Self-copying RNAs may have been a key stop along the pathway to life. There are plenty of unanswered questions about the origin of life on Earth. But the research community has largely reached consensus that one of the key steps was the emergence of an RNA molecule that could…
This was the first launch of the Ariane 64, the most powerful rocket in European space history. The heavy version of Europe’s Ariane 6 rocket launched for the first time Thursday, hauling 32 spacecraft to low-Earth orbit for Amazon’s satellite broadband constellation. The Ariane 6 rocket lifted off from…
Wiped out in its native range by invasive pathogens, the trees may make a comeback. Very few people alive today have seen the Appalachian forests as they existed a century ago. Even as state and national parks preserved ever more of the ecosystem, fungal pathogens from Asia nearly wiped…
The material properties change gradually from base to tip for better navigation, more precise manipulation. An elephant’s trunk is a marvelous thing, flexible enough to bend and stretch as it forages for food, but also stiff enough to grasp and maneuver even delicate objects like peanuts or a tortilla…
SpaceX’s crew missions will now launch from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station. Launch Complex 39A at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida is accustomed to getting makeovers. It got another one Wednesday with the removal of the Crew Access Arm used by astronauts to board their rides to space.…
The administration’s “reasoning” for doing so has little connection to reality. On Wednesday, a fossil-fuel lobbying group called the Washington Coal Club awarded President Trump a trophy that named him the “Undisputed Champion of Clean, Beautiful Coal.” Trump took advantage of the opportunity to take his latest shot at…
Guano dramatically boosted the production of maize, and the surplus helped fuel the Chincha Kingdom’s economy. The pre-Inca Chincha Kingdom (circa 1000-1400 CE), along Peru’s southern coast, was one of the most wealthy and influential of its time before falling to the Inca and Spanish empires. Scientists have long…
The EPA is revoking the finding for legal, not scientific, reasons. Following three of the warmest years on record, as scientists reckon with climate tipping points and states and cities grapple with the escalating cost of extreme weather and more intense wildfires, the Trump administration this week is expected…
The next Starship flight is a key precursor for more ambitious missions. The upgraded Super Heavy booster slated to launch SpaceX’s next Starship flight has completed cryogenic proof testing, clearing a hurdle that resulted in the destruction of the company’s previous booster. SpaceX announced the milestone in a social…
Meant to help judges handle scientific issues, document is now climate-free. On Friday, a body that advises US judges revised the document it created to help judges grapple with scientific issues. The move came after a group of Republican state attorneys general wrote a letter to complain about the…
