The Universe still has plenty of hydrogen, but its ability to turn that fuel into new stars appears to be fading. The Universe is producing far fewer new stars than it did billions of years ago. Over the past 4.5 billion years, the cosmic star formation rate has fallen to less than half its former […]
The Universe Has Plenty of Fuel. So Why Is It Making Fewer Stars?
The Universe still has plenty of hydrogen, but its ability to turn that fuel into new stars appears to be fading. The Universe is producing far fewer new stars than it did billions of years ago. Over the past 4.5 billion years, the cosmic star formation rate has fallen to less than half its former […]
The Universe Has Plenty of Fuel. So Why Is It Making Fewer Stars?
The Universe still has plenty of hydrogen, but its ability to turn that fuel into new stars appears to be fading. The Universe is producing far fewer new stars than it did billions of years ago. Over the past 4.5 billion years, the cosmic star formation rate has fallen to less than half its former […]
A Cosmic Catastrophe May Have Turned Neptune’s Ancient Moons Inside Out
Neptune’s tiny moons may be ancient wreckage, preserving material exposed when a catastrophic event shattered much larger icy worlds. In 1989, Voyager 2 discovered six previously unknown moons around Neptune. Five of them are tiny satellites that travel just beyond the planet’s main rings. Their small size and great distance from Earth have made them […]
The Worst Fires in Indonesia May Be the Ones You Can’t See
Indonesia’s underground peat fires are surging under El Niño and drought, raising fears of another destructive fire season. Some fires race across the surface. Indonesia’s peat fires can do something more dangerous: disappear underground and keep burning. Tropical peatland fires develop when carbon-rich wetland soils dry out enough to ignite. Instead of producing only fast-moving […]
The Worst Fires in Indonesia May Be the Ones You Can’t See
Indonesia’s underground peat fires are surging under El Niño and drought, raising fears of another destructive fire season. Some fires race across the surface. Indonesia’s peat fires can do something more dangerous: disappear underground and keep burning. Tropical peatland fires develop when carbon-rich wetland soils dry out enough to ignite. Instead of producing only fast-moving […]
Scientists Buried 2,000 Pairs of Underwear. What Happened Next Revealed a Hidden World
By burying thousands of pairs of cotton underwear across Switzerland, scientists uncovered striking differences in biological activity from one type of land to another. The results showed that gardens had especially active soils, while lawns were much quieter underground. Soil supports the global food system while also storing water, carbon, and essential nutrients. It is […]
One of Earth’s Driest Deserts Just Turned White
In August 2026, a series of powerful winter storms transformed parts of northern Chile’s Atacama Desert, covering the famously dry landscape in an unusual layer of snow. Snow is not unheard of in the Atacama. Significant falls occurred in 2025 and, before that, in 2011. But one of the August 2026 storms stood out because […]
Puerto Rico Went From No Drought to Extreme Drought in Just Months
Puerto Rico went from no drought to widespread extreme drought in just months as rainfall collapsed and water shortages spread. Puerto Rico usually enters its wet season in May. In 2026, however, the expected rains largely failed to arrive through late August, leaving much of the U.S. territory in drought. The prolonged dry spell has […]
Puerto Rico Went From No Drought to Extreme Drought in Just Months
Puerto Rico went from no drought to widespread extreme drought in just months as rainfall collapsed and water shortages spread. Puerto Rico usually enters its wet season in May. In 2026, however, the expected rains largely failed to arrive through late August, leaving much of the U.S. territory in drought. The prolonged dry spell has […]