astronomySaturday, June 20, 2026
A new technique hints at dark matter around black holes, while SETI draws a blank on interstellar comet 3I/Atlas. Also: Elliott Smith gets an asteroid, Paris celebrates Hubble's galaxy discovery, and last week's Venus-Moon conjunction keeps turning up in photos.
A clever method called echo mapping is giving astronomers a new way to probe the invisible stuff around supermassive black holes.
Echo mapping of supermassive black holes like Sagittarius A* suggests they may be surrounded by dense dark matter clusters. The technique could finally give astronomers a way to study dark matter's distribution near black holes.
SETI's latest search for extraterrestrial technology ends with a quiet result, but the comet itself remains a fascinating visitor.
SETI spent over seven hours scanning interstellar comet 3I/Atlas for radio signals. No alien tech found, but the null result is consistent with most such searches and doesn't rule out other forms of life.
A few lighter notes round out the day: an asteroid named for a musician, a public astronomy night in Paris, and a beautiful sky show that photographers couldn't resist.
Elliott Smith now has an asteroid named after him, thanks to a fan's petition. It's a fitting tribute for a musician whose songs often felt cosmic.
The IAP's 6th Nuit de l'astronomie marks the centenary of Hubble's galaxy discovery with a public event in Paris. Free and open all night, it's a good reminder that astronomy's biggest breakthroughs often come from looking at familiar things anew.
Photographers around the world captured the Venus-crescent Moon conjunction on June 17. The images are stunning, and the event follows a similar close approach of Venus and Jupiter earlier in the month.
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