Astronomy

Stargazers and early risers are in for a stellar show this week, with one of the biggest meteor showers in the southern hemisphere due to light up the skies.The meteors — called the Eta Aquariids – pass through the atmosphere every year, but 2025 is due to be particularly luminous as the moon won’t be visible when they arrive.Here’s how to catch a view of the celestial delight.What is the best time to see the Eta Aquariids meteor shower?The good thing is this particular meteor shower not only happens every year, but spans multiple days.McElroy said Wednesday 7 May would be the “best day” for stargazers, with around two dozen meteors expected to pass per hour.But if it happens to be cloudy that day, you won’t blink and miss it. The shower will continue to have a strong showing on the days p...

Towards the end of his life, the cosmologist Stephen Hawking was asked about the odds of finding intelligent alien life in the next two decades. “The probability is low,” he declared in 2016, and took a lengthy pause before adding: “Probably.”This week, other scientists from the University of Cambridge reported tentative evidence for two compounds in the atmosphere of a planet, K2-18b, that sits in the constellation of Leo 124 light years away.On Earth, dimethyl sulphide (DMS) and dimethyl disulphide (DMDS) are hallmarks of life, emanating only from microscopic organisms. And while marine phytoplankton might not rank as particularly intelligent, the claim unleashed a wave of excitement: the answer to the question “Are we alone?” has never seemed closer.“This is the strongest evidence to da...