Browse Physics

A precise mass measurement of an exotic zinc isotope gives new insight into the composition of the crust of neutron stars, the possible birthplace of heavy elements.

A new way of topologically labeling the pasta phases thought to exist in neutron stars could help researchers sort out how the phases contribute to star cooling.

New calculations of core-collapse supernovae show how bizarre nuclear structures—called pasta—develop in the dense core of a dying star.

Theorists predict that the matter surrounding some black holes may be hot enough for nuclear fusion, which could generate lithium and deepen the mysteries surrounding lithium in the universe.

A crust-busting vibration of a neutron star—induced by a merger with another dense object—may explain pre-emptive flashes for some gamma-ray bursts.

New scattering experiments provide evidence for the long-suspected existence of an excited rotational state in carbon-$12$, related to a state that’s crucial in stellar fusion reactions.

Dense plasmas created by lasers used for inertial confinement fusion research have been used to extract precise basic nuclear physics data.

New mass measurements of proton-rich nuclei will allow scientists to more accurately simulate the nucleosynthesis that occurs on the surface of neutron stars.

Dense matter containing strange quarks may significantly affect neutron star formation.

The rapid cooling of a neutron star signals a superfluid at its core.

More accurate predictions of the silicon content in meteoritic grains allow for a better understanding of the exploding stars that produced them.

New calculation of quark matter properties tells us what an exotic quark-neutron star might look like.

New calculations of the effects of asymmetry in numbers of neutrons and protons in nuclei agree well with experiment and provide vital information in understanding nuclear matter at low density.

Simulations support the prediction that when nuclei are squeezed to high densities in the core of a supernova, they merge into exotic shapes such as rods and slabs.

The Moon might be stranger than we think.

Advances in experimental techniques that measure nuclear reactions that occur in stars are opening new opportunities for understanding the stellar and chemical evolution of our Universe.

The mixture of a superconductor and a superfluid–as may occur inside a neutron star–could respond to the star’s magnetic field in ways never seen in earthly superconductors, according to a new theory. The strange material doesn’t fit into the two standard superconducting categories.

Gravitational waves from merging neutron star pairs could help reveal their mysterious and exotic material properties.