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dark earth

2000-Year-Old Amazonian “Dark Earth” Causes Mysterious Plant Growth at Accelerated Levels, Baffling Researchers

cannabis zero-gravity alien civilizations

Massive Study Shows Overwhelming Support for Federal Cannabis Reform Amid Culture Shift

hidden property of light

“The Foundations for a New Generation of Light‑Based Technologies”: Scientists Uncover ‘Hidden’ Property of Light That Allows it to Spin and Twist

exoplanet disintegrates

NASA’s TESS Spots Evaporating Planet in Death Spiral That’s Producing a Comet-Like Tail

Ryan Whalen·April 23, 2025
A distant exoplanet is quickly disintegrating 140 light-years from Earth, spotted by MIT astronomers through NASA's TESS mission.
secret launch

The NRO and the U.S. Space Force Just Conducted Another Secret Launch

Christopher Plain·April 23, 2025
On Sunday, the U.S. Space Force and the National Reconnaissance Office (NRO) conducted another secret launch of a classified payload.
foreign spies

Foreign Spies May Be Targeting DoD Personnel with Fake Jobs, U.S. Counterintelligence Officials Warn

Micah Hanks·April 22, 2025
U.S. officials warned this week that foreign spies are increasingly targeting current and former DoD personnel with fake job offers online.
NASA's Lucy spacecraft

NASA’s Lucy Spacecraft Had a Weird Close Encounter During Recent Asteroid Flyby, New Images Reveal

Micah Hanks·April 22, 2025
NASA’s Lucy spacecraft captured the most detailed images yet of an oddly shaped asteroid during its recent flyby.
Yellowstone

Yellowstone Supervolcano Has a Hidden Magma Cap—How Close Are We to an Eruption?

Ryan Whalen·April 22, 2025
Yellowstone Caldera, the volcanic complex underneath Yellowstone National Park, is held at bay from eruption by a cap 3.8 meters underground.
ancient mars water snow

Skiing the Red Planet? New Evidence Suggests Ancient Mars Experienced Snow and Rain

Christopher Plain·April 22, 2025
A new analysis by UC Boulder geologists suggests the ancient Mars landscape was formed by falling precipitation, including rain and snow.
dark matter

‘Cosmic Radio’ Detector May Soon End the Hunt for Elusive Dark Matter

Micah Hanks·April 21, 2025
Inspired by the tuning mechanics of an automobile’s radio, a new detector could soon help solve the dark matter mystery.
largest cosmic structure

Astronomers Just Made a Big Discovery About the Universe’s Largest Cosmic Structure

Micah Hanks·April 21, 2025
The largest cosmic structure ever observed by astronomers is revealing its biggest cosmic secrets yet, with a little help from powerful gamma-ray bursts.
perfect cup of coffee

Physicists Have Unlocked the Secret to the Perfect Cup of Coffee, While Using Fewer Beans

Micah Hanks·April 21, 2025
Getting the perfect cup of coffee as part of your morning ritual may have just gotten easier, thanks to the power of fluid dynamics.
International Space Station

Strange Desert Markings Resembling “Mysterious Writing” Spotted by Cameras on the International Space Station

Micah Hanks·April 20, 2025
Strange markings that resemble writing were recently spotted in the Tunisian desert by cameras aboard the International Space Station.
gravitational wave detectors

“Scientists Don’t Yet Fully Understand” These Intriguing New Gravitational Wave Detectors Designed by AI

Micah Hanks·April 20, 2025
Promising new designs for gravitational wave detectors developed by artificial intelligence have left scientists with new questions about the cosmos.
tomb of Jesus

Is This the Tomb of Jesus? A 2000-Year-Old Site Beneath Jerusalem’s Church of the Holy Sepulchre Reveals Its Ancient Secrets

Micah Hanks·April 19, 2025
Archaeologists say new findings from one of Christianity’s holiest sites align with descriptions in the Gospels long associated with the tomb of Jesus.
milky seas

Sailors Have Encountered This Bizarre “Twilight Zone” Phenomenon for Centuries. Now Scientists Hope to Solve the Mystery of “Milky Seas.”  

Micah Hanks·April 19, 2025
Researchers have compiled the a new database of accounts of “milky seas,” pairing historic reports with satellite observations of strange marine bioluminescence.
Mars carbon cycle

Curiosity Uncovers Evidence of Ancient Martian Carbon Cycle That May Have Sustained Life

Ryan Whalen·April 19, 2025
NASA's Curiosity rover has found new evidence that Mars once had a working carbon cycle in its ancient past.
optical knots

Engineers are Creating 3D ‘Optical Knots’ by Manipulating Laser Beams

Kenna Hughes-Castleberry·April 19, 2025
Engineers at Duke University have successfully manipulated laser beams to create intricate 3D patterns known as 'optical knots.'
M83

James Webb Space Telescope Breakthrough Reveals “Compelling” New Evidence of Long-Hidden Black Hole in Galaxy M83

Micah Hanks·April 18, 2025
Compelling evidence of a long-sought black hole at the center of the galaxy M83 has been unveiled using the James Webb Space Telescope.
Perseverance rover Skull Hill

NASA’s Perseverance Rover Is Investigating a Mysterious Dark Stone of “Uncertain” Origin

Micah Hanks·April 18, 2025
NASA’s Perseverance rover has discovered a dark-colored stone with unusual features that “may have originated from elsewhere.”
universe galaxy

New ‘Spinning Universe’ Theory Could Explain a Decades-Old Cosmological Mystery

Ryan Whalen·April 18, 2025
The entire universe may be rotating, like its individual parts do, potentially explaining the “Hubble tension,” which perplexes scientists.
International Space Station extraterrestrial life

International Space Station to Receive “Rock Star” Tool That Could Aid in Search for Extraterrestrial Life

Christopher Plain·April 18, 2025
The International Space Station is preparing for the launch of ELVIS, a tool that could aid the search for extraterrestrial life
Mars Sample Collection

“New and Intriguing” Mars Discoveries Made by NASA’s Perseverance Rover are “All We Had Hoped for and More”

Ryan Whalen·April 18, 2025
Mars's Jezero Crater is offering scientists a treasure trove of intriguing new findings that may hide clues to the Martian past.
signs of life outside our solar system

James Webb Space Telescope Spots the First Potential Signs of Life Outside our Solar System

Christopher Plain·April 17, 2025
Cambridge astronomers using the James Webb Space Telescope have detected the first potential sign of life on another planet.
White House brain drain

Brain Drain: How Trump’s Second Term Is Reshaping the Future of U.S. Science

Chrissy Newton·April 17, 2025
With many scientists now considering leaving the U.S., could the resulting "brain drain" evolve into a national security concern?
Leonidas H20 high-powered microwave weapon

New High-Energy Microwave Weapon Neutralizes ‘Attacking’ Vessels in a Military First

Christopher Plain·April 17, 2025
The first-ever high-powered microwave weapon designed to stop marine attacks just passed several critical tests against aquatic vessels.
NASA's Lucy spacecraft

NASA’s Lucy Spacecraft Gears Up for Its Second Asteroid Flyby

Chrissy Newton·April 17, 2025
NASA’s Lucy spacecraft is set to fly by the asteroid Donaldjohanson on April 20 in a key rehearsal for its primary mission to study Jupiter’s Trojan asteroids.
chicken meat in the lab

Biotech Breakthrough “Grows” Chicken Meat in the Lab—Could Artificial Organs be Next?

Kenna Hughes-Castleberry·April 17, 2025
Researchers from the University of Tokyo used semipermeable hollow fibers to grow 10 grams of lab-grown chicken breast.
Einstein unified field theory

Einstein’s Unified Field Theory Realized? New Theory Unites Electromagnetism and Gravity Through Geometry

Micah Hanks·April 16, 2025
Researchers say they may have achieved Einstein's vision of a "unified field theory" that can unite two of nature's fundamental forces.
colossal squid

Colossal Squid Captured in First Confirmed Footage of One of the Deep Ocean’s Most Elusive Giants

Micah Hanks·April 16, 2025
Scientists say they have captured the first confirmed live footage of the colossal squid, one of nature’s most elusive, gigantic creatures.
fungus

New Fungus-Based Building Material Heals Itself, Paving the Way Toward Self-Repairing Structures

Ryan Whalen·April 16, 2025
A new Fungus and bacteria-based building material demonstrates a healing ability that could lead to self-repairing structures.
fossil

A Mysterious Fossil from an Unknown Humanlike Species Once Baffled Scientists. Now We Know What It Is.

Micah Hanks·April 16, 2025
A once-mysterious fossil of an early hominin that walked the Earth alongside early modern humans has now been identified as Denisovan.
neutrino

Chasing Shadows: New Breakthrough Brings Elusive Neutrino Mystery Into Focus

Kenna Hughes-Castleberry·April 16, 2025
Physicists at KATRIN in Germany have found an upper limit to the mass of the neutrino, a subatomic particle of the Standard Model.
Sunbird

‘Sunbird’ Nuclear Rocket Revealed in New Video Offers a Look at the Radical Future of Space Exploration

Micah Hanks·April 15, 2025
The future of interplanetary travel is looking brighter, thanks to the new Sunbird nuclear-powered rocket designed by Pulsar Fusion.
black hole x-ray

A Long-Dormant Supermassive Black Hole Has Awakened, and It’s Doing Something Extreme and Unusual

Ryan Whalen·April 15, 2025
A supermassive black hole that scientists have nicknamed "Ansky" is now awake after a long dormant period, emitting powerful X-ray flares. 
digital twin

The “Holy Grail” of Neuroscience? Researchers Create Stunningly Accurate Digital Twin of the Brain

Tim McMillan·April 15, 2025
Harnessing the power of AI, scientists have created a highly accurate "digital twin" of the brain in pursuit of neuroscience's "holy grail."
lifeform

Scientists Have Discovered an Unknown Lifeform Deep Within the Earth

Ryan Whalen·April 15, 2025
A new microbe category was discovered in Earth's Critical Zone, a sort of "skin" extending beneath the planet's surface. 
Blue Origin

Historic All-Female Blue Origin Flight Draws Praise, Backlash Over Celebrity Focus and Safety Concerns

Chrissy Newton·April 14, 2025
The first all-female crewed spaceflight in over 60 years concluded safely on Monday as the Blue Origin NS-31 mission touched down.

IARPA Research Achieves the Impossible in New Breakthrough Revealing the Brain’s Biggest Mysteries

Tim McMillan·April 14, 2025
New research by IARPA has achieved the "impossible," providing the most detailed map of brain activity to date.
supersonic

How the Navy Plans to “See” Through the Chaos and Conquer the Future of Supersonic Warfare

Tim McMillan·April 14, 2025
Navy breakthrough boosts optical clarity in supersonic environments, enhancing laser targeting and defense against high-speed threats.
planet consumed by star

James Webb Space Telescope Captures a Planet Being Consumed by Its Star for the First Time, with Unexpected Results

Ryan Whalen·April 12, 2025
The James Webb Space Telescope's MIRI instrument has captured the final moments of a planet's existence, unexpectedly revealing that the object descended into its host star rather than being engulfed by it as it grew. 
quantum particles

“Quantum-Level Perspective” of Subatomic Particle Sprays Are Revealing New Quantum Secrets

Kenna Hughes-Castleberry·April 12, 2025
Physicists studied proton interactions at the Large Hadron Collider to see if they could find quantum entanglement as a result.
physics ball

“This is Something We Did Not See Coming.” New Physics from Odd Shapes Predicts what Appears as Random Motion

Ryan Whalen·April 11, 2025
Basic physics quickly gets messy in an irregular world, scientists discover in new research on the old problem of a ball rolling downhill.
interactive 3D hologram

Video: Interactive 3D Hologram Allows Users to Manipulate Virtual Objects with Their Hands

Christopher Plain·April 11, 2025
Researchers unveil the first-ever interactive 3D hologram that lets users manipulate objects projected into thin air with their hands.
hidden galaxies

Hidden Galaxies Could “Break All of our Current Models” of Galactic Evolution, Astronomers Say

Ryan Whalen·April 11, 2025
Hidden galaxies offering a glimpse into the past could reveal previously unknown secrets of the universe, challenging current models.
Africa Skeleton

Previously Unknown Ancient Human Lineage Discovered in Libyan Rock Shelter

Ryan Whalen·April 10, 2025
Homo sapiens migrated out of Africa roughly 50,000 years ago, but scientists have now discovered that some chose to remain behind.
DESI dark matter

Death by Dark Energy? A Cosmic Game of Russian Roulette

Avi Loeb·April 10, 2025
Call it cosmic Russian roulette: Harvard astronomer Avi Loeb outlines a possible cosmic doomsday scenario involving dark energy.
optical illusion

When it Comes to Optical Illusions, Experts in This Profession Show a ‘Superpower’ for Perception

Christopher Plain·April 10, 2025
People trained in this particular profession appear to have a 'superpower' that lets them decipher optical illusions better than others.
salmon pharmaceutical pollutant

This Pharmaceutical Pollutant is Creating ‘Psycho Salmon,’ Causing Them to Display Concerning Behavior

Ryan Whalen·April 10, 2025
A pharmaceutical pollutant, clobazam, is turning up in global waterways and altering the behavior of marine creatures. 
Thermodynamics magnetic emulsion

Curious Grad Student Accidentally Discovers Shape-Changing Liquid That Bends the Laws of Thermodynamics

Ryan Whalen·April 9, 2025
Bendng the laws of thermodynamics, University of Massachusetts Amherst researchers have discovered a surprising "shape-changing liquid."
gravitational waves

Forget Radio Telescopes—Aliens Could Be Using Gravitational Waves to Communicate

Avi Loeb·April 9, 2025
Can scientists build a detector of near-Earth objects that would sense gravitational waves produced by any "dark" objects passing nearby?
black hole supermazes

Strange “Supermazes” Are Stretching Our Understanding of Black Holes Beyond General Relativity

Micah Hanks·April 9, 2025
Physicists are reshaping our understanding of black holes in new research that maps theoretical structures within them known as “supermazes.”
gum

Chew on This: Natural Bean Gum Could Help Stop the Spread of Flu and Herpes Viruses

Kenna Hughes-Castleberry·April 9, 2025
Researchers created a chewing gum from lalab beans that has antiviral properties to help fight herpes and influenza strains.

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