As Elton John once sang, “Mars ain’t the kind of place to raise your kids; in fact, it’s cold as hell.” But new research suggests that Martian chill could allow bacteria to survive for up to 280 million years below the planet’s surface. The finding raises hopes that traces of ancient life — or even … Read more
What springs to mind when you picture a fairy tale? Maybe Cinderella sweeping the hearth in tattered rags; Hansel and Gretel trailing bread crumbs through a dark forest; or Snow White, her face deathly pale, lying motionless within a glass coffin. These images are burned into our collective consciousness. But besides sharing similar folklore roots … Read more
Among the countless stars glittering in the vastness of space, some are so old they have experienced the dawn of the universe, and others are so young that not even the most powerful telescopes on Earth have been able to observe them. But is it possible to know which star is the youngest and which … Read more
When lightning flashes above, plants on the ground may respond in kind. Scientists have long been aware that plants and trees can emit small, visible electric discharges from the tips of their leaves when the plants are trapped beneath the electrical fields generated by thunderstorms high overhead. These discharges, known as coronas, are sometimes visible … Read more
Scholars may have just discovered a fragment of the world’s oldest complete star map. The map segment, which was found beneath the text on a sheet of medieval parchment, is thought to be a copy of the long-lost star catalog of the second century B.C. Greek astronomer Hipparchus, who made the earliest known attempt to … Read more
The phrase five states of matter is a term to describe everything that makes up the “stuff” in the universe — anything that takes up space and has mass is matter. But that phrase is actually outdated, as there are many more states of matter than that. Four of these occur naturally, while others are … Read more
Hydrogen and natural gas are among the alternative fuels starting to get more attention as car companies work to reduce emissions. But Audi is exploring another option that you may not have heard much about yet: e-fuels. The German automaker, which aims to develop synthetically engineered e-fuels as a viable alternative to gasoline and diesel, … Read more
Tutankhamun, or King Tut as he is often called today, was an ancient Egyptian pharaoh who was buried in a lavish tomb filled with gold artifacts in the Valley of the Kings near modern-day Luxor. His tomb was discovered in 1922 by an archaeological team led by British Egyptologist Howard Carter. Today he is also … Read more
A potentially hazardous near-Earth asteroid is spinning faster and faster every year, and researchers aren’t sure why. The space rock, known as 3200 Phaethon, is around 3.4 miles (5.4 kilometers) wide, and its orbit through the solar system takes it closer to the sun than any other named asteroid, reaching a minimum distance of around … Read more
Astronomers have spotted a black hole mysteriously spewing up chunks of a devoured star several years after consuming it. The event, which scientists have classified as AT2018hyz, began in 2018 when astronomers saw the black hole ensnare a hapless star in its strong gravitational pull before shredding it to pieces. Then, three years later, in … Read more
