Scientists studying a cousin of the bacteria responsible for tuberculosis and leprosy have discovered an enzyme that converts hydrogen into electricity, and they think it could be used to create a new, clean source of energy literally from thin air. The enzyme, which has been named Huc, is used by the bacterium Mycobacterium smegmatis to … Read more
The shredded remnants of the first supernova ever recorded by humans — which appeared in the sky more than 1,800 years ago and vanished within eight months — rise from the cosmic grave in a stunning new image from the National Science Foundation’s NOIRLab. Tinged blood red and swirling around an invisible center of mass, … Read more
The largest animal ever to walk on Earth was likely the dinosaur Argentinosaurus, a hulking 77-ton (70 metric tons) titanosaur that lived about 90 million years ago during the Late Cretaceous. For comparison, the heaviest animal on land today is the African elephant (Loxodonta), which weighs less than 7 tons (6 metric tons). And both … Read more
A sea creature mentioned in 13th-century Old Norse manuscripts, which historians thought was a kraken-like mythological monster, is actually a whale using a hunting strategy known as trap or tread-water feeding, a new study finds. Scientists only described this feeding behavior around a decade ago, after they spotted humpback whales (Megaptera novaeangliae) and Bryde’s whales … Read more
Astronomers have spotted a runaway supermassive black hole, seemingly ejected from its home galaxy and racing through space with a chain of stars trailing in its wake. According to the team’s research, which was published April 6 in The Astrophysical Journal Letters (opens in new tab), the discovery offers the first observational evidence that supermassive … Read more
Everyone knows someone who is afraid of spiders, heights or flying. However, some people develop more unusual phobias, such as a fear of balloons or bananas. A banana may sound harmless to someone without a fear of them, but phobias are serious business. A phobia is more than just being fearful, according to John Hopkins … Read more
The elusive “Planet Nine,” which may or may not lurk in the outer reaches of the solar system, could be surrounded by a small swarm of potential moons, a new study reveals. What’s more, these moons could be the key to finding the missing planet. Planet Nine, if it exists, lurks beyond the orbit of … Read more
Astronomers have discovered an entirely new ring system within the solar system, and it’s located at such a great distance from its dwarf planet parent that it should be impossible. The ring surrounds Quaoar, which is around half the size of Pluto and located beyond Neptune. It is only the third ring to be found … Read more
Ripples in space-time known as gravitational waves could help reveal the secrets at the dawn of time, just moments after the Big Bang, new research suggests. And physicists say they can learn more about these primeval gravitational waves using nuclear fusion reactors here on Earth. In a new study, physicists used equations that govern how … Read more
Archaeologists in Italy are uncovering a 1,600-year-old burial ground containing the remains of infants, children and sacrificed puppies. Some of the burials have unusual features — such as a child buried with a block in their mouth, which suggests that people were afraid that they could become “revenants” — corpses revived after death, archaeologists said. … Read more
