Sometimes, new data raises more questions than it answers. In a recent study, University of Alaska Fairbanks paleontologist Matthew Wooller and his colleagues radiocarbon-dated what they thought were pieces of two mammoth vertebrae, only to get a whale of a surprise and a whole new mystery. At first glance,…
Sunlight can cause a molecule to change structure, and then release heat later. Heating accounts for nearly half of the global energy demand, and two-thirds of that is met by burning fossil fuels like natural gas, oil, and coal. Solar energy is a possible alternative, but while we have…
Kaolinite pebbles show evidence of alteration under high rainfall conditions. A recent study showed that Mars was warm and wet billions of years ago. The finding contrasts with another theory that this era was mainly cold and icy. The result has implications for the idea that life could have…
What prompts this community to spend time looking for a creature that likely doesn’t exist? It was the image that launched a cultural icon. In 1967, in the Northern California woods, a 7-foot-tall, ape-like creature covered in black fur and walking upright was captured on camera, at one point…
“We observed materially lower leak rates compared to prior observations during WDR-1.” NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman said Saturday the agency is looking at ways to prevent the fueling problems plaguing the Space Launch System rocket before the Artemis III mission. Artemis III is slated to be the first crew…
Next-generation telescopes are mapping this outer frontier. Out beyond the orbit of Neptune lies an expansive ring of ancient relics, dynamical enigmas, and possibly a hidden planet—or two. The Kuiper Belt, a region of frozen debris about 30 to 50 times farther from the sun than the Earth is—and…
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…
