Nuclear propulsion and power technologies could unlock new frontiers in missions to the moon, Mars, and beyond. NASA has reached an important milestone advancing nuclear propulsion that could benefit future deep space missions by completing a cold-flow test campaign of the first flight reactor engineering development unit since the 1960s. [...]
Scientists analyzing 443-million-year-old Scottish fossils have uncovered the early evidence that some of the first groups of vertebrates possessed surprisingly advanced eyes and traces of bone, reshaping our understanding of how the vertebrate body first evolved. [...]
Stronger policies and accountability measures to safeguard women athletes online are being called for, as part of a new study on the issue focusing on the case of former footballer Joey Barton. A team from the universities of Manchester, Chester, Hull, Durham and Loughborough investigated misogynistic online rhetoric directed at women and girls in sport. Their paper analyzes three event timeframes on the social media platform X where Barton targeted two female football players and a female pundit with abusive language, and also analyzed the public response. [...]
A new study from the University of Miami Rosenstiel School of Marine, Atmospheric, and Earth Science shows that juvenile Atlantic nurse sharks (Ginglymostoma cirratum) grow more rapidly as juveniles and reach smaller maximum sizes than nurse sharks in Bimini, Bahamas—locations so close that these populations have historically been assumed to be the same. [...]
Some galaxies eject powerful streams of charged particles—jets—from their centers into space. The prominent jet of Messier 87 (M87) in the constellation Virgo is visible over distances of 3,000 light-years and can be observed over the full electromagnetic spectrum. It is powered by the central engine, the supermassive black hole at the heart of the galaxy with a mass of around 6 billion times that of our sun. The exact location around the black hole where the jets originate is still unknown. [...]
An international team of astronomers has analyzed the data from long-term multiwavelength monitoring of a distant blazar known as OP 313. Results of the new study, published January 18 on the arXiv preprint server, shed more light on the peculiar behavior of this object. [...]
Using various space telescopes and ground-based facilities, astronomers have performed X-ray and radio observations of an accreting millisecond X-ray pulsar known as MAXI J1957+032. Results of the observational campaign, published on the arXiv preprint server and forthcoming in the Astronomy & Astrophysics journal, provide more insights into the nature of this pulsar. [...]
Charge density waves (CDWs) are ordered, crystal-like patterns in the arrangement of electrons that spontaneously form inside some solid materials. These patterns can change how electricity flows through materials, in some cases prompting the emergence of superconductivity or other unusual physical states. [...]
A new species of amphibian that lived 150 million years ago has been discovered in Portugal. The tiny animal was one of the earliest species belonging to a mysterious group of amphibians that lived from the time of the dinosaurs right up until the last Ice Age. [...]
Mangrove forests play an important role in the global carbon cycle, particularly within the marine carbon system. Growing along tropical and subtropical coastlines, these salt-tolerant trees are among nature's most efficient "blue carbon" sinks, capturing and burying vast amounts of carbon dioxide that would otherwise warm Earth's atmosphere. Much of this carbon is stored in thick, waterlogged soils, where it can remain locked away for centuries, making mangroves a major contributor to long-term coastal carbon sequestration. [...]
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's effort to roll back federal particulate matter pollution standards will harm Michigan residents, particularly those who live near emitters such as manufacturing plants and refineries in Wayne County, health and environmental advocates warn. [...]
Brazil has declared the acai berry a national fruit, a move to stamp its ownership on the popular "superfood" as concerns grow about foreign companies staking claims to the Amazon's biological riches. [...]
Australian authorities have sparked a backlash by killing a group of dingoes linked to the death of a young Canadian woman on an island in the country's east. [...]
Thailand has given a contraceptive vaccine to wild elephants for the first time in an effort to control their ballooning population, a conservation official said on Wednesday. [...]
A volcano in Russia's far east on Wednesday spewed ash several kilometers into the sky, authorities said, putting on a spectacular display in its latest eruption. [...]
Mark Thomson, the new head of Europe's physics laboratory CERN, voiced confidence Tuesday about raising the billions of dollars needed to build by far the world's biggest particle accelerator. [...]
A NASA research plane malfunctioned and had to touch down in Texas without landing gear on Tuesday, sliding across the runway on its belly and sending plumes of flame behind it, a video posted to social media showed. [...]
A 77-pound mountain lion set off a scramble Tuesday as it wandered through San Francisco's wealthy Pacific Heights neighborhood before finally being captured as onlookers safely peered from their home windows or stood across the street. [...]
Research in the Journal of Applied Ecology has identified threats to endangered plants in an urban area, generating information that can be used to guide effective conservation strategies across major cities. Investigators in Germany analyzed data on 1,231 populations of 201 endangered plant species within Berlin's Flora Protection Program. Threats were categorized and their relative importance was quantified at both population and species levels, and across habitat types. [...]
Donkeys are an unassuming yet ubiquitous presence in northern Namibia. They traverse sandy village roads, pull carts stacked with firewood, and graze freely along the northern edge of Etosha National Park. [...]
Human-induced climate change made the intense early January heat wave in Australia five times more likely, according to a new analysis by World Weather Attribution. [...]
Recent research has demonstrated that a rhodium (Rh) cluster of an optimal, intermediate size—neither too small nor too large—exhibits the highest catalytic activity in hydroformylation reactions. Similar to the concept of finding the "just right" balance, the study identifies this so-called "Goldilocks size" as crucial for maximizing catalyst efficiency. The study is published in the journal ACS Catalysis and was featured as the cover story. [...]
There's a bright side to every situation. In 2032, the moon itself might have a particularly bright side if it is blasted by a 60-meter-wide asteroid. The chances of such an event are still relatively small (only around 4%) but are non-negligible. And scientists are starting to prepare both for the bad (massive risks to satellites and huge meteors raining down on a large portion of the planet) and the good (a once-in-a-lifetime chance to study the geology, seismology, and chemical makeup of our nearest neighbor). A new paper from Yifan He of Tsinghua University and co-authors, posted to the arXiv preprint server, looks at the bright side of all of the potential interesting science we can do if a collision does, indeed, happen. [...]
Artificial intelligence is reshaping how companies operate, but it may not translate into more job creation, according to new research. [...]
When Apollo 13 looped around the moon in April 1970, more than 40 million people around the world watched the United States recover from a potential catastrophe. An oxygen tank explosion turned a planned landing into an urgent exercise in problem-solving, and the three astronauts on board used the moon's gravity to sling themselves safely home. It was a moment of extraordinary human drama, and a revealing geopolitical one. [...]
Engineering can create weapons systems or systems for defense and well-being. But can engineering create peace? In a Perspective, Guru Madhavan and colleagues propose an expansive mode of engineering practice that seeks to reduce conflict. The work is published in PNAS Nexus. [...]
Gifu University scientists have uncovered how a brain-specific enzyme reshapes protein-linked sugar chains to facilitate the formation of complex glycans essential for normal brain function. These insights could inform future research into glycan-related brain disorders and open new avenues for therapeutic investigation. [...]
Shortly after her arrival last fall, Amelia Gray met Hudson, and the pair hit it off immediately. They touched their noses together in greeting and chuffed—a soft, breathy, snorting sound that signals affection or reassurance. Amelia Gray rolled on her back, gently pawing at her counterpart. Later that same day, they played in the pool together. [...]
EPFL professor Robert West and invited professor Ágnes Horvát discuss how the rise of AI is transforming the dissemination and production of scientific knowledge. [...]
Moths move significantly less when exposed to artificial nighttime light, new research shows. Moths' attraction to artificial light, such as streetlights, is common knowledge and has been much studied. But, as many people will have observed, moths may also remain still if they land near a light, apparently "trapped." [...]
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