alpha particles a significant contribution to the kinetic energy flux. These heavy-ion dynamics provide new observational constraints on quantifying the energy budget of the solar wind and the magnetic field evolution through the heliosphere.

Recent solar observations of bipolar light bridges (BLBs) in sunspots have, in a few individual cases, revealed magnetic fields up to 8.2 kG, which is at least twice as strong as typical values measured in sunspot umbrae. However, the small number of such observations hinted that such strong fields in these bright photospheric features that separate two opposite-polarity umbrae are a rare phenomenon. We determine the field strength in a large sample of BLBs with the aim of establishing how prevalent such strong fields are in BLBs. We apply a state-of-the-art inversion technique that accounts for the degradation of the data by the intrinsic point-spread function of the telescope, to the so far largest set of spectropolarimetric observations, by Hinode/Solar Optical Telescope spectropolarimeter, of sunspots containing BLBs. We identified 98 individual BLBs within 51 distinct sunspot groups. Since 66.3% of the BLBs were observed multiple times, a total of 630 spectropolarimetric scans of these 98 BLBs were analyzed. All analyzed BLBs contain magnetic fields stronger than 4.5 kG at unit optical depth. The field strengths decrease faster with height than the fields in umbrae and penumbrae. BLBs display a unique continuum intensity and field strength combination, forming a population well separated from umbrae and the penumbrae. The high brightness of BLBs in spite of their very strong magnetic fields points to the presence of a so far largely unexplored regime of magnetoconvection.

The cold and hot interstellar medium in star-forming galaxies resembles the reservoir for star formation and associated heating by stellar winds and explosions during stellar evolution, respectively. We utilize data from deep Chandra observations and archival millimeter surveys to study the interconnection between these two phases and the relation to star formation activities in M51 on kiloparsec scales. A sharp radial decrease is present in the hot gas surface brightness profile within the inner 2 kpc of M51. The ratio between the total infrared luminosity (L_IR) and the hot gas luminosity (${L}_{0.5-2\,{\rm{keV}}}^{{\rm{gas}}}$) shows a positive correlation with the galactic radius in the central region. For the entire galaxy, a twofold correlation is revealed in the ${L}_{0.5-2\,{\rm{keV}}}^{{\rm{gas}}}$–L_IR diagram, where ${L}_{0.5-2\,{\rm{keV}}}^{{\rm{gas}}}$ sharply increases with L_IR in the center but varies more slowly in the disk. The best fit gives a steep relation of ${\rm{log}}({L}_{0.5-2\,{\rm{keV}}}^{{\rm{gas}}}/{{\rm{erg}}\,{\rm{s}}}^{-1})=1.82\,{\rm{log}}({L}_{{\rm{IR}}}/{L}_{\odot })+22.26$ for the center of M51. The similar twofold correlations are also found in the ${L}_{0.5-2\,{\rm{keV}}}^{{\rm{gas}}}$–molecular line luminosity (${L}_{{\rm{gas}}}^{{\rm{{\prime} }}}$) relations for the four molecular emission lines CO(1–0), CO(2–1), HCN(1–0), and HCO⁺(1–0). We demonstrate that the core-collapse supernovae (SNe) are the primary source of energy for heating gas in the galactic center of M51, leading to the observed steep ${L}_{0.5-2\,{\rm{keV}}}^{{\rm{gas}}}$–L_IR and ${L}_{0.5-2\,{\rm{keV}}}^{{\rm{gas}}}$–${L}_{{\rm{gas}}}^{{\rm{{\prime} }}}$ relations, as their X-ray radiation efficiencies (η ≡ ${L}_{0.5-2\,{\rm{keV}}}^{{\rm{gas}}}$/${\dot{E}}_{{\rm{SN}}}$) increase with the star formation rate surface densities (Σ_SFR), where ${\dot{E}}_{{\rm{SN}}}$ is the SN mechanical energy input rate.