The single star nearest to the Sun is called Barnard’s star. A team of researchers led by the Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias (IAC), has recently detected a ‘sub-Earth’ orbiting it. This exoplanet, called Barnard b has at least half the mass of Venus and orbits rapidly around its star, so that its year lasts only a little over three Earth days. This new exoplanet is sixteen times nearer to Barnard’d star than Mercury is to the Sun, and has a surface temperature close to 125oC, so it does not have liquid water on its surface. This discovery, led by the IAC in collaboration with a number

Dr. Rubén Sánchez-Janssen has been announced as the new Director of the Isaac Newton Group of Telescopes (ING). Dr. Rubén Sánchez-Janssen will follow in the footsteps of Dr. Marc Balcells. Dr Sánchez-Janssen is an Astronomer and Project Scientist at STFC’s UK Astronomy Technology Centre (UKATC), where he leads the development of scientific instrumentation and facilities for ground- and space-based astronomy from the ultraviolet to the near-infrared, with a particular emphasis on future missions. He specializes in galaxy evolution, with particular focus on low-mass galaxies and star cluster

Yesterday saw the start of the 10th International School Astronomy Education Adventure in the Canary Islands (AEACI 2024) which will be celebrated during the full week in the IACTEC building in La Laguna (Tenerife), and which 65 teachers from 23 countries are attending. This school, organized by the Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias (IAC) together with other scientific and educational institutions, has reached its tenth anniversary, and has given training in the teaching of astronomy to 600 teachers from all over the world. With the title “Explore the Universe with us” the AEACI 2024 has