
Earth’s Earliest Rocks Forged by Colliding Tectonic Plates
Our planet’s crust has been shifting and sliding for four billion years, a new study suggests
Stephanie Pappas is a freelance science journalist based in Denver, Colo.
Earth’s Earliest Rocks Forged by Colliding Tectonic Plates
Our planet’s crust has been shifting and sliding for four billion years, a new study suggests
Will It or Won’t It? Iceland’s Volcano Threatens Eruption
An enormous magma intrusion under Iceland’s Reykjanes Peninsula is causing earthquake swarms and forcing evacuations
Wildfires Threaten More Homes and People in the U.S. Than Ever Before
The number of homes located within the perimeters of wildfires has doubled since the 1990s. A surprising ecosystem is responsible for the risk
Euclid Space Telescope Releases Stunning First Science Images
Fresh images show off the Euclid space telescope’s ability to capture crisp pictures of vast swaths of sky
Lost River Landscape Discovered below East Antarctic Ice
A preserved river landscape from the time before Antarctica was icebound persists more than a mile below the East Antarctic Ice Sheet
How Hot Is ‘Pepper X’? Its Creator Spent 6 Hours Recovering from Eating It
“Pepper X” is officially the hottest pepper in the world, weighing in with 2.693 million Scoville heat units. The creator reveals his process and experience tasting the pepper
Traces of Oldest and Largest Solar Storm Found in Buried French Forest
An enormous “Miyake event”—a bombardment of Earth by particles from the sun—hit 14,300 years ago. Such an event today would have devastating effects
Scientists Discover Ghost of Ancient Mega-Plate That Disappeared 20 Million Years Ago
A long-lost tectonic plate dubbed “Pontus” that was a quarter of the size of the Pacific Ocean was discovered by chance by scientists in Borneo
AI Designs Little Robots in 30 Seconds, and They Keep Sprouting Legs
An AI used to build artificial neural networks can also create autonomous robot bodies with remarkable speed
Should You Wake Someone from the Throes of a Nightmare?
Nightmares are unpleasant, but waking someone in the midst of one isn’t the best way to handle them—here’s why
Why Do We Forget So Many of Our Dreams?
We only remember a fraction of our dreams, and even those slip away if we don’t try to remember them—here’s why
Supermassive Black Hole Feeding Frenzies May Explain Blinking Quasars
A new simulation shows black holes ripping apart and consuming their accretion disk in a matter of months, which may explain why some quasars quickly brighten and dim
What Happens if You Drop Antimatter? New Gravitational Test Sees First Fall
In theory, physicists knew that antimatter should behave just like matter under gravity’s pull. But until now, no one had ever seen it happen
Bizarre Quantum Theory Explains Why Your Coffee Takes So Long to Drip through a Narrow Filter
Physicist John Cardy and his colleague just won the 2024 Breakthrough Prize in Fundamental Physics. We spoke with Cardy about conformal field theory, 2D black holes and coffee filters
NASA’s Gorgeous New Moon Image Paints Shackleton Crater in Light and Shadow
A new NASA instrument allows researchers to view the bright and permanently shadowed portions of the moon’s Shackleton Crater at the same time
Mistranslation of Newton’s First Law Discovered after Nearly 300 Years
A new interpretation of Isaac Newton’s writings clarifies what the father of classical mechanics meant in his first law of motion
Online Talk Therapy Works as Well as an In-Person Session, a New Study Shows
A study of 27,500 patients in the U.K.’s health system suggests that getting people into mental health treatment faster is a huge boon of online therapy
The Hot Secret behind a Deep-Sea ‘Octopus Garden’
Thousands of usually solitary octopuses gather to brood eggs in a special spot off California
Can Dogs Use Language?
The “button dogs” of TikTok seem to be learning human words. What’s really going on?
Fountains of Diamonds Erupt as Supercontinents Break Up
Researchers have discovered a pattern where diamonds spew from deep beneath Earth’s surface in huge, explosive volcanic eruptions
‘Quantum Superchemistry’ Observed for the First Time Ever
A new type of chemistry performed at very cold temperatures on very small particles enables quick, precise reactions
Is Climate Change Causing More Record-Breaking Hail?
Enormous hailstones raise the question of whether global warming will intensify hailstorms
Are Naps Good for You?
Here’s the science on whether naps have short- and long-term benefits for your health
Why Do Dogs Tilt Their Head to the Side?
The attentive and endearing doggy head tilt might indicate your pup is trying to process what you’re saying