Pub Date : 2025-12-08DOI: 10.1038/s41550-025-02736-y
Katherine N. Quinteros, Rebecca Covarrubias, Enrico Ramirez-Ruiz
The pursuit of better science and science-forward solutions to social problems is thwarted by persisting structural inequities that misrecognize and devalue the scientific brilliance and cultural strengths that scholars from marginalized backgrounds possess and contribute to STEM. Cohort-style research programmes, where a specific group of scholars share an experience over time, aim to reduce these obstacles and instead mobilize students’ cultural assets to enhance research impact and build communities in science. This Perspective examines the successes of the Lamat research programme, a cohort-style programme designed to advance scientific endeavours in astronomy and planetary sciences. Lamat provides holistic programme support and mentoring to scholars from marginalized backgrounds. Specifically, we detail three programme practices that strategically engage students’ strengths: tailoring the research experience to meet scholars’ needs; raising consciousness about systemic oppression in STEM settings; and co-building a culturally validating community space. Drawing on Lamat’s ten years of experience, we share insights and aspirations for what it means to create transformative learning spaces that intentionally mobilize the wisdoms and cultural assets of new and diverse generations of thinkers and scientists. The Lamat programme supports undergraduate scholars from marginalized backgrounds to pursue scientific endeavours in astronomy and the planetary scientists by tailoring content to their specific strengths.
{"title":"Mobilizing the strengths of marginalized students in STEM research programmes","authors":"Katherine N. Quinteros, Rebecca Covarrubias, Enrico Ramirez-Ruiz","doi":"10.1038/s41550-025-02736-y","DOIUrl":"10.1038/s41550-025-02736-y","url":null,"abstract":"The pursuit of better science and science-forward solutions to social problems is thwarted by persisting structural inequities that misrecognize and devalue the scientific brilliance and cultural strengths that scholars from marginalized backgrounds possess and contribute to STEM. Cohort-style research programmes, where a specific group of scholars share an experience over time, aim to reduce these obstacles and instead mobilize students’ cultural assets to enhance research impact and build communities in science. This Perspective examines the successes of the Lamat research programme, a cohort-style programme designed to advance scientific endeavours in astronomy and planetary sciences. Lamat provides holistic programme support and mentoring to scholars from marginalized backgrounds. Specifically, we detail three programme practices that strategically engage students’ strengths: tailoring the research experience to meet scholars’ needs; raising consciousness about systemic oppression in STEM settings; and co-building a culturally validating community space. Drawing on Lamat’s ten years of experience, we share insights and aspirations for what it means to create transformative learning spaces that intentionally mobilize the wisdoms and cultural assets of new and diverse generations of thinkers and scientists. The Lamat programme supports undergraduate scholars from marginalized backgrounds to pursue scientific endeavours in astronomy and the planetary scientists by tailoring content to their specific strengths.","PeriodicalId":18778,"journal":{"name":"Nature Astronomy","volume":"9 12","pages":"1770-1775"},"PeriodicalIF":14.3,"publicationDate":"2025-12-08","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145761522","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"物理与天体物理","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2025-12-08DOI: 10.1038/s41550-025-02721-5
Alvaro Pozo, Tom Broadhurst, Razieh Emami, Philip Mocz, Mark Vogelsberger, Lars Hernquist, Christopher J. Conselice, Hoang Nhan Luu, George F. Smoot, Rogier Windhorst
The initial gravitational collapse of dark matter and gas formed a universal filamentary network where the first galaxies formed, with shapes and sizes that depended on the type of dark matter. Claims from deep-space imaging surveys that elongated galaxies predominate at z > 3 are examined here by comparison with detailed hydrodynamical simulations of cold dark matter (CDM), warm dark matter (WDM) and wave/fuzzy dark matter (ψDM). For CDM and WDM, we have sufficient volume, 103 Mpc/h3, to generate galaxies with stellar masses >109 M⊙ at z > 2, which allows a comparison with the CEERS and CANDELS surveys. Here we find that the observed tendency towards elongated, prolate-shaped young galaxies is well matched by WDM based on material accreted along smooth filaments during the first ~500 Myr, with little dependence on stellar mass. This contrasts with CDM, where the stellar morphology is mainly spheroidal and formed from the merging of fragmented filaments. For CDM, several subhaloes are predicted to be visible, whereas for WDM and ψDM, early merging is rare. Our findings show how the shapes and sizes of early galaxies are sensitive to the smoothness of the underlying filament network, which provides a new constraint on the nature of dark matter.
{"title":"A smooth filament origin for distant prolate galaxies seen by JWST and HST","authors":"Alvaro Pozo, Tom Broadhurst, Razieh Emami, Philip Mocz, Mark Vogelsberger, Lars Hernquist, Christopher J. Conselice, Hoang Nhan Luu, George F. Smoot, Rogier Windhorst","doi":"10.1038/s41550-025-02721-5","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1038/s41550-025-02721-5","url":null,"abstract":"The initial gravitational collapse of dark matter and gas formed a universal filamentary network where the first galaxies formed, with shapes and sizes that depended on the type of dark matter. Claims from deep-space imaging surveys that elongated galaxies predominate at z > 3 are examined here by comparison with detailed hydrodynamical simulations of cold dark matter (CDM), warm dark matter (WDM) and wave/fuzzy dark matter (ψDM). For CDM and WDM, we have sufficient volume, 103 Mpc/h3, to generate galaxies with stellar masses >109 M⊙ at z > 2, which allows a comparison with the CEERS and CANDELS surveys. Here we find that the observed tendency towards elongated, prolate-shaped young galaxies is well matched by WDM based on material accreted along smooth filaments during the first ~500 Myr, with little dependence on stellar mass. This contrasts with CDM, where the stellar morphology is mainly spheroidal and formed from the merging of fragmented filaments. For CDM, several subhaloes are predicted to be visible, whereas for WDM and ψDM, early merging is rare. Our findings show how the shapes and sizes of early galaxies are sensitive to the smoothness of the underlying filament network, which provides a new constraint on the nature of dark matter.","PeriodicalId":18778,"journal":{"name":"Nature Astronomy","volume":"144 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":14.1,"publicationDate":"2025-12-08","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145711515","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"物理与天体物理","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2025-12-08DOI: 10.1038/s41550-025-02720-6
Nabeel Rehemtulla, Michael W. Coughlin, Adam A. Miller, Theophile Jegou du Laz
Robotic wide-field time-domain surveys, such as the Zwicky Transient Facility and the Asteroid Terrestrial-impact Last Alert System, capture dozens of transients each night. The workflows for discovering and classifying transients in survey data streams have become increasingly automated over decades of development. The recent integration of machine learning and artificial intelligence tools has produced major milestones, including the fully automated end-to-end discovery and classification of an optical transient, and has enabled automated rapid-response space-based follow-up. The now-operational Vera C. Rubin Observatory and its Legacy Survey of Space and Time are accelerating the rate of transient discovery and producing large volumes of data at incredible rates. Given the expected order-of-magnitude increase in transient discoveries, one promising path forwards for optical time-domain astronomy is heavily investing in accelerating the automation of our workflows. Here we review the current paradigm of real-time transient workflows, project their evolution during the Rubin era and present recommendations for accelerating transient astronomy with automation. The automated detection of transient phenomena in the sky has developed rapidly in recent years, driven by robotic telescopes such as the Zwicky Transient Facility and the Asteroid Terrestrial-impact Last Alert System. Here the authors summarize the state of the art and look ahead to more discoveries during the Legacy Survey of Space and Time era.
机器人宽视场时域调查，如兹威基瞬变设施和小行星地球撞击最后警报系统，每天晚上都会捕捉到几十个瞬变。在几十年的发展中，用于发现和分类测量数据流中的瞬态的工作流程已经变得越来越自动化。最近机器学习和人工智能工具的整合产生了重大的里程碑，包括完全自动化的端到端光学瞬变发现和分类，并实现了自动化的快速响应天基后续。现在运作的Vera C. Rubin天文台及其遗留的时空调查正在加速瞬态发现的速度，并以令人难以置信的速度产生大量数据。鉴于瞬态发现的预期数量级增加，光学时域天文学的一个有希望的前进道路是大量投资于加速我们工作流程的自动化。在这里，我们回顾了实时瞬态工作流的当前范例，预测了它们在Rubin时代的演变，并提出了用自动化加速瞬态天文学的建议。近年来，在兹威基瞬变设施和小行星对地撞击最后预警系统等机器人望远镜的推动下，对天空瞬变现象的自动探测发展迅速。在这里，作者总结了目前的技术状况，并展望了在时空遗产调查时代的更多发现。
{"title":"The automation of optical transient discovery and classification in Rubin-era time-domain astronomy","authors":"Nabeel Rehemtulla, Michael W. Coughlin, Adam A. Miller, Theophile Jegou du Laz","doi":"10.1038/s41550-025-02720-6","DOIUrl":"10.1038/s41550-025-02720-6","url":null,"abstract":"Robotic wide-field time-domain surveys, such as the Zwicky Transient Facility and the Asteroid Terrestrial-impact Last Alert System, capture dozens of transients each night. The workflows for discovering and classifying transients in survey data streams have become increasingly automated over decades of development. The recent integration of machine learning and artificial intelligence tools has produced major milestones, including the fully automated end-to-end discovery and classification of an optical transient, and has enabled automated rapid-response space-based follow-up. The now-operational Vera C. Rubin Observatory and its Legacy Survey of Space and Time are accelerating the rate of transient discovery and producing large volumes of data at incredible rates. Given the expected order-of-magnitude increase in transient discoveries, one promising path forwards for optical time-domain astronomy is heavily investing in accelerating the automation of our workflows. Here we review the current paradigm of real-time transient workflows, project their evolution during the Rubin era and present recommendations for accelerating transient astronomy with automation. The automated detection of transient phenomena in the sky has developed rapidly in recent years, driven by robotic telescopes such as the Zwicky Transient Facility and the Asteroid Terrestrial-impact Last Alert System. Here the authors summarize the state of the art and look ahead to more discoveries during the Legacy Survey of Space and Time era.","PeriodicalId":18778,"journal":{"name":"Nature Astronomy","volume":"9 12","pages":"1764-1769"},"PeriodicalIF":14.3,"publicationDate":"2025-12-08","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145761476","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"物理与天体物理","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2025-12-05DOI: 10.1038/s41550-025-02740-2
Anna Barnacka
{"title":"The alchemy of art and science in the age of black holes","authors":"Anna Barnacka","doi":"10.1038/s41550-025-02740-2","DOIUrl":"10.1038/s41550-025-02740-2","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":18778,"journal":{"name":"Nature Astronomy","volume":"9 12","pages":"1758-1759"},"PeriodicalIF":14.3,"publicationDate":"2025-12-05","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145680061","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"物理与天体物理","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2025-12-05DOI: 10.1038/s41550-025-02719-z
Andreas A. C. Sander, Roel R. Lefever, Joris Josiek, Erin R. Higgins, Raphael Hirschi, Lidia M. Oskinova, Daniel Pauli, Max Pritzkuleit, John S. Gallagher, Wolf-Rainer Hamann, Ilya Mandel, Varsha Ramachandran, Tomer Shenar, Helge Todt, Jorick S. Vink
{"title":"Discovery of a transitional type of evolved massive star with a hard ionizing flux","authors":"Andreas A. C. Sander, Roel R. Lefever, Joris Josiek, Erin R. Higgins, Raphael Hirschi, Lidia M. Oskinova, Daniel Pauli, Max Pritzkuleit, John S. Gallagher, Wolf-Rainer Hamann, Ilya Mandel, Varsha Ramachandran, Tomer Shenar, Helge Todt, Jorick S. Vink","doi":"10.1038/s41550-025-02719-z","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1038/s41550-025-02719-z","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":18778,"journal":{"name":"Nature Astronomy","volume":"1 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":14.1,"publicationDate":"2025-12-05","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145680178","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"物理与天体物理","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2025-12-05DOI: 10.1038/s41550-025-02725-1
Elias Aydi, John D. Monnier, Antoine Mérand, Gail H. Schaefer, Laura Chomiuk, Magdalena Otulakowska-Hypka, Jhih-Ling Fan, Kwan Lok Li, Kirill V. Sokolovsky, Ricardo Salinas, Michael Tucker, Benjamin Shappee, Richard Rudy, Kim L. Page, N. Paul M. Kuin, David A. H. Buckley, Peter Craig, Luca Izzo, Justin Linford, Brian D. Metzger, Koji Mukai, Marina Orio, Ken J. Shen, Jay Strader, Jennifer L. Sokoloski, Robert E. Williams, Montana N. Williams, Gesesew R. Habtie, Stefan Kraus, Narsireddy Anugu, Jean-Baptiste Le Bouquin, Sorabh Chhabra, Isabelle Codron, Tyler Gardner, Mayra Gutierrez, Noura Ibrahim, Cyprien Lanthermann, Benjamin R. Setterholm, Christopher Ashall, Jason T. Hinkle, Thomas de Jaeger, Anna V. Payne
{"title":"Multiple outflows and delayed ejections revealed by early imaging of novae","authors":"Elias Aydi, John D. Monnier, Antoine Mérand, Gail H. Schaefer, Laura Chomiuk, Magdalena Otulakowska-Hypka, Jhih-Ling Fan, Kwan Lok Li, Kirill V. Sokolovsky, Ricardo Salinas, Michael Tucker, Benjamin Shappee, Richard Rudy, Kim L. Page, N. Paul M. Kuin, David A. H. Buckley, Peter Craig, Luca Izzo, Justin Linford, Brian D. Metzger, Koji Mukai, Marina Orio, Ken J. Shen, Jay Strader, Jennifer L. Sokoloski, Robert E. Williams, Montana N. Williams, Gesesew R. Habtie, Stefan Kraus, Narsireddy Anugu, Jean-Baptiste Le Bouquin, Sorabh Chhabra, Isabelle Codron, Tyler Gardner, Mayra Gutierrez, Noura Ibrahim, Cyprien Lanthermann, Benjamin R. Setterholm, Christopher Ashall, Jason T. Hinkle, Thomas de Jaeger, Anna V. Payne","doi":"10.1038/s41550-025-02725-1","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1038/s41550-025-02725-1","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":18778,"journal":{"name":"Nature Astronomy","volume":"21 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":14.1,"publicationDate":"2025-12-05","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145680063","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"物理与天体物理","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2025-12-04DOI: 10.1038/s41550-025-02714-4
XRISM collaboration
The elements in the Universe are synthesized primarily in stars and supernovae, where nuclear fusion favours the production of even-Z elements. In contrast, odd-Z elements are less abundant and their yields are highly dependent on detailed stellar physics, making theoretical predictions of their cosmic abundance uncertain. In particular, the origin of odd-Z elements such as phosphorus (P), chlorine (Cl) and potassium (K), which are important for planet formation and life, is poorly understood. While the abundances of these elements in Milky Way stars are close to solar values, supernova explosion models systematically underestimate their production by up to an order of magnitude, indicating that key mechanisms for odd-Z nucleosynthesis are currently missing from theoretical models. Here we report the observation of P, Cl and K in the Cassiopeia A supernova remnant using high-resolution X-ray spectroscopy with X-Ray Imaging and Spectroscopy Mission data, with the detection of K at above the 6σ level being the most significant finding. Supernova explosion models of normal massive stars cannot explain the element abundance pattern, especially the high abundances of Cl and K, while models that include stellar rotation, binary interactions or shell mergers agree closely with the observations. Our observations suggest that such stellar activity plays an important role in supplying these elements to the Universe. XRISM observations show the presence of odd-numbered elements chlorine and potassium in Cas A. These findings suggest that stellar activity plays an important role in cosmic chemical evolution, enriching space with elements vital for planets and life.
{"title":"Chlorine and potassium enrichment in the Cassiopeia A supernova remnant","authors":"XRISM collaboration","doi":"10.1038/s41550-025-02714-4","DOIUrl":"10.1038/s41550-025-02714-4","url":null,"abstract":"The elements in the Universe are synthesized primarily in stars and supernovae, where nuclear fusion favours the production of even-Z elements. In contrast, odd-Z elements are less abundant and their yields are highly dependent on detailed stellar physics, making theoretical predictions of their cosmic abundance uncertain. In particular, the origin of odd-Z elements such as phosphorus (P), chlorine (Cl) and potassium (K), which are important for planet formation and life, is poorly understood. While the abundances of these elements in Milky Way stars are close to solar values, supernova explosion models systematically underestimate their production by up to an order of magnitude, indicating that key mechanisms for odd-Z nucleosynthesis are currently missing from theoretical models. Here we report the observation of P, Cl and K in the Cassiopeia A supernova remnant using high-resolution X-ray spectroscopy with X-Ray Imaging and Spectroscopy Mission data, with the detection of K at above the 6σ level being the most significant finding. Supernova explosion models of normal massive stars cannot explain the element abundance pattern, especially the high abundances of Cl and K, while models that include stellar rotation, binary interactions or shell mergers agree closely with the observations. Our observations suggest that such stellar activity plays an important role in supplying these elements to the Universe. XRISM observations show the presence of odd-numbered elements chlorine and potassium in Cas A. These findings suggest that stellar activity plays an important role in cosmic chemical evolution, enriching space with elements vital for planets and life.","PeriodicalId":18778,"journal":{"name":"Nature Astronomy","volume":"10 1","pages":"144-153"},"PeriodicalIF":14.3,"publicationDate":"2025-12-04","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.nature.comhttps://www.nature.com/articles/s41550-025-02714-4.pdf","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145711514","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"物理与天体物理","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2025-12-02DOI: 10.1038/s41550-025-02687-4
Daniel Müller, Jack Ireland, Anik De Groof, George Dimitoglou, Bernhard Fleck
The Solar and Heliospheric Observatory (SOHO) was launched on 2 December 1995. An international collaboration between ESA and NASA, the mission was designed to study the Sun from its deep core to the outer corona and the solar wind. Thirty years after its launch, SOHO has provided a nearly continuous record of solar and heliospheric phenomena for more than a full 22-year magnetic cycle. Its observations have revolutionized our understanding of the Sun and heliosphere, and the mission is still producing high-quality data on a daily basis. SOHO has produced images of structures and flows below the Sun’s surface, and of activity on the far side of the Sun. SOHO data eliminated uncertainties in the internal structure of the Sun as a possible explanation for the ‘solar neutrino problem’. SOHO provided evidence for the upward transfer of magnetic energy from its surface to the corona and identified the source regions of the fast solar wind. Furthermore, it has pioneered modern space weather forecasting capabilities. This Review aims to synthesize the scientific legacy of the mission, highlighting key discoveries and its role in spawning a series of new space missions and inspiring a whole generation of scientists. SOHO has provided a high-quality, continuous record of the Sun and its atmosphere. Marking the thirtieth anniversary since SOHO’s launch, this Review highlights its legacy, shaping our understanding of the Sun, and the new space missions it has inspired.
{"title":"SOHO’s 30-year legacy of observing the Sun","authors":"Daniel Müller, Jack Ireland, Anik De Groof, George Dimitoglou, Bernhard Fleck","doi":"10.1038/s41550-025-02687-4","DOIUrl":"10.1038/s41550-025-02687-4","url":null,"abstract":"The Solar and Heliospheric Observatory (SOHO) was launched on 2 December 1995. An international collaboration between ESA and NASA, the mission was designed to study the Sun from its deep core to the outer corona and the solar wind. Thirty years after its launch, SOHO has provided a nearly continuous record of solar and heliospheric phenomena for more than a full 22-year magnetic cycle. Its observations have revolutionized our understanding of the Sun and heliosphere, and the mission is still producing high-quality data on a daily basis. SOHO has produced images of structures and flows below the Sun’s surface, and of activity on the far side of the Sun. SOHO data eliminated uncertainties in the internal structure of the Sun as a possible explanation for the ‘solar neutrino problem’. SOHO provided evidence for the upward transfer of magnetic energy from its surface to the corona and identified the source regions of the fast solar wind. Furthermore, it has pioneered modern space weather forecasting capabilities. This Review aims to synthesize the scientific legacy of the mission, highlighting key discoveries and its role in spawning a series of new space missions and inspiring a whole generation of scientists. SOHO has provided a high-quality, continuous record of the Sun and its atmosphere. Marking the thirtieth anniversary since SOHO’s launch, this Review highlights its legacy, shaping our understanding of the Sun, and the new space missions it has inspired.","PeriodicalId":18778,"journal":{"name":"Nature Astronomy","volume":"10 1","pages":"24-33"},"PeriodicalIF":14.3,"publicationDate":"2025-12-02","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145664401","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"物理与天体物理","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2025-12-02DOI: 10.1038/s41550-025-02688-3
Ann N. Nguyen, Laura B. Seifert, Kei Shimizu, Kathie Thomas-Keprta, Loan Le, Lindsay P. Keller, Simon J. Clemett, Zia Rahman, Jessica J. Barnes, Harold C. Connolly Jr., Dante S. Lauretta
The oldest constituents in chondritic samples are presolar grains that condensed in the outflows and explosions of dying stars. These grains divulge the types and concentrations of dust that seeded our Solar System. However, they are subject to destruction during planetesimal formation and alteration. We conducted a detailed study of presolar grains in fragments of asteroid Bennu to elucidate the alteration history of distinct lithologies—angular and hummocky—and the sources of stardust that were accreted by the parent asteroid. The presolar grain abundances support a history of substantial aqueous alteration. Nevertheless, we found organic-rich clasts within a hummocky particle having higher presolar silicate abundances, akin to some of the least altered chondritic meteorites, and presolar silicate, oxide and SiC grains that retain their crystallinity. These clasts illustrate that aqueous alteration was heterogeneous within the parent body and their properties may better represent the starting materials that accreted to form the protolith. In addition, the Bennu samples we analysed have a six-times greater proportion of C-rich supernova dust than other chondritic samples, injected perhaps from a nearby supernova. This observation adds to evidence that Bennu’s parent body sampled a region of the protoplanetary disk having a distinct mixture of starting materials. Bennu samples have abundant supernova stardust and clasts that are richer in presolar silicates and organics than other chondritic samples, suggesting that the protolith sampled material with a unique mixture of primordial components before undergoing heterogeneous aqueous alteration.
{"title":"Abundant supernova dust and heterogeneous aqueous alteration revealed by stardust in two lithologies of asteroid Bennu","authors":"Ann N. Nguyen, Laura B. Seifert, Kei Shimizu, Kathie Thomas-Keprta, Loan Le, Lindsay P. Keller, Simon J. Clemett, Zia Rahman, Jessica J. Barnes, Harold C. Connolly Jr., Dante S. Lauretta","doi":"10.1038/s41550-025-02688-3","DOIUrl":"10.1038/s41550-025-02688-3","url":null,"abstract":"The oldest constituents in chondritic samples are presolar grains that condensed in the outflows and explosions of dying stars. These grains divulge the types and concentrations of dust that seeded our Solar System. However, they are subject to destruction during planetesimal formation and alteration. We conducted a detailed study of presolar grains in fragments of asteroid Bennu to elucidate the alteration history of distinct lithologies—angular and hummocky—and the sources of stardust that were accreted by the parent asteroid. The presolar grain abundances support a history of substantial aqueous alteration. Nevertheless, we found organic-rich clasts within a hummocky particle having higher presolar silicate abundances, akin to some of the least altered chondritic meteorites, and presolar silicate, oxide and SiC grains that retain their crystallinity. These clasts illustrate that aqueous alteration was heterogeneous within the parent body and their properties may better represent the starting materials that accreted to form the protolith. In addition, the Bennu samples we analysed have a six-times greater proportion of C-rich supernova dust than other chondritic samples, injected perhaps from a nearby supernova. This observation adds to evidence that Bennu’s parent body sampled a region of the protoplanetary disk having a distinct mixture of starting materials. Bennu samples have abundant supernova stardust and clasts that are richer in presolar silicates and organics than other chondritic samples, suggesting that the protolith sampled material with a unique mixture of primordial components before undergoing heterogeneous aqueous alteration.","PeriodicalId":18778,"journal":{"name":"Nature Astronomy","volume":"9 12","pages":"1812-1820"},"PeriodicalIF":14.3,"publicationDate":"2025-12-02","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.nature.comhttps://www.nature.com/articles/s41550-025-02688-3.pdf","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145664400","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"物理与天体物理","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2025-12-02DOI: 10.1038/s41550-025-02694-5
Scott A. Sandford, Zack Gainsforth, Michel Nuevo, Matthew A. Marcus, Hans A. Bechtel, Ryan C. Ogliore, Clive Jones, Gerardo Dominguez, Daniel P. Glavin, Jason P. Dworkin, Timothy J. McCoy, Sara S. Russell, Thomas J. Zega, Harold C. Connolly Jr, Dante S. Lauretta
Nitrogen-containing organic compounds play key biological roles, and their identification in primitive astromaterials such as meteorites can shed light on the origin of life. However, meteorites are typically contaminated by uncontrolled exposure to Earth. Here we show that pristine samples returned from asteroid Bennu contain polymeric organics exceptionally rich in nitrogen and oxygen. These polymers contain a variety of functional groups including amines, amides, N-heterocycles, and aliphatic and aromatic hydrocarbons, among others. They are seen in a carbonaceous vein with mineral inclusions and in multilayered organic sheets. Their morphology and composition indicate formation from pre-aqueous N-rich precursors and later modification during aqueous alteration. These findings demonstrate that asteroids like Bennu contain complex nitrogen-rich organic phases formed by pre-aqueous and aqueous processes, and they expand the known inventory of potential prebiotic extraterrestrial compounds. Samples returned from asteroid Bennu by NASA’s OSIRIS-REx mission contain N-rich organics with prebiotic implications. This material probably formed in the earliest stages of the asteroid’s history possibly even before its water ice melted.
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