A previously unseen band of stars beyond the edge of the Milky Way galaxy has been discovered by a team of scientists from Rensselaer, Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory, and the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS). The discovery could help to explain how the galaxy was assembled 10 billion years ago.

Hidden from view behind stars and gas on the same visual plane as the Milky Way, this ring of stars is approximately 120,000 light years in diameter, says Heidi Newberg, associate professor of physics and astronomy at Rensselaer and a co-lead investigator on the project. Traveling from Earth at the speed of light, it would take 40,000 light years to reach the ring. More

What's Purple and Turquoise and Deadly All Over?

A stand of turquoise trees? A field of purple grass? Not far in the future, nature could be the best warning system for bioterrorism if Jonathan Dordick can harness enzymes to do the bidding. Dordick, the Howard P. Isermann '42 Professor of Chemical Engineering at Rensselaer, is using enzymes to prepare uniquely pigmented compounds that could be implanted into any materials to indicate the presence of biological and chemical agents, such as anthrax, smallpox, and mustard gas. More

Rensselaer Offers Snow Emergency Parking Plan

Students, faculty, and staff who would otherwise park on the city streets will be able to park in the North Lot when the City of Troy declares a snow emergency on city streets, according to Claude Rounds, vice president of administration. Vehicles must display a Snow Emergency Permit, which can be obtained free of charge from Rensselaer's Parking Office during regular business hours. The last four rows of the North Lot in the northwest corner will be made available. More