Department of Astronomy

A team of UW astronomers propose a new type of mission to crack some of the universe’s most intriguing mysteries and search for life on distant worlds.

Department of Astronomy Professor Andrew Connolly discusses innovation, big data, and answering the biggest questions of the universe.

Researcher from the UW's Virtual Planetary Laboratory asks "what does life look like on other planets?"

Aiming to make the first portrait of the hungry monster at the center of our galaxy, astronomers built “a telescope as big as the world.”

UW scientists developing a computer model to determine whether life has formed on distant planets -- without having to wait for a radio signal from another civilization.

NASA Astrobiology Institute’s Virtual Planetary Laboratory at the UW is making waves with an innovative approach to the study of exoplanets and the search for life beyond our solar system.

NASA Astrobiology Institute’s Virtual Planetary Laboratory at the UW is making waves with an innovative approach to the study of exoplanets and the search for life beyond our solar system.

NASA's Virtual Planetary Laboratory,based at the University of Washington, is part of a new expert team searching for life beyond planet Earth.

The NASA Astrobiology Institute’s Virtual Planetary Laboratory bring an interdisciplinary approach to the study of planets and search for life outside our solar system.

Titan, Saturn’s largest moon, is one of the most Earthlike places in the solar system. As the Cassini-Huygens spacecraft examines Titan over many years, its discoveries bring new mysteries.

A UW postdoctoral scientist is among six nationwide recipients of the 2015 Carl Sagan Exoplanet Postdoctoral Fellowships.

As telescopes of ever-greater power scan the cosmos looking for life, knowing where to look — and where not to waste time looking — will be of great value.

New research by UW astronomer Rory Barnes and co-authors describes possible planetary systems where a gravitational nudge from one planet could have a mild to devastating effect on the orbit and climate of another, possibly habitable world.

New research led by an astronomy graduate student at UW indicates planets orbiting close to low mass stars may have lost their chance at hosting life because of intense heat during their formative years.

The University of Washington Astronomy Department is taking starry nights to the schools, inflating its portable planetarium in classrooms across the Seattle area.