An international piece of research, led by the Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias (IAC) has found clues to the nature of some of the brightest and hottest stars in our Universe, called blue supergiants. Although these stars are commonly observed, their origin has been an old puzzle that has been debated for several decades. By simulating novel stellar models and analysing a large data sample in the Large Magellanic Cloud, IAC researchers have found strong evidence that most blue supergiants may have formed from the merger of two stars bound in a binary system. The study is published in the

The Deputy Director of the IAC, Casiana Muñoz Tuñón praises the bravery and persistence shown by Francisco Sánchez which enabled the IAC to be recognized as one of the best centres in the world for research in astrophysics. The Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias (IAC) hosted this morning the ceremony to rename the Centre of Astrophysics on La Palma (CALP) as CALP Francisco Sánchez, in honour of the person who was the first Professor of astrophysics in Spain, and the founder of the IAC. Those taking part in the ceremony included the Founding Director of the IAC, Francisco Sánchez Martínez

A study carried out by a team of researchers at the Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias (IAC) has shown that an unusual thin structure of stars, recently discovered by the Hubble Space Telescope, could be a galaxy seen edge-on. This finding goes against the original interpretation in which a fleeing supermassive black hole was leaving a trail of stars in its wake. The new interpretation is published in the journal Astronomy and Astrophysics Letters. A mysterious trail of stars formed eight thousand million years ago and recently discovered by the Hubble Space Telescope has been a challenge