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News

This section includes scientific and technological news from the IAC and its Observatories, as well as press releases on scientific and technological results, astronomical events, educational projects, outreach activities and institutional events.

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  • Recreación artística del sistema de WASP-193b. Crédito: University of Liege
    Press release
    Astronomers spot a giant planet that’s as light as cotton candy
    An international team, led by a researcher from the University of Liège (Belgium) affiliated to the Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias (IAC), has discovered an extraordinarily light planet orbiting a distant star in our galaxy. This discovery, published today in the journal Nature Astronomy, challenges our understanding of the formation of giant, ultra-light planets. The new planet, named WASP-193b, appears to dwarf Jupiter in size, yet it is a fraction of its density. The scientists found that the gas giant is 50 percent bigger than Jupiter, and about a tenth as dense — an extremely low
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  • Black Hole Swift J1727.8-162
    Research news
    Evidence for inflows and outflows in the nearby black hole transient Swift J1727.8-162
    The transient Swift J1727.8-162 is the latest member of the X-ray binary black hole family to be discovered. They are formed by a black hole and a low-mass star whose gas is stripped off and accreted to the black hole via an accretion disc. The high temperature of the accretion disc makes it shine in all energy bands up to X-rays, and is particularly bright during epochs known as outbursts. In this novel study, published just a few months after the discovery of the system, we present 20 epochs of optical spectroscopy obtained with the GTC-10.4m telescope. The spectra cover the main accretion
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  • Poster of the IAC action at the Mini Science Fairs 2024.
    Photomontage
    The IAC brings astronomy closer to the young public at the Canary Islands Mini Fairs 2024
    The Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias (IAC) is once again taking part in the Miniferias de la Ciencia y la Innovación en Canarias, an outreach event that aims to bring science and technology closer to students and the general public on the islands. The IAC, through its Scientific Communication and Culture Unit (UC3), will be present at the activities organised in Tenerife and La Palma. Specifically, this Thursday 9 May, students enrolled in the activity "Investigate the Universe with robotic telescopes" will have the opportunity to carry out an astronomical observation through the
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  • M51 y NGC 5195
    Press release
    Researchers show that the shape of the Whirlpool galaxy has been molded by the repeated passage through its disc of a satellite galaxy
    An international research team, with participation by the Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias (IAC) shows that the satellite galaxy NGC 5195 has passed twice through the disc of the Whirlpool Galaxy (M51), in relatively recent times, stimulating star formation, and defining the structure of its arms. The research is published in the prestigious The Astrophysical Journal. The Whirlpool Galaxy M51, is a ”grand design” spiral galaxy: its spiral form is dominated by two well defined arms. Discovered by Charled Messier in 1771 M51 lies some 31 million light years from Earth, As it is face-on
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  • Antonia Varela
    Photomontage
    Antonia Varela, Canary Islands Gold Medal 2024
    The researcher at the Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias, Antonia Varela, also director of the Museo de la Ciencia y el Cosmos and of the Starlight Foundation, will be awarded one of the 13 Gold Medals of the Canary Islands. This is an award that the Government of the Canary Islands grants to individuals, entities and groups that have worked for the benefit of Canary Islands society in different fields. Created by Decree in 1986, this award is presented annually as part of the Canary Islands Day celebrations on 30 May. This year's institutional ceremony will take place at the Pérez Galdós
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  • Eva Villaver en la entrega de los Premios SGE 2023
    Photomontage
    Eva Villaver, winner of the Spanish Geographical Society Research Award 2023
    On 25 April, Eva Villaver, research professor at the Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias and also director of Space and Society at the Spanish Space Agency (AEE), received the Spanish Geographical Society (SGE) Research Award 2023 in Madrid. This institution, founded in 1997, has been awarding these prizes for almost a quarter of a century to the best initiatives and projects in the field of exploration, travel, adventure and scientific research. Villaver began her scientific career at the Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias (IAC) and her work was awarded the 2001-2002 prize for the best
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