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Astronomy Issues of Interest (most recent first):
Sun Produces Major Solar Flare -- (June 7, 2011) 
The Sun unleashed an M-2 (medium-sized) solar flare with a spectacular coronal mass ejection (CME) on June 7, 2011. The large cloud of particles mushroomed up and fell back down looking as if it covered an area of almost half the solar surface.
The Solar Dynamics Observatory observed the flare's peak at 1:41 AM ET. It recorded these images in extreme ultraviolet light that show a very large eruption of cool gas. It is somewhat unique because at many places in the eruption there seems to be even cooler material -- at temperatures less than 80,000 K.
When viewed in SOHO's coronagraphs, the event shows bright plasma and high-energy particles roaring from the Sun. This Earth-directed CME is moving at 1400 km/s according to NASA models. Due to its angle, however, effects on Earth should be fairly small. For more information see "NASA Solar Dynamics Observatory Site".
NASA Chandra Detects Dark Matter Effect -- (September 25, 2010) 
This composite image shows the galaxy cluster 1E 0657-56, also known as the "Bullet cluster." This cluster was formed after the collision of two large clusters of galaxies, the most energetic event known in the universe since the Big Bang.
The concentration of mass is determined using the effect of so-called gravitational lensing, where light from the distant objects is distorted by intervening matter. Most of the matter in the clusters (blue) is clearly separate from the normal matter (pink), giving direct evidence that nearly all of the matter in the clusters is dark. For more information see " NASA Finds Direct Proof of Dark Matter".
