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The historic launch of the first several hundred out of 12,000 planned Starlink satellites heralds the arrival of the era of ultra-large satellite constellations. If it will bring new opportunities or insurmountable challenges to astronomy will probably depend on whether you are conducting your observations in space or from the surface of the Earth.

No confirmed counterparts during LIGO and Virgo’s third observing run bring more questions than answers to the active multi-messenger community, which is adapting collaboratively and technically as expectations evolve and more data are taken.

eROSITA, a new X-ray telescope currently performing an all-sky survey of unprecedented depth, aims to provide insights into dark energy, dark matter, black holes and perhaps new phenomena that have so far been invisible.

The Spitzer Space Telescope returned infrared images and spectra with unprecedented sensitivity and resolution, enabling the characterization of the dust-enshrouded star formation of and within galaxies. This has yielded indicators of total star formation, used as unbiased tracers of the stellar production across cosmic times.

A recent national survey on behalf of the French Society of Astronomy and Astrophysics highlights the elitism and gender discrimination faced by women — particularly women educated in universities rather than grandes écoles — when applying for permanent positions in astronomy in France.

The support of the international astronomical community to the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development is fundamental to advance the rights and needs of the most vulnerable groups of our global society. Among these groups are the refugees.

Growing evidence suggests that synchrotron radiation plays a significant role in shaping the spectra of most γ-ray bursts. The relativistic jets producing them are likely to carry a significant fraction of energy in the form of a Poynting flux.

The recent disclosure regarding possible biological consequences of the Beresheet hard landing on the Moon raises concerns relating to planetary protection policies. Here we analyse legal and regulatory aspects of the landing of tardigrades and other biological material on the Moon and suggest possible ways to manage challenges arising therefrom.

Soon after Einstein’s calculation of the effect of the Sun’s gravitational field on the propagation of light in 1911, astronomers around the world tried to measure and verify the value. If the first attempts in Brazil in 1912 or Imperial Russia in 1914 had been successful, they would have proven Einstein wrong.

Black hole feeding and feedback are often studied disjointly in both observations and simulations. We encourage the adoption of three physically motivated scales, linking them in a tight multiphase self-regulated loop. We pinpoint the key open questions of this unification problem and advocate for a multiwavelength, multiscale and interdisciplinary community.

The fundamental aim of inclusive astronomy is to bring astronomy to diverse groups of people while at the same time broadening the viewpoints of astronomy communicators. Building domestic and international networks is essential to disseminate inclusive activities and resources.

The struggles of marginalized students, mentees and peers in astronomy and physics can be amplified by negative ‘fixed’ mindsets. Here are ways we can address mindset in our labs, our classrooms and ourselves.

Good intentions are not enough to advance diversity. This case study of a 2019 postdoctoral fellowship competition in astronomy illustrates how incorporating lessons from social science research into the evaluation process mitigates bias, identifies outstanding scientists, and improves diversity.

Astronomy across world cultures is rooted in indigenous knowledge. We share models of partnering with indigenous communities involving collaboration with integrity to co-create an inclusive scientific enterprise on Earth and in space.

The International Astronomical Youth Camp has benefited thousands of lives during its 50 year history. We explore the pedagogy behind this success, review a survey taken by more than 300 previous participants and discuss some of the challenges the camp faces in the future.

Researchers are debating whether habitability is a binary concept or not. We propose that the habitability of environments is a continuum defined by a series of binary questions.

In 1919 scientists from rival nations collaborated to test predictions made by Albert Einstein’s general theory of relativity during a solar eclipse expedition.

Machine learning and related methods will be crucial for automatically classifying transients as they happen in order to best allocate follow-up resources. Such techniques cannot be used off the shelf, but must be developed by the community as a whole.

Besides supernovae, few astrophysical processes can release close to 10⁵¹ erg of energy. A growing number of stellar outbursts are now recognized to have energy releases matching those of faint supernovae. These transients can be triggered by various mechanisms, and their discrimination is sometimes a tricky issue.

We all benefit when astronomy, and other sciences, are deconstructed and re-imagined in a different light to create activities accessible to all, independent of age, nationality, socioeconomic status, location, educational level, or mental or physical ability.