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A new theoretical study has proposed a novel mechanism for the creation of supermassive black holes from dark matter. The international team find that rather than the conventional formation scenarios involving ‘normal’ matter, supermassive black...

The Royal Astronomical Society's awards, medals, and prizes have a significant profile and play an important part in our activities. Who we choose to reward and for what purposes, matters to us. We are therefore conducting a review of our programme...

In response to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the Royal Astronomical Society (RAS) and the University of Bath have decided to hold the National Astronomy Meeting (NAM 2021) as a virtual conference from 19-23 July. We are all in an unprecedented and...

A unique ‘heart-shape’, with wisps of gas filaments showing an intricate honeycomb-like arrangement, has been discovered at the centre of the iconic supernova remnant, the Crab Nebula. Astronomers have mapped the void in unprecedented detail...

The RAS expresses its thanks to reviewers recognised by the editorial board of Geophysical Journal International, its leading academic journal in the field of geophysics. The editorial board wishes to acknowledge the outstanding work performed by the...

Two giant radio galaxies have been discovered with South Africa's powerful MeerKAT telescope. These galaxies are thought to be amongst the largest single objects in the Universe. The discovery has been published today in Monthly Notices of the Royal...

The RAS invites suggestions from Fellows of the RAS who wish to propose (and therefore organise) Specialist Discussion meetings for the academic year beginning October 2021. Meetings are held monthly from October to May, normally on the second Friday...

The Royal Astronomical Society offers its sincere condolences to the family, friends and colleagues of Professor Sir Arnold Wolfendale, who has died at the age of 93. Professor Wolfendale completed his PhD at the University of Manchester in 1953...

The Royal Astronomical Society today announced the 2021 winners of its medals and prizes, awarded to scientists around the world for significant achievement in the fields of astronomy and geophysics. Their work encompasses topics as diverse as the...

On 21 December Jupiter and Saturn will appear closer together than at any time since the seventeenth century, in a rare ‘Great Conjunction’. The two largest planets in the Solar System will be just 0.1 degrees apart, or about one fifth of the...

Stargazers across the northern hemisphere could see as many as 70 meteors an hour this coming Sunday (13-14 December), as the Geminids meteor shower reaches its peak. Prospects for what should be this year’s best display of meteors are particularly...

Today (3 December), an international team of astronomers announced the most detailed ever catalogue of the stars in a huge swathe of our Milky Way galaxy. The measurements of stellar positions, movement, brightness and colours are in the third early...