Science

A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket launched to the International Space Station (ISS) in the wee hours Friday morning. The unmanned mission will bring new supplied and instruments to the station, along with something a bit… different. A floating robotic head called CIMON (Crew Interactive Mobile Companion) will soon be buzzing …

An international team of paleontologists has identified two new species of ancient mammals that lived about 13 million years ago (middle Miocene epoch) in what is now Bolivia. Theosodon arozquetai (left) and Llullataruca shockeyi. Image credit: Velizar Simeonovski. The two newly-discovered Miocene species, named Theosodon arozquetai and Llullataruca shockeyi, belong …

A new experiment by physicists at the University of Bonn, Germany, has achieved a Higgs-like state in a system composed of ultracold atoms. Excitation spectra of the Higgs-like state: (a) excitation spectra of the Higgs-like state for different interaction strengths, 1/(kFa); the different levels of background condensate fraction are due …

NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) has suffered numerous setbacks and delays, but it continues to inch ever closer to launch. The agency established an Independent Review Board (IRB) to analyze the project and recommend how to proceed. There’s good news and bad news on that front. The IRB says …

Astronomers around the world were positively tickled last year when we detected our first interstellar object inside the solar system. The object was named ‘Oumuamua, a term of Hawaiian origin meaning “a messenger from afar arriving first.” Telescopes around the world turned to watch as our visitor rocketed off into …

Scientists are busily working on a framework for assessing exoplanets for the presence of life, but what about extraterrestrial life a little closer to home? There are a few moons in the solar system that could conceivably support life. After analyzing data collected in the final days of the Cassini …

A research team led by Purdue University structural biologist Michael Rossmann was the first to discover the structure of Zika virus — emerging mosquito-borne flavivirus closely related to dengue virus — in 2016. Using cryo-electron microscopy, the scientists created an image of the virus at a resolution of 3.8Å (Ångstrom). …

Using data from NASA’s Cassini spacecraft, a research team led by University of Heidelberg scientists Frank Postberg and Nozair Khawaja found that complex, carbon-rich molecules with molecular masses above 200 atomic mass units are ejected from cracks in the surface of Saturn’s icy moon Enceladus. This artist’s painting of the …

In brains affected by Alzheimer’s disease, an international group of scientists has identified several chemically-reduced iron species, with mineral forms including a magnetic iron oxide called magnetite. Understanding the impact and management of these minerals could lead to more effective future therapies for the neurodegenerative condition. Everett et al scanned …

Ever since humans began observing the wider universe, we’ve been struck by how empty space can be. With all the uncountable stars out there, it seems like there should be someone looking back at us. Still, we haven’t found anyone yet—this is known as the Fermi Paradox. The Drake Equation …