Press Releases

Republic of Korea Becomes a Full Participant in Gemini

July 23, 2018

An agreement between the Korea Astronomy and Space Science Institute (KASI) and the agencies that own and operate the International...

Gemini Observatory Cloud Camera Captures Volcano’s Dramatic Glow

May 21, 2018

A camera used at the Gemini North telescope to monitor sky conditions from Hawaii’s Maunakea captured a remarkable time-lapse sequence...

What Do Uranus’s Cloud Tops Have in Common With Rotten Eggs?

April 22, 2018

Hydrogen sulfide, the gas that gives rotten eggs their distinctive odor, permeates the upper atmosphere of the planet Uranus –...

Dark Matter is a No Show in Ghostly Galaxy

March 27, 2018

Astronomers using data from the Gemini and W. M. Keck Observatories in Hawai‘i have encountered a galaxy that appears to...

Gargantua in the Mist

December 6, 2017

Supermassive black holes lurk at the centers of many galaxies. While some — like the black hole at the center...

Supermassive Black Hole is Ahead of its Time

December 5, 2017

Observations reveal the mass of earliest known supermassive black hole which radiates from an era in the universe only 690...

First Known Interstellar Visitor is an “Oddball”

November 19, 2017

Gemini Observatory provided key observations in characterizing an object visiting from outside our solar system, ‘Oumuamua. After the object was...

Gemini Observatory Confirms Spiral Nature of Extremely Distant Lensed Galaxy

November 2, 2017

Gemini Observatory, using the Near-Infrared Integral Field Spectrograph on the Gemini North telescope in Hawai‘i, has confirmed the spiral nature...

Cosmic Forge of Rare Heavy Elements Discovered

October 16, 2017

The precious elements in our Earth-bound bling, gold and platinum, are thought to have been forged in ancient fiery cataclysms,...

Astronomers Feast on First Light From Gravitational Wave Event

October 15, 2017

Gemini Observatory "pulled all of the stops" to bring a gravitational wave source into focus and capture early optical and...

The Little Star That Survived a Supernova

August 16, 2017

By combining the light collecting power of Gemini North's 8-meter mirror with a high-resolution spectrograph at the neighboring Canada-France-Hawaiʻi Telescope...

Striking Gemini Images Point Juno Spacecraft Toward Discovery

June 29, 2017

Very detailed Gemini Observatory images peel back Jupiter’s atmospheric layers to support the NASA/JPL Juno spacecraft in its quest to...

Gemini Observatory Astronomer Meg Schwamb to be Awarded Sagan Medal

June 1, 2017

Gemini Observatory astronomer Meg Schwamb is this year’s recipient of the Carl Sagan Medal for Excellence in Public Communication in...

Dr. Laura Ferrarese Appointed Interim Director of Gemini Observatory

June 1, 2017

On July 1, 2017, Dr. Laura Ferrarese begins a one-year term as Interim Director of the Gemini Observatory, which is...

Octocam Looks Toward a New Era of Discovery

April 4, 2017

Gemini Observatory announces the development of a major new facility-class broadband optical and near-infrared imager and spectrograph named OCTOCAM.

Planetoid Pairs Reveal a Kinder, Gentler Neptune

April 3, 2017

It’s a kinder, gentler Neptune, says Gemini astronomer Meg Schwamb in describing a new result that leaves little doubt about...

Exploring a Fast Radio Burst in Three Dimensions

January 4, 2017

Gemini Observatory provides critical rapid follow up observations of a Fast Radio Burst – one of modern astronomy's greatest enigmas....

The Beautiful Messiness of Star Birth

December 28, 2016

A new image released today by the Gemini Observatory offers a deep, revealing view into an active stellar nursery. The...

Are All Stars Created Equal?

November 8, 2016

Astronomers using critical observations from the Gemini Observatory have found the strongest evidence yet that the formation of more massive...

Cluster’s Advanced Age in Razor-sharp Focus

October 11, 2016

An international team of astronomers, using the Gemini Multi-conjugate adaptive optics System (GeMS) and the high resolution camera GSAOI, brought...

Gemini Images Galaxy That Is 99.99 Percent Dark Matter

August 23, 2016

Using the world’s most powerful telescopes, an international team of astronomers has discovered a massive galaxy that consists almost entirely...

Gemini Tracks Collapse of Io's Atmosphere During Frigid Eclipses

July 31, 2016

Using the world’s most powerful telescopes, an international team of astronomers has discovered a massive galaxy that consists almost entirely...

Gemini Observatory Instrumental in Exoplanet Harvest

July 17, 2016

Gemini Observatory plays a key role in the latest harvest of over 100 confirmed exoplanets from NASA’s K2 mission, the...

Exploring a Frozen Extrasolar World

July 5, 2016

As the Juno mission begins exploring Jupiter in our Solar System, scientists explore a solo world that researchers say looks...

Ultra-sharp Image Uncovers the Shocking Lives of Young Stars

June 16, 2016

The world’s most advanced adaptive optics system reveals “shocking” details on star formation in a new image released today by...

Lonely Black Hole Relic Shines Light on Young Universe

April 4, 2016

Astronomers using the 8-meter Gemini North telescope on Hawaii’s Maunakea have probed an enigmatic, and unexpected, supermassive black hole dominating...