Highlights from AAS Nova: 17–30 May 2026

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.

29 May 2026
Stacking Up the Discovery of Six Millisecond Pulsars
Researchers have discovered six faint millisecond pulsars by stacking FAST radio observations.

27 May 2026
Third Star’s the Charm: Most Merging Black Holes Might Be in Triple Systems
With hundreds of pairs of merging black holes now detected via gravitational waves, researchers can investigate the sites of black hole mergers across the universe.

26 May 2026
Life on the (Red) Edge
Astrobites reports on a surface biosignature called the vegetation red edge and how we might find it on other worlds.

22 May 2026
Playing Pool with Planets
A new study suggests that warm and hot Jupiters, despite looking different today, underwent the same dynamical evolution when they were younger.

20 May 2026
Asteroid 2024 YR4 Won’t Hit the Moon, New JWST Observations Show
The new observations show that the asteroid will safely pass by the Moon at a distance of more than 20,000 kilometers.

19 May 2026
I Spy with My Large Binocular Eyes: A Dusty Torus Around a Supermassive Black Hole?
Astrobites reports on new mid-infrared observations that allow researchers to probe the structure of active galactic nuclei.

18 May 2026
Featured Image: Chasing Weywot's Shadow
Researchers observed Weywot, the largest moon of the dwarf planet Quaoar, as it briefly blotted out the light from a star.

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