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Selam Moonlet Formation

Simulated formation of Dinkinesh’s moon Selam, identified as the first confirmed “contact binary” moon.


Animated model of the formation of the asteroid Dinkinesh’s moon Selam. Dinkinesh’s tiny moon was likely built from multiple low-speed collisions between small moonlets, making it the first confirmed “contact binary” moon. The current understanding is that Selam formed not from two, but at least four separate bodies. This simulation shows the Moonlet merger forming the characteristic ridge on the inner lobe of Selam (Selam A), which matches the observations obtained from NASA’s Lucy mission.

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Local Distance Network

The Local Distance Network offers a multi-route method for accurately determining the Hubble constant. It includes various techniques for gauging galactic distances, linking geometric approaches to establish H0.

Conceptual overview of the Local Distance Network, a multi-route approach to deriving the Hubble constant in our universe. Included are a non-exhaustive collection of various methods for determining galactic distances and how these can connect the absolute scale established through geometric means to the Hubble constant H0. Background rectangles illustrate the positions of Rung 1, Rung 2 and Rung 3 in a traditional distance ladder from left to right.

The graphic was developed within the framework of the ISSI Workshop ‘What’s under the H0od? Towards Consensus on the local value of the Hubble Constant‘ at the International Space Science Institute (ISSI) in Bern, Switzerland.

The Scientific colour map ‘hirta‘ is used to make the colour coding accessible to all readers.

  • Creator: Fabio Crameri
  • This version: 01.12.2025
  • License: Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International (CC BY-SA 4.0)
  • Specific citation: This graphic by Fabio Crameri (ISSI Bern) based on the original by Richard Anderson and the H₀DN Collaboration (2025) is available via the open-access s-ink.org repository.
  • Related reference:
    H₀DN Collaboration, Casertano, S., Anand, G., Anderson, R. I., et al. (2025). The Local Distance Network: A community consensus report on the measurement of the Hubble constant at 1% precision. arXiv preprint arXiv:2510.23823. https://doi.org/10.48550/arXiv.2510.23823 

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Consistency of of Hubble Constant Measurements

The measurement of the Hubble Constant, highlighting variations from different methods and the consistency of these measurements across galaxies with differing redshifts.

The consistency of different methods to measure the Hubble Constant. Shown are differences in the measured Hubble constant for galaxies at various redshifts, compared to the combined best estimate (“everything” solution). Each panel shows results from one measurement method, where points represent individual galaxies, with error bars showing the expected variation within that method. The shaded bars on the right indicate the average value and overall spread for each method. As such, the figure shows how consistently different techniques measure the expansion rate of the Universe.


Data are drawn from published Hubble-flow measurements compiled in the Hubble Constant “everything” solution, including distances derived from Cepheids, TRGB, SBF, and Type Ia supernovae, as assembled by the H₀DN Collaboration (2025).

The graphic was developed within the framework of the ISSI Workshop ‘What’s under the H0od? Towards Consensus on the local value of the Hubble Constant‘ at the International Space Science Institute (ISSI) in Bern, Switzerland.

The Scientific colour map ‘batlow‘ is used to represent data accurately and to all readers.

  • Creator: Fabio Crameri
  • This version: 20.10.2025
  • License: Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International (CC BY-SA 4.0)
  • Specific citation: This graphic by Fabio Crameri (ISSI Bern) from H₀DN Collaboration (2025) is available via the open-access s-ink.org repository.
  • Related reference:
    H₀DN Collaboration, Casertano, S., Anand, G., Anderson, R. I., et al. (2025). The Local Distance Network: A community consensus report on the measurement of the Hubble constant at 1% precision. arXiv preprint arXiv:2510.23823. https://doi.org/10.48550/arXiv.2510.23823 
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Consistency of Distance Network Measurements

The consistency of distance network measurements used in calibrating the Hubble constant, showing how various methods align with each other.

Consistency of Distance Network Measurements for Hubble Constant Calibration. Shown are residuals (differences) between measured host galaxy distances and the values from the full distance network. Each panel groups measurements made with the same method, reference, and research team. Points show individual distance estimates with their uncertainties, and shaded bands show the shared uncertainty for each group. The figure illustrates how well different measurement methods agree within the overall distance ladder, or now termed more fittingly distance network, used to determine the Hubble constant.

The data was taken from various distance-ladder studies using different methods. These methods include Cepheids, Tip of the Red Giant Branch (TRGB), Surface Brightness Fluctuations (SBF), with each measurement retaining its original calibration (anchor), such as to the Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC), NGC 4258 maser distance, or Milky Way parallaxes. The “Baseline solution” refers to the combined, self-consistent solution obtained by linking all these methods into a single global network.

The illustration was developed within the framework of the ISSI Workshop ‘What’s under the H0od? Towards Consensus on the local value of the Hubble Constant‘ at the International Space Science Institute (ISSI) in Bern, Switzerland.

The Scientific colour map ‘batlow‘ is used to represent data accurately and to all readers.

  • Creator: Fabio Crameri
  • This version: 20.10.2025
  • License: Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International (CC BY-SA 4.0)
  • Specific citation: This graphic by Fabio Crameri (ISSI Bern) from H₀DN Collaboration (2025) is available via the open-access s-ink.org repository.
  • Related reference:
    H₀DN Collaboration, Casertano, S., Anand, G., Anderson, R. I., et al. (2025). The Local Distance Network: A community consensus report on the measurement of the Hubble constant at 1% precision. arXiv preprint arXiv:2510.23823. https://doi.org/10.48550/arXiv.2510.23823 
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Outer Solar System

Illustration of the outer Solar System, including the Sun, rocky planets, asteroid belt, gas planets, Kuiper Belt, and the hypothetical Oort Cloud.


Illustration of the outer Solar System, including the Sun, rocky planets, asteroid belt, gas planets, Kuiper Belt, and the hypothetical Oort Cloud. Beyond Neptune’s orbit lies the Kuiper Belt, home to icy bodies such as Pluto and Eris. It occupies a disc-like region from approximately 30 to 50 astronomical units (AU) from the Sun. Beyond this lies the hypothetical Oort Cloud, a vast, spherical shell of icy remnants extending from roughly 2,000 AU to as far as 100,000 AU (nearly 1.6 light-years), enveloping the Solar System in all directions. While the Kuiper Belt is relatively well-studied, no direct observations of Oort Cloud objects have yet been confirmed. Together, these distant regions preserve material from the early Solar System and are sources of long-period comets that occasionally visit the inner planets.

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Known Exoplanets

The collection of known Exoplanets represented based on their date of detection and their relative size to scale.

The collection of known Exoplanets represented based on their date of detection and their relative size to scale. Exoplanets are planets outside our solar system with known radii. The largest planetary bodies are annotated with their names. Note that there is some uncertainty in classifying and measuring “exoplanets”. The current figure includes objects (such as some Brown Dwarfs) that do not necessarily fulfil the true definition of an “exoplanet”. This definition would limit the collection to planetary bodies with true masses below the limiting mass for thermonuclear fusion of deuterium, which is currently calculated to be 13 Jupiter masses for objects of solar metallicity, that orbit stars or stellar remnants are (see e.g., https://www.iau.org/static/resolutions/IAU2003_WGESP.pdf for a discussion thereof).

The first confirmed discovery of an exoplanet occurred in 1992 by Aleksander Wolszczan and Dale Frail, who detected two Earth-mass planets orbiting the pulsar PSR B1257+12. These were the first exoplanets ever confirmed, but because they orbit a neutron star rather than a Sun-like star, they were a very unusual find.

First discovery 30 years ago

In 1995, Swiss astronomers Michel Mayor and Didier Queloz discovered the first confirmed exoplanet around a main-sequence star (a more Sun-like star), named 51 Pegasi b and shown in the very centre of the graphic. This discovery marked a major milestone and is often considered the true beginning of modern exoplanet astronomy. Mayor and Queloz were awarded the 2019 Nobel Prize in Physics for this work.

The Scientific colour map ‘devon‘ is used to represent data accurately and to all readers.

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Biomass on Earth

The total biomass on the Earth, the combined weight of all living organisms.



The total biomass on the Earth, the combined weight of all living organisms, is estimated at around 550 Billion tons of carbon (Gt C). This mass is primarily made up of plants, particularly land plants such as trees, which account for roughly 450 Gt C. Bacteria and fungi also contribute significantly, together with about 80 Gt C. Animals, including humans, represent a smaller fraction, around 2 Gt C. Understanding the distribution and composition of biomass is crucial for studying ecological processes, biodiversity, and the impact of human activities on the environment. The data are from Bar-On et al. (2018) and the Scientific colour map ‘navia‘ is used to represent data accurately and to all readers.

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Science graphic design guideline

Supporting guideline and check-list for designing a good science figure with purpose.

Supporting guideline for designing a science figure that has a clear purpose, is tailored to its audience and medium, is scientifically accurate and universally readable, effective and engaging, and reproducible and reusable. The guideline is available in multiple languages.

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Plate tectonic Earth map

Visually accessible and scientifically accurate global map of key plate tectonics characteristics on the Earth.

Visually accessible and scientifically accurate global map of key plate tectonics characteristics on the Earth. Superposed on the Earth’s surface topography (from s-ink.org/surface-topography-relief) are the seafloor age (from s-ink.org/oceanic-plate-age), plate boundaries (from s-ink.org/subduction-zones-map) and tectonic plate names (from s-ink.org/tectonic-plates-simple), active volcanoes (from s-ink.org/global-volcano-distribution), largest earthquakes (from s-ink.org/historic-earthquake-distribution), major rivers, and the outlines of the world map. 

Data sets shown are from Amante and Eakins (2009), Müller et al. (1997), Argus et al. (2011), Bird (2003), Deep Sea Drilling Project (1989), NCEI Volcano Location Database, and Hayes (2018). The Scientific colour map ‘lipari‘ is used to represent data accurately and to all readers.

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