Science Times: The Vera Rubin telescope will revolutionize astronomy

Plus: Denisovans, sharks and the packing problem —

View in browser|nytimes.com June 24, 2025 Vera C. Rubin Observatory/NSF/DOE Vera Rubin Scientists Reveal Telescope's First Images Scenes of nebulas in the Milky Way, a cluster of galaxies and thousands of new asteroids are a teaser of how the U.S.-funded observatory on a mountain in Chile will transform astronomy. By Kenneth Chang and Katrina Miller Marcos Zegers for The New York Times The Universe's Darkest Mysteries Are Coming Into Focus As the Vera C. Rubin Observatory surveys the night sky, astrophysicists expect to unlock the secrets of dark matter, dark energy and cosmic phenomena that go "bang!" By Katrina Miller and Marcos Zegers Marcos Zegers for The New York Times This Powerful Telescope Quickly Found 2,100 New Asteroids The Vera C. Rubin Observatory is expected to find millions of unknown objects in our solar system, and perhaps even a mysterious Planet Nine. By Kenneth Chang Jacqueline Ramseyer Orrell/SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory Earth's Largest Camera Takes 3 Billion-Pixel Images of the Night Sky At the heart of the new Vera C. Rubin Observatory is a digital camera that will create an unparalleled map of the cosmos. By Jonathan Corum, Kenneth Chang and Marcos Zegers Marcos Zegers for The New York Times How Astronomers Will Deal With 60 Million Billion Bytes of Imagery The Vera C. Rubin Observatory will make the study of stars and galaxies more like the big data-sorting exercises of contemporary genetics and particle physics. By Kenneth Chang and Irena Hwang Mark Godfrey/AIP Emilio Segre Visual Archives, via Science Source Vera Rubin's Legacy Lives On in a Troubled Scientific Landscape A powerful new telescope will usher in a new era of cosmic discovery, but in a political climate vastly different from when it was named for a once overlooked female astronomer. By Katrina Miller Email us Let us know how we're doing at sciencenewsletter@nytimes.com. The New York Times Here Is All the Science at Risk in Trump's Clash With Harvard More than 900 research grants worth $2.6 billion are in jeopardy. So is the 80-year-old model of American science. By Emily Badger, Aatish Bhatia and Ethan Singer How Bees, Beer Cans and Data Solve the Same Packing Problem Trying to fit it all in? There's a trick to it, even in 24 dimensions. By Steven Strogatz and Jens Mortensen Kenny Holston/The New York Times Can A.I. Quicken the Pace of Math Discovery? Breakthroughs in pure mathematics can take decades. A new Defense Department initiative aims to speed things up using artificial intelligence. By Alexander Nazaryan Qiaomei Fu Origins Mysterious Ancient Humans Now Have a Face Fifteen years after the discovery of a new type of human, the Denisovan, scientists discovered its DNA in a fossilized skull. The key? Tooth plaque. 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By Apoorva Mandavilli Trump Travel Restrictions Bar Residents Needed at U.S. Hospitals Limits on travel and visa appointments have delayed or prevented foreign doctors from entering the country for jobs set to begin in weeks. By Roni Caryn Rabin New Data Shows Just How Powerful the Next Weight-Loss Drugs May Be The drugs in development include a pill that a new trial suggests is about as effective as Ozempic. By Dani Blum Make a friend's day: Forward this email. Got this from a friend? Subscribe to the Science Times newsletter. Check out other New York Times newsletters (all free!) including: Climate Fwd: for climate coverage and expert analysis. The Upshot for a data-driven look at the news. Well for the latest on health, fitness and nutrition. If you received this newsletter from someone else, subscribe here. Need help? Review our newsletter help page or contact us for assistance. You received this email because you signed up for Science Times from The New York Times. 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