NASA’s Neil Gehrels Swift Observatory has returned to Earth after spending nearly 22 years in space, bringing an extraordinary mission of cosmic discovery to an end. The spacecraft reentered Earth’s atmosphere on Wednesday, more than two decades after launching in 2004. Swift was a pioneering space observatory equipped with three telescopes capable of detecting different […]
NASA’s Perseverance Mars Rover Just Drove Farther Than Any Vehicle Beyond Earth
NASA’s self-driving Perseverance rover has broken the all-time off-world driving record and is now exploring ancient Martian terrain that could hold clues to the Red Planet’s long-lost history. NASA’s Perseverance rover has set a new record for driving on another world, traveling farther across the surface of Mars than any vehicle in history. On October […]
Look Up: Three Meteor Showers, a Supermoon, and a Historic Space First Are Coming in November
November offers plenty of reasons to look up, including the Taurid and Leonid meteor showers, a close pairing of Mars and Jupiter, a remarkable milestone for NASA’s Voyager 1 spacecraft, and a bright supermoon. November Skywatching Highlights Around November 5: The Southern Taurid meteor shower reaches its peak, with the possibility of unusually bright fireballs. […]
Scientists Finally Crack a 1,600-Year-Old Roman Glass Mystery
More than 1,600 years after the Romans created the famous Lycurgus Cup, a University of Sheffield technician has found a way to reliably reproduce its extraordinary color-changing glass. A glass cup made more than 1,600 years ago has puzzled historians and glassmakers for centuries. When light reflects off its surface, the cup appears jade green. […]
Scientists Discover Something Unexpected 90 Kilometers Beneath Earth
A rock from Papua New Guinea was hotter than expected during its descent into Earth, challenging models of a process that influences earthquakes, volcanoes, and climate. Earth recycles its own surface. In regions called subduction zones, one tectonic plate, a vast slab of Earth’s outer shell, sinks beneath another as the plates collide. These zones […]
Popular Dairy Alternatives Could Be Leaving You Short of Essential Nutrients
A new study reveals that even partially replacing dairy products with plant-based alternatives could significantly reduce the intake of essential nutrients. Replacing even a modest amount of dairy with plant-based alternatives could significantly reduce essential nutrient intake, according to a new study from the University of Surrey. Researchers found that substituting just 20% to 35% […]
A Healthier Form of Salt Could Prevent Nearly 3 Million Deaths Every Year, Scientists Say
A global study spanning 193 countries suggests that a simple change to everyday salt could prevent millions of deaths and cases of cardiovascular and kidney disease each year. Replacing ordinary salt with a potassium-enriched alternative could prevent nearly three million deaths worldwide each year, according to a new study covering 193 countries. Researchers estimate that […]
Scientists Engineer Rice That Fights Back Against a Devastating Crop Disease
An AI-designed gene-editing tool is opening new possibilities for protecting essential food crops. An artificial intelligence-designed gene-editing tool has helped scientists develop rice plants resistant to bacterial blight, a destructive disease that threatens harvests across Asia and Africa. Researchers at the University of Missouri achieved the result using a technology previously tested in animal cells, […]
Deep-Sea Scientists Capture Extraordinary 4K Footage of a Fish With a See-Through Head
MBARI’s first 4K footage of a barreleye fish offers a rare chance to study how its unusual eyes work in the ocean’s dim twilight zone. The day’s deep-sea research was over when a fish with a transparent head came into view. Research Specialist Shannon Johnson spotted it as MBARI’s pilots were “flying” the remotely operated […]
Deep-Sea Scientists Capture Extraordinary 4K Footage of a Fish With a See-Through Head
MBARI’s first 4K footage of a barreleye fish offers a rare chance to study how its unusual eyes work in the ocean’s dim twilight zone. The day’s deep-sea research was over when a fish with a transparent head came into view. Research Specialist Shannon Johnson spotted it as MBARI’s pilots were “flying” the remotely operated […]