Science

Just being near blue spaces (the sea, rivers and lakes) can make us feel more relaxed because water triggers our parasympathetic nervous system, helping our body rest and digest. This calming effect, which slows our heart rate and lowers blood pressure, explains why so many people find joy and solace in water-related activities. But enjoying

A rock on Mars is speckled with signs that it may have hosted life-supporting chemistry billions of years ago. Found on the edge of an ancient river valley by the Perseverance rover and named Chevaya Falls, the veiny sedimentary material contains organic compounds and leopard-like spots that indicate chemical reactions chemosynthetic microbes could have once

Our CO2 emissions are warming the planet and making life uncomfortable and even unbearable in some regions. In July, the planet set consecutive records for the hottest day. NASA is mapping our emissions, and while what they show us isn’t uplifting, it is visually appealing in a ghoulish way. Maybe the combination of visual appeal

SAN FRANCISCO – Morpheus Space is ramping up electric propulsion production in its new Dresden, Germany, factory. In the 1,260-square-meter factory, Morpheus will initially produce 100 GO-2 Field Emission Electric Propulsion-based propulsion systems per year. With additional personnel and equipment, Morpheus could produce 500 GO-2 units annually. Morpheus executives decided to expand production after hearing

Childhood habits can be hard to break. The results of a new survey suggest the way you tune your thermostat today may be a remnant of your upbringing. A recent paper cheekily titled “Turn down for watt” suggests the average American doesn’t turn down their thermostat for much, in spite of heating and cooling comprising

NASA has been using X-rays to crack the invisible secrets of the universe for decades. The Einstein Observatory pioneered X-ray astronomy in the late ’70s, but the crown jewel of this science field is the Chandra X-ray Observatory, which has been in space for the last 25 years. Here are some of Chandra’s most stunning

Brazilian sharpnose sharks swimming in South America’s coastal waters have been found to have significant levels of cocaine and its metabolites in their system, according to a team of researchers in Brazil. Unlike Hollywood’s depictions of coked-up predators on drug-fueled rampages, the effects of the illicit stimulant on key species in the marine food chain

TAMPA, Fla. — Astranis has raised $200 million to fully fund its Omega program up to the launch of the first next-generation broadband spacecraft in 2026, the geostationary satellite maker announced July 24. The venture has raised $750 million since it was founded in 2015 to provide more cost-effective satellites that, around the size of

The research into how male and female brains may be different has been extensive, but not altogether conclusive. Now a new study identifies some notable variations between the brains of the sexes, as well as separate variations based on a person’s gender. A team of researchers from the US and Singapore analyzed brain activity via

If you peer out into the space sharing Earth’s general orbital vicinity around the Sun, you’ll find a lot of rocks. We have counted, to date, more than 35,000 near-Earth objects: asteroids and comets that can sometimes enter our corner of the Solar System before swooping away again. It’s thought that there might be many

A cattle painkiller introduced in the 1990s led to the unexpected crash of India’s vulture populations, which still haven’t recovered to their former glory. Some might have said ‘good riddance’ to this much-maligned, death-associated bird, but there’s a devastating human cost, and a new study reveals the shocking numbers, linking their absence to the deaths

The world as we know it increasingly relies on digital connectivity that, for the most part, works quietly and invisibly in the background. So how did a single software update bring down half the internet? The global IT outage on 19 July serves as a stark reminder of our vulnerability to technological failures. Triggered by

WASHINGTON — The Department of Defense released its 2024 Arctic Strategy, addressing the increasing geopolitical and environmental challenges in the Arctic region.  The strategy, which directs the U.S. military to “build readiness for operations at high latitudes,” emphasizes the increasing reliance on satellites for critical activities in the Arctic. As climate change reshapes the region’s

While millions of Americans vacation on beaches every year to seek out sun, sand and the sea, many might not realize how dangerous digging holes in the sand can be. In February 2024, a 7-year-old girl died after an approximately 5-foot (1.5-meter) hole she and her brother dug in the sand collapsed in on her,

It seems that we’re finally locating at least some of the Universe’s ‘missing’ black holes. A cluster of stars called IRS 13 near the center of the galaxy seems to harbor a black hole in its midst. Moreover, the way these stars swarm and orbit suggest that the black hole is a rarity – one

Humans are ‘mutilating’ the tree of life, lopping off whole branches, one by one, at a rapid pace of pruning Earth has never experienced before. But not all hope is lost. To save a diversity of plants and animals from the current mass extinction, the United Nations introduced a historic ‘peace pact with nature‘ at

BUSAN, South Korea — South Korea’s new space agency, less than two months old, is laying out ambitious goals in spaceflight as part of its efforts to serve as a “control tower” for the county’s growing space presence. The Committee on Space Research (COSPAR) 45th Scientific Assembly held here served as one of the first

Earth’s population will peak in the mid-2080s at around 10.3 billion people, then drop slightly to a level much lower than anticipated a decade ago, the United Nations said. The current population of 8.2 billion people will rise to that maximum over the next 60 years, then dip to 10.2 billion by the end of

What is the true definition of a planet, and could there be a more refined definition in the future? This is what a recent study published in The Planetary Science Journal hopes to address as a team of researchers from the United States and Canada investigated the potential for a new definition of a “planet”.

Supplies of dissolved oxygen in bodies of water across the globe are dwindling rapidly, and scientists say it’s one of the greatest risks to Earth’s life support system. Just as atmospheric oxygen is vital for animals like ourselves, dissolved oxygen (DO) in water is essential for healthy aquatic ecosystems, whether freshwater or marine. With billions

BUSAN, South Korea — The European Space Agency will allow a proposed mission to the asteroid Apophis to proceed to a next stage of development to keep it on schedule even though it is not yet fully funded. ESA announced July 16 that its space safety program, which includes planetary defense, has given the Ramses

Why did the experience of consciousness evolve from our underlying brain physiology? Despite being a vibrant area of neuroscience, current research on consciousness is characterised by disagreement and controversy – with several rival theories in contention. A recent scoping review of over 1,000 articles identified over 20 different theoretical accounts. Philosophers like David Chalmers argue

A rock on Mars has just spilled a surprising yellow treasure after Curiosity accidentally cracked through its unremarkable exterior. When the rover rolled its 899-kilogram (1,982-pound) body over the rock, the rock broke open, revealing yellow crystals of elemental sulfur: brimstone. Although sulfates are fairly common on Mars, this is the first time sulfur has

As extreme storms, floods, fires, droughts, cold snaps, and heat waves hit us harder and more often than ever, more than half of our planet is predicted to shift into new climate zones by the end of the century. A new interactive map, The Future Urban Climates, allows you to explore how your home’s climate

BUSAN, South Korea — SpaceX will develop a souped-up version of its Dragon spacecraft for NASA to handle the deorbiting of the International Space Station around the end of the decade. At a July 17 briefing, NASA and SpaceX officials provided new details about the United States Deorbit Vehicle (USDV) spacecraft NASA selected SpaceX to

Uncontrollable yet predictable, obvious yet inexplicable, blushing can be agony when we’re made to feel mortified, ashamed, or simply self-conscious. A new study suggests that a key trigger of blushing is more about that heightened sense of self-awareness, of feeling seen or exposed, rather than some cognitive computation of what other people think of us.

New York has been the backdrop to countless “end of the world” storylines in film and TV. But on Tuesday an actual meteor shot over the city’s iconic Statue of Liberty before disintegrating high above Manhattan, NASA’s Meteor Watch said in a post on Facebook. Residents flooded the internet with reports of a fireball in

Five eagerly anticipated events in the Paris Olympics will be the mens and womens 10 kilometre marathon swimming races, as well as the 1,500 metre swimming section of three triathlon events. Why? Because all will be held in the Seine River in the centre of Paris. The swimmers – including four Australians – will pass

On the face of it, competitive distance running appears not to have changed much since the Olympic Games were revived in 1896. However, even the relative simplicity of racing from gun to tape has radically altered in recent years due to the rise of advanced running footwear known colloquially as “supershoes”. A few years ago,