Editor’s note: The Focus on Research column highlights different research projects and topics being explored at Penn State. The following originally appeared on The Conversation. Imagine you’re a ...

The discovery of a planet that is far too massive for its sun is calling into question what was previously understood about the formation of planets and their solar systems. The discovery of a planet ...

A stunning eruption unleashed by the sun two years ago is providing clues about how stars form, scientists say. On June 7, 2011, the sun blasted out an enormous cloud of superheated plasma called a ...

Astronomers have long sought to understand the processes that lead to the birth of planetary systems. Recently, a major breakthrough was achieved as scientists witnessed the early stages of planet ...

Professor Patrick Hartigan of Rice University will explain the formation of the sun & its planets. In the last few decades, astronomers have learned a great deal about how stars and planets form. New ...

Our solar system's planets may have formed at differing times, determined by shock waves flowing from the young sun, one astronomer suggests. This theory posits that Earth is one of the youngest ...

Our sun may be one of the billions of stars in the galaxy, but it’s the only star right here in our solar system. It keeps us warm and gives us light, which is important for all kinds of living things ...

The Nuclear Furnace at the Sun's Heart The temperature in the Sun's core is about 27 million degrees Fahrenheit (15 million ...