Highlights from AAS Nova: 13–26 April 2025

AAS Nova provides brief highlights of recently published articles from the AAS journals, i.e., The Astronomical Journal (AJ), The Astrophysical Journal (ApJ), ApJ Letters, ApJ Supplements, The Planetary Science Journal, and Research Notes of the AAS. The website's intent is to gain broader exposure for AAS authors and to provide astronomy researchers and enthusiasts with summaries of recent, interesting research across a wide range of astronomical fields.

The following are the AAS Nova highlights from the past two weeks; follow the links to read more, or visit AAS Nova for more posts. You can also sign up to receive emails each time a new post is published.

25 April 2025
Sun Glitter and Sunglint on Titan's Hydrocarbon Seas
From its vantage point in orbit around Saturn, the Cassini spacecraft captured the brilliant gleam of sunlight reflecting off of Titan's oily hydrocarbon seas. New research explores what sunglint can tell us about the interaction between Titan’s seas and atmosphere.

23 April 2025
Monthly Roundup: A Cluster of Cosmic Spiders
Arachnophobes beware: today's post concerns the behavior of the voracious stellar remnants called spider pulsars.

22 April 2025
I’ve Got Some Oceanfront Property… Around a White Dwarf
Astrobites reports on whether planets around Sun-like stars destined to become white dwarfs are able to hold on to their oceans.

21 April 2025
Featured Image: Details of a Rare Ejecta Nebula
New images highlight the clumpy ejecta and radial streaks surrounding WR 8, a Wolf–Rayet star that may be changing from one spectral subclass to another.

18 April 2025
Crater Cartography: Mapping the Moon’s North Pole
New high-resolution maps of the Moon’s north pole reveal interesting terrain and locations possibly preserving water ice, which will inform future lunar exploration.

16 April 2025
Black Holes Grow Better with a Friend
Astrobites reports on observations of dwarf galaxies that show how a buddy galaxy can help trigger phases of rapid black hole growth.

15 April 2025
Research Notes of the AAS Celebrates Its 2,000th Publication
Since 2017, the Research Notes of the American Astronomical Society (RNAAS) has provided a venue for brief research reports, student work, null results, and more. Editor Chris Lintott shares his reflections on a recent RNAAS milestone: 2,000 Notes.

14 April 2025
Two More Double-Faced White Dwarfs Discovered
A search for white dwarfs that present different compositional “faces” as they spin has dredged up two new members of the emerging class of double-faced white dwarfs.

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