An international team of astronomers has discovered the first radio-bright tidal disruption event (TDE) occurring outside a galaxy’s center using the U.S. National Science Foundation National Radio Astronomy Observatory (NSF NRAO) Very Large Array (NSF VLA) and Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA), along with several partner telescopes.
Recent News
First-ever Detection of “Heavy Water” in a Planet-forming Disk
The discovery of ancient water in a planet-forming disk reveals that some of the water found in comets—and maybe even Earth—is older than the disk’s star itself, offering breakthrough insights into the history of water in our Solar System.
Astronomers Detect Lowest Mass Dark Object Yet in Distant Universe
An international research team, using a worldwide network of radio telescopes, has detected an enigmatic dark object with a mass about one million times that of our Sun without observing any emitted light. This is the lowest mass dark object ever detected at a cosmological distance using only its gravitational influence.
Cyber Expert Wins FBI Community Leadership Award

Robert R. Wells, special agent in charge of the Charlotte Division of the FBI has chosen a local cyber expert as the 2020 Director’s Community Leadership Award (DCLA) recipient for North Carolina. Torry Crass has been an invaluable partner to the FBI Charlotte field office since 2013. As a member of the Charlotte InfraGard Chapter, he was instrumental in creating the first Cyber Camp for high school students to learn technical skills and aptitudes for information technology and security—now a national program. In 2020, with the unique challenges of operating during the pandemic, in an effort to minimize the number of cancelled camps nationwide, Mr. Crass took the lead to assemble a team that has created an online virtual environment for the camps. His work is ensuring students around the country will be able to continue to have access to nationally recognized Cyber Camp programs in a whole new way.
Since 1990, through the DCLA, the FBI has publicly recognized the achievements of individuals and organizations who go above and beyond the call to service by making extraordinary contributions to their communities in the areas of terrorism, cyber, drug, gang, or violence prevention and education. Congratulations Mr. Torry Crass!
This news article was originally published on the FBI website on April 29, 2021.
Recent News
Astronomers Discover Fastest-Evolving Radio Signals Ever Observed from Black Hole Tearing Apart Star
An international team of astronomers has discovered the first radio-bright tidal disruption event (TDE) occurring outside a galaxy’s center using the U.S. National Science Foundation National Radio Astronomy Observatory (NSF NRAO) Very Large Array (NSF VLA) and Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA), along with several partner telescopes.
First-ever Detection of “Heavy Water” in a Planet-forming Disk
The discovery of ancient water in a planet-forming disk reveals that some of the water found in comets—and maybe even Earth—is older than the disk’s star itself, offering breakthrough insights into the history of water in our Solar System.
Astronomers Detect Lowest Mass Dark Object Yet in Distant Universe
An international research team, using a worldwide network of radio telescopes, has detected an enigmatic dark object with a mass about one million times that of our Sun without observing any emitted light. This is the lowest mass dark object ever detected at a cosmological distance using only its gravitational influence.