Ultra-faint dwarf galaxies, among the tiniest and faintest galaxies known, may hold the key to understanding one of the Universe’s biggest mysteries: the true nature of dark matter. A new study reveals that even a single collision between dark matter particles every 10 billion years — roughly the age of the Universe — is enough to explain the dark matter cores observed in these small systems. These galaxies, which contain only a few thousand stars, are dominated by dark matter and have relatively simple evolutionary histories. That makes them ideal cosmic laboratories for testing theories

A study published today in Nature Astronomy , in which a researcher from the IAC has participated, outlines the discovery of an extremely rare type of binary system composed of two high mass white dwarfs. The two stars are so close together that they will eventually collide resulting in a supernova explosion which, due to its proximity to the Earth, will appear ten times brighter than the Moon. Type 1a supernovae are a class of cosmic explosion often used as "standard candles" to measure the expansion of the Universe. They occur when a white dwarf exceeds the Chandrasekhar mass - the limit

El Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias (IAC) celebra en 2026 la octava edición consecutiva del proyecto Habla con Ellas: Mujeres en Astronomía, una iniciativa de divulgación científica y educación en astronomía que se desarrolla en el marco del Día Internacional de la Mujer y la Niña en la Ciencia (11 de febrero). Dirigido a la comunidad educativa, el proyecto tiene como objetivo visibilizar el papel de las mujeres en la astronomía y la astrofísica, crear referentes femeninos en ciencia y tecnología e inspirar vocaciones científicas, especialmente entre niñas y jóvenes interesadas en las