Science

Despite the powerful telescopes that modern astronomers have to work with, the distant reaches of the Solar System are still mysterious. Not much sunlight pierces these regions, and there are strong hints that undiscovered objects lurk there. The objects that astronomers have discovered in these dim reaches are primordial, and their orbits suggest the presence of more undiscovered objects. Piecing …

Early risers will get a rare opportunity to see something extraordinary in the early hours of July 18 — the dark shadow of Saturn’s largest moon, Titan, sweeping across the planet’s cloud tops. Once every 15 years, Saturn‘s tilted orbit brings its iconic rings — and Titan‘s orbital path — into an edge-on alignment with Earth. This event, known as …

Just a moment… Enable JavaScript and cookies to continue This request seems a bit unusual, so we need to confirm that you’re human. Please press and hold the button until it turns completely green. Thank you for your cooperation! Press and Hold Press and hold the button If you believe this is an error, please contact our support team. 209.74.74.26 …

KEY POINTS Jupiter, Saturn, and Neptune each emit more energy than they receive from the Sun, meaning they have comparatively warm interiors. NASA’s Uranus flyby with Voyager 2 in 1986 found the planet colder than expected, which challenged ideas of how planets formed and evolved. However, with advanced computer modeling and a new look at old data, scientists think the …

Soil excavated from the moon could be used to produce oxygen and methane, which could be used by lunar settlers for breathing and for rocket fuel. This is the conclusion of a team of scientists from China who have found a one-step method of doing all this. Whether it is economically viable, however, is up for debate. But the Chinese …

In April, when Yellowstone National Park geologists made their first visit this year to the Norris Geyser Basin, they encountered a new feature they hadn’t seen before. They were checking the area’s temperature logging stations, a routine maintenance job – but since their last visit, something was different. Where previously there had been a rather featureless patch of ground at …

A baby planet is shrinking from the size of Jupiter with a thick atmosphere to a small, barren world, according to a new study from NASA’s Chandra X-ray Observatory. This transformation is happening as the host star unleashes a barrage of X-rays that is tearing the young planet’s atmosphere away at an enormous rate. The planet, named TOI 1227 b, …

It takes skill and patience to design a tiny bespoke backpack and fit it onto an Australian bearded dragon. But Kristoffer Wild regularly found himself doing just that during his PhD at the Bowra Wildlife Sanctuary in Queensland. “I became a tailor during my PhD,” the University of Melbourne ecologist joked. He would measure the neck and chest of each …

Just a moment… Enable JavaScript and cookies to continue This request seems a bit unusual, so we need to confirm that you’re human. Please press and hold the button until it turns completely green. Thank you for your cooperation! Press and Hold Press and hold the button If you believe this is an error, please contact our support team. 209.74.74.26 …

Why didn’t the universe annihilate itself moments after the big bang? A new finding at Cern on the French-Swiss border brings us closer to answering this fundamental question about why matter dominates over its opposite – antimatter. Much of what we see in everyday life is made up of matter. But antimatter exists in much smaller quantities. Matter and antimatter …