The sun unleashed a flurry of radiation-filled explosions in May. When they crashed into Earth’s magnetic bubble, the world was treated to iridescent displays of the northern and southern lights. But our planet was not the only one in the line of solar fire. A few days after Earth’s light appeared, another series of explosions … Read more
Researchers will no longer have to choose between studying a single human brain as a patchwork of fragmented images or a distant, pixelated view of large structures. A new imaging platform developed by a US team instead seamlessly combines the finer details of brain cells, their connections and contents, with maps of entire networks of … Read more
A new science is emerging that promises to become the defining field of the 21st century. More than a narrow specialization, it is not just a new field, but a new way of doing science—a new way of organizing intellectual fields and endeavors. Given its wide influence, it goes by several names, but one that … Read more
The inner core began to slow down around 2010, moving slower than the Earth’s surface. Credit: USC A new study provides clear evidence that Earth’s inner core began to slow down around 2010. USC Scientists have discovered that Earth’s inner core is slowing down compared to the planet’s surface, a phenomenon that began around 2010 … Read more
Astronomers have spotted flashes and echoes coming from the supermassive black hole at the heart of the Milky Way, Sagittarius A* (Sgr A*). These “cosmic fireworks” and X-ray echoes can help scientists better understand the dark, quiet cosmic titan around which our galaxy orbits. The Michigan State University team of researchers made the groundbreaking discovery … Read more
A tardigrade gets a dose of CRISPR tools to change one of its genes and those of the eggs it will produce. Credit: 2024 Tokiko Saigo et al. Certain species of tardigrades are highly and extremely resilient to various extreme conditions fatal to most other life forms. The genetic basis for these extraordinary abilities remains … Read more
The journey to the space should be an eye-opening experienceone that gives you a new perspective of humanity and its place in the cosmos. But while you might think that an experience like this would make a person infinitely wiser, a new report discovered that space travel can be real make you a little more … Read more
It’s a bird… it’s a plane… it’s a super star cluster! NASA’s Chandra X-ray telescope has imaged a star cluster that is “super” in every way. Westerlund 1 is super big, super massive, super young, super close – and it’s creating stars at a super fast rate. Westerlund 1 is about 13,000 light-years away from … Read more
Some would say that there is no sweeter image than that of a young mother embracing her infant toddler. Today, I’d like to share with you an even sweeter photo: a young mother cradling 30 to 40 of her babies, who are still eggs, in her clammy, clam-covered arms. To make it even more beautiful, … Read more
Overlaid on an image from NASA’s Mars Odyssey orbiter, this map shows the path of Persistence between January 21 and June 11. The white dots show where the rover stopped after completing a pass near the Neretva Vallis river channel. The pale blue line shows the path of the rover inside the channel. Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/University … Read more