Pub Date : 2025-12-16DOI: 10.1038/s41550-025-02730-4
Luis Welbanks, Matthew C. Nixon, Peter McGill, Lana J. Tilke, Lindsey S. Wiser, Yoav Rotman, Sagnick Mukherjee, Adina D. Feinstein, Michael R. Line, Björn Benneke, Sara Seager, Thomas G. Beatty, Darryl Z. Seligman, Vivien Parmentier, David K. Sing
Claims of detections of gases in exoplanet atmospheres often rely on comparisons between models including and excluding specific chemical species. However, the space of molecular combinations available for model construction is vast and highly degenerate. Only a limited subset of these combinations is typically explored for any given detection. As a result, apparent detections of trace gases risk being artefacts of incomplete modelling rather than robust identification of atmospheric constituents, especially in the low-signal-to-noise regime. Here, using the sub-Neptune K2-18 b as a case study, we show that recent biosignature claims vanish when the model space is expanded, with numerous alternatives providing equally good or better fits. We demonstrate that the significance of a claimed detection relies on the choice of models being compared, and that model preference does not in itself imply the presence of a specific gas. We recommend treating model comparisons instead as relative adequacy tests, which should be supported by theoretical predictions and complementary metrics of statistical significance to attribute a signal to a particular gas. Reported detections of gases in exoplanet atmospheres, including claims of biosignatures on K2-18 b, disappear when broader models are tested, revealing that such detections often reflect modelling limits rather than real signals.
{"title":"Challenges in the detection of gases in exoplanet atmospheres","authors":"Luis Welbanks, Matthew C. Nixon, Peter McGill, Lana J. Tilke, Lindsey S. Wiser, Yoav Rotman, Sagnick Mukherjee, Adina D. Feinstein, Michael R. Line, Björn Benneke, Sara Seager, Thomas G. Beatty, Darryl Z. Seligman, Vivien Parmentier, David K. Sing","doi":"10.1038/s41550-025-02730-4","DOIUrl":"10.1038/s41550-025-02730-4","url":null,"abstract":"Claims of detections of gases in exoplanet atmospheres often rely on comparisons between models including and excluding specific chemical species. However, the space of molecular combinations available for model construction is vast and highly degenerate. Only a limited subset of these combinations is typically explored for any given detection. As a result, apparent detections of trace gases risk being artefacts of incomplete modelling rather than robust identification of atmospheric constituents, especially in the low-signal-to-noise regime. Here, using the sub-Neptune K2-18 b as a case study, we show that recent biosignature claims vanish when the model space is expanded, with numerous alternatives providing equally good or better fits. We demonstrate that the significance of a claimed detection relies on the choice of models being compared, and that model preference does not in itself imply the presence of a specific gas. We recommend treating model comparisons instead as relative adequacy tests, which should be supported by theoretical predictions and complementary metrics of statistical significance to attribute a signal to a particular gas. Reported detections of gases in exoplanet atmospheres, including claims of biosignatures on K2-18 b, disappear when broader models are tested, revealing that such detections often reflect modelling limits rather than real signals.","PeriodicalId":18778,"journal":{"name":"Nature Astronomy","volume":"10 2","pages":"234-247"},"PeriodicalIF":14.3,"publicationDate":"2025-12-16","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145770601","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 : 2025-12-12DOI: 10.1038/s41550-025-02723-3
Pierre-Alexis Roy, Björn Benneke, Marylou Fournier-Tondreau, Louis-Philippe Coulombe, Caroline Piaulet-Ghorayeb, David Lafrenière, Romain Allart, Nicolas B. Cowan, Lisa Dang, Doug Johnstone, Adam B. Langeveld, Stefan Pelletier, Michael Radica, Jake Taylor, Loïc Albert, René Doyon, Laura Flagg, Ray Jayawardhana, Ryan J. MacDonald, Jake D. Turner
Recent transit observations of K2-18 b and TOI-270 d revealed strong molecular absorption signatures, lending credence to the idea that temperate sub-Neptunes (equilibrium temperature Teq = 250–400 K) have upper atmospheres mostly free of aerosols. These observations also indicated higher-than-expected CO2 abundances on both planets, implying bulk compositions with high water mass fractions. However, it remains unclear whether these findings hold true for all temperate sub-Neptunes. Here we present the JWST NIRSpec/PRISM 0.7–5.4-μm transmission spectrum of a third temperate sub-Neptune, the 2.4 R⊕ planet LP 791-18 c (Teq = 355 K), which is even more favourable for atmospheric characterization thanks to its small M6 host star. Intriguingly, despite the radius, mass and equilibrium temperature of LP 791-18 c being between those of K2-18 b and TOI-270 d, we find a drastically different transmission spectrum. Although we also detect methane on LP 791-18 c, its transit spectrum is dominated by strong haze scattering and there is no discernible CO2 absorption. Overall, we infer a deep metal-enriched atmosphere (246–415 times solar) for LP 791-18 c, with a CO2-to-CH4 ratio smaller than 0.07 (at 2σ), indicating less H2O in the deep envelope of LP 791-18 c and implying a relatively dry formation inside the water-ice line. These results show that sub-Neptunes that are near analogues in density and temperature can show drastically different aerosols and envelope chemistry and are intrinsically diverse beyond a simple temperature dependence.
{"title":"Diversity in the haziness and chemistry of temperate sub-Neptunes","authors":"Pierre-Alexis Roy, Björn Benneke, Marylou Fournier-Tondreau, Louis-Philippe Coulombe, Caroline Piaulet-Ghorayeb, David Lafrenière, Romain Allart, Nicolas B. Cowan, Lisa Dang, Doug Johnstone, Adam B. Langeveld, Stefan Pelletier, Michael Radica, Jake Taylor, Loïc Albert, René Doyon, Laura Flagg, Ray Jayawardhana, Ryan J. MacDonald, Jake D. Turner","doi":"10.1038/s41550-025-02723-3","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1038/s41550-025-02723-3","url":null,"abstract":"Recent transit observations of K2-18 b and TOI-270 d revealed strong molecular absorption signatures, lending credence to the idea that temperate sub-Neptunes (equilibrium temperature Teq = 250–400 K) have upper atmospheres mostly free of aerosols. These observations also indicated higher-than-expected CO2 abundances on both planets, implying bulk compositions with high water mass fractions. However, it remains unclear whether these findings hold true for all temperate sub-Neptunes. Here we present the JWST NIRSpec/PRISM 0.7–5.4-μm transmission spectrum of a third temperate sub-Neptune, the 2.4 R⊕ planet LP 791-18 c (Teq = 355 K), which is even more favourable for atmospheric characterization thanks to its small M6 host star. Intriguingly, despite the radius, mass and equilibrium temperature of LP 791-18 c being between those of K2-18 b and TOI-270 d, we find a drastically different transmission spectrum. Although we also detect methane on LP 791-18 c, its transit spectrum is dominated by strong haze scattering and there is no discernible CO2 absorption. Overall, we infer a deep metal-enriched atmosphere (246–415 times solar) for LP 791-18 c, with a CO2-to-CH4 ratio smaller than 0.07 (at 2σ), indicating less H2O in the deep envelope of LP 791-18 c and implying a relatively dry formation inside the water-ice line. These results show that sub-Neptunes that are near analogues in density and temperature can show drastically different aerosols and envelope chemistry and are intrinsically diverse beyond a simple temperature dependence.","PeriodicalId":18778,"journal":{"name":"Nature Astronomy","volume":"50 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":14.1,"publicationDate":"2025-12-12","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145746792","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 : 2025-12-12DOI: 10.1038/s41550-025-02737-x
Karsten Jedamzik, Levon Pogosian, Tom Abel
Primordial magnetic fields (PMFs), long studied as relics of the early Universe, accelerate recombination and have been proposed as a way to relieve the Hubble tension. However, previous studies relied on simplified toy models. Here we use recent evaluations of recombination with PMFs, incorporating full magnetohydrodynamic simulations and detailed Lyman-α radiative transfer, to test PMF-enhanced recombination (bΛCDM) against observational data for the cosmic microwave background, baryon acoustic oscillations and type Ia supernovae. Focusing on non-helical PMFs with a Batchelor spectrum, we find a preference for present-day total field strengths of approximately 5–10 pG. Depending on the dataset combination, this preference ranges from mild (~1.8σ with Planck+DESI) to moderate (~3σ with Planck+DESI+SH0ES-calibrated supernovae) significance. The bΛCDM has Planck+DESI χ2 values equal to or better than those for ΛCDM while predicting a higher Hubble constant. Future high-resolution cosmic microwave background temperature and polarization measurements will be crucial for confirming or further constraining PMFs at recombination. Field strengths of 5–10 pG align closely with those required for cluster magnetic fields to originate entirely from primordial sources, without the need for extra dynamo amplification. Accelerated recombination due to primordial magnetic fields presents a potential resolution to the Hubble tension. Such fields are found to be non-zero with moderate significance based on multiple combinations of cosmological datasets.
{"title":"Hints of primordial magnetic fields at recombination and implications for the Hubble tension","authors":"Karsten Jedamzik, Levon Pogosian, Tom Abel","doi":"10.1038/s41550-025-02737-x","DOIUrl":"10.1038/s41550-025-02737-x","url":null,"abstract":"Primordial magnetic fields (PMFs), long studied as relics of the early Universe, accelerate recombination and have been proposed as a way to relieve the Hubble tension. However, previous studies relied on simplified toy models. Here we use recent evaluations of recombination with PMFs, incorporating full magnetohydrodynamic simulations and detailed Lyman-α radiative transfer, to test PMF-enhanced recombination (bΛCDM) against observational data for the cosmic microwave background, baryon acoustic oscillations and type Ia supernovae. Focusing on non-helical PMFs with a Batchelor spectrum, we find a preference for present-day total field strengths of approximately 5–10 pG. Depending on the dataset combination, this preference ranges from mild (~1.8σ with Planck+DESI) to moderate (~3σ with Planck+DESI+SH0ES-calibrated supernovae) significance. The bΛCDM has Planck+DESI χ2 values equal to or better than those for ΛCDM while predicting a higher Hubble constant. Future high-resolution cosmic microwave background temperature and polarization measurements will be crucial for confirming or further constraining PMFs at recombination. Field strengths of 5–10 pG align closely with those required for cluster magnetic fields to originate entirely from primordial sources, without the need for extra dynamo amplification. Accelerated recombination due to primordial magnetic fields presents a potential resolution to the Hubble tension. Such fields are found to be non-zero with moderate significance based on multiple combinations of cosmological datasets.","PeriodicalId":18778,"journal":{"name":"Nature Astronomy","volume":"10 2","pages":"317-324"},"PeriodicalIF":14.3,"publicationDate":"2025-12-12","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145746847","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 : 2025-12-10DOI: 10.1038/s41550-025-02722-4
JWST observations of WASP-107 b reveal extended pre-transit and post-transit helium absorption, suggesting the planet has a giant escaping atmosphere. The results provide fresh insight into the planet’s inflated envelope, mass loss and migratory past, and demonstrate the power of long-baseline transit spectroscopy for tracing exoplanet evolution.
{"title":"JWST tracks helium escape from the atmosphere of the exoplanet WASP-107 b","authors":"","doi":"10.1038/s41550-025-02722-4","DOIUrl":"10.1038/s41550-025-02722-4","url":null,"abstract":"JWST observations of WASP-107 b reveal extended pre-transit and post-transit helium absorption, suggesting the planet has a giant escaping atmosphere. The results provide fresh insight into the planet’s inflated envelope, mass loss and migratory past, and demonstrate the power of long-baseline transit spectroscopy for tracing exoplanet evolution.","PeriodicalId":18778,"journal":{"name":"Nature Astronomy","volume":"10 2","pages":"185-186"},"PeriodicalIF":14.3,"publicationDate":"2025-12-10","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"146224547","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 : 2025-12-10DOI: 10.1038/s41550-025-02724-2
When icy ocean worlds in the outer Solar System experience episodes of heating, their ice shells thin. Modelling shows that this thinning can lead to boiling of the ocean beneath the ice shell, or to compressional faulting — and that the outcome is determined by the size of the moon.
{"title":"Small moons boil, large moons break","authors":"","doi":"10.1038/s41550-025-02724-2","DOIUrl":"10.1038/s41550-025-02724-2","url":null,"abstract":"When icy ocean worlds in the outer Solar System experience episodes of heating, their ice shells thin. Modelling shows that this thinning can lead to boiling of the ocean beneath the ice shell, or to compressional faulting — and that the outcome is determined by the size of the moon.","PeriodicalId":18778,"journal":{"name":"Nature Astronomy","volume":"10 1","pages":"20-21"},"PeriodicalIF":14.3,"publicationDate":"2025-12-10","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"146016474","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 : 2025-12-09DOI: 10.1038/s41550-025-02741-1
Amanda M. Cook, Alice P. Curtin
This year, the latest in an annual series of Fast Radio Burst conferences was held as a fully hybrid experience from 7–11 July at McGill University in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Marking ten years since the first repeating fast radio burst was discovered, more than 200 scientists at FRB 2025 discussed the latest results in the field and charted a course for future experiments.
{"title":"Fast Radio Bursts 2025","authors":"Amanda M. Cook, Alice P. Curtin","doi":"10.1038/s41550-025-02741-1","DOIUrl":"10.1038/s41550-025-02741-1","url":null,"abstract":"This year, the latest in an annual series of Fast Radio Burst conferences was held as a fully hybrid experience from 7–11 July at McGill University in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Marking ten years since the first repeating fast radio burst was discovered, more than 200 scientists at FRB 2025 discussed the latest results in the field and charted a course for future experiments.","PeriodicalId":18778,"journal":{"name":"Nature Astronomy","volume":"9 12","pages":"1760-1761"},"PeriodicalIF":14.3,"publicationDate":"2025-12-09","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"145761520","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/s41550-025-02736-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. JWST has revealed many prolate, filamentary galaxies at z ≈ 3–8. Hydrodynamical simulations reproduce this trend only in warm or wave dark matter models, where smooth filamentary accretion dominates over the hierarchical fragmentation seen with cold 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":"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. JWST has revealed many prolate, filamentary galaxies at z ≈ 3–8. Hydrodynamical simulations reproduce this trend only in warm or wave dark matter models, where smooth filamentary accretion dominates over the hierarchical fragmentation seen with cold dark matter.","PeriodicalId":18778,"journal":{"name":"Nature Astronomy","volume":"10 2","pages":"306-316"},"PeriodicalIF":14.3,"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}
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