Oceans near record heat again as El Niño conditions begin to build
The European Union's climate monitor said Friday that ocean temperatures are edging toward record highs as conditions shift toward a potentially powerful El Niño weather pattern.
The European Union's climate monitor said Friday that ocean temperatures are edging toward record highs as conditions shift toward a potentially powerful El Niño weather pattern.
Scientists may have uncovered a surprising secret behind why life exists at all. A new study suggests that the Universe’s fundamental constants — the deep physical rules that govern everything from atoms to stars — appear to sit within an incredibly narrow “sweet spot” that
A mysterious comet from beyond our solar system is giving astronomers a rare glimpse into alien worlds — and it may have formed in a place far colder and stranger than anything around our Sun. The interstellar visitor, called 3I/ATLAS, contains an astonishingly high amount of
The Universe’s biggest black holes may not be born giants after all. Scientists analyzing gravitational-wave signals from dozens of black hole collisions found evidence that the heaviest black holes are likely “cosmic recyclers” — formed through repeated smashups inside
The unmistakable narrator of nature documentaries turns 100 today The post A Century of David Attenborough appeared first on Nautilus .
Beneath the beauty of coral reefs lies a hidden universe of microbes unlike anything scientists expected. Each coral species supports its own specialized microbial partners, many of which have never been studied before. These microbes produce a stunning variety of chemical
Many cancer patients turn to biotin supplements hoping to restore hair lost during treatment, but experts warn the popular vitamin may do more harm than good. While biotin is often marketed for stronger hair and nails, there’s little evidence it actually helps cancer-related
Researchers are transforming access to some of the world's oldest written records using digital technology and multilingual tools. As part of the project, called Access to Cuneiform Texts (CDLI‑ACT), researchers have developed an Arabic digital interface to allow access to
A little-known tree from Brazil’s Atlantic Forest may hold a surprising weapon against COVID-19. Researchers discovered that compounds called galloylquinic acids, extracted from its leaves, can attack SARS-CoV-2 on multiple fronts—blocking the virus from entering cells,
The question sounds simple. The answer, once you examine the actual measurement science behind it, is more interesting than either "yes" or "no."
A new computational method could dramatically accelerate efforts to map the body's cells in space, according to a study published in Nature Genetics. Spatial multi-omics technologies—often described as ultra-high-resolution maps of tissues—allow scientists to see not only which
Satellite images, weather maps and other data are collected in enormous quantities—but much of this remains unused. The reason is simple: the data is fragmented, difficult to interpret, and stored in different formats. Dr. Arka Ghosh has developed a system capable of
Garlic is not a substance that most people consider an aphrodisiac. It turns out that mosquitoes agree. In fact, a new Yale study finds that garlic also functions as a de facto birth control for mosquitoes and other winged insects, an insight that could lead to eco-friendly
For decades, the common explanation for why children struggle to read has stayed remarkably consistent. Smart kids read well. Kids who don't simply aren't smart enough. And when children strain over a page, the assumption has often been that something about how they see the
Forming social connections online and via social media reduces how much people engage with and learn from the content posted but significantly boosts their networking performance, according to new research. The study, published in Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, led
University of Birmingham researchers have demonstrated a new method to break down toxic pollutants in wastewater, using sunlight and molecular-thin catalysts created using an innovative "mechanical" approach. Non-degradable dyes originating from industries such as textiles,
Eating eggs might do more than just start your day—it could help protect your brain. Researchers found that people 65 and older who eat eggs regularly have a significantly lower risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease, with daily or near-daily consumption linked to up to a 27%
Researchers at Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI) have developed a solid polymer coated with harmless viruses to detect the bacteria Salmonella enterica (S. enterica), an advance that could lead to new ways of finding contamination in the food supply. The work is published
When most people think about biodiversity in lakes and rivers, they imagine fish, plants, or perhaps birds and amphibians. But beneath the surface exists another world that often goes unnoticed: microscopic parasites that quietly shape aquatic ecosystems in ways scientists are
With over 60,000 ships passing through the Strait of Gibraltar each year, this stretch between the Atlantic and Mediterranean is one of the busiest waterways on the planet. This narrow strip of water is also home to a critically endangered population of long-finned pilot whales
Critically endangered pilot whales struggle to communicate over the din of boats The post These Whales Are Screaming in the Strait of Gibraltar appeared first on Nautilus .
Astronomers using the James Webb Space Telescope have spotted something that shouldn’t exist—at least not so early in the universe. A massive galaxy, formed less than 2 billion years after the Big Bang, appears to have no rotation at all, a trait usually seen only in much
You probably know that Einstein changed the face of physics with his theory of relativity in his twenties. What you may not know is that he spent his later career on a crusade against quantum mechanics, the model that would go on to drive the next century of advances in the
A study led by researchers at the University of Liège reveals the mechanism by which surfactin, a molecule produced by beneficial soil bacteria, activates plants' immune defenses. This mechanism, distinct from the classical paradigm of immune recognition, relies on direct
A research team led by the University of Michigan College of Pharmacy and the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center has developed a new type of nanoparticle therapy that could make cancer immunotherapy safer and more effective. The researchers say they've created a
Researchers at the University of São Paulo (USP) in Brazil have discovered that high-frequency ultrasound waves similar to those used in medical exams can eliminate viruses such as SARS-CoV-2 and H1N1 without damaging human cells. In an article published in Scientific Reports,
An international research team led by the IPK Leibniz Institute has succeeded in generating haploids in the model plant Arabidopsis thaliana very efficiently. This process involves degrading a specific protein in the centromere. The study's findings, published in the journal
Millet has been an important crop in East Asia for much of the Holocene, a period beginning about 11,700 years ago. To better understand how environmental conditions may have shaped the development of millet agriculture, researchers from the Institute of Earth Environment of
There may be an ultraheavy explanation for the mystery surrounding the origins of the highest-energy particles ever observed. Ultrahigh-energy cosmic rays are particles from space that strike Earth with energies far beyond those reachable by human-made particle accelerators.
The rotor blades that will carry NASA's next-generation helicopters to new Martian heights broke the sound barrier during March tests at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California. Data from the tests, which took place in a special chamber that can simulate
This isn’t the first drill problem that’s plagued the rover The post Watch NASA’s Curiosity Rover Unstick Itself From a Rock appeared first on Nautilus .
A bizarre planetary pairing 190 light-years away is challenging everything astronomers thought they knew about how worlds form. A “lonely” hot Jupiter — typically found without nearby companions — is sharing its system with a smaller mini-Neptune tucked even closer to the star,
A new study warns that unless atmospheric carbon is reduced immediately, future summers will become even hotter and future wildfires even more destructive. A research team led by Professor Seung-Ki Min of the Department of Environmental Engineering at POSTECH (Pohang University
The intrinsic information-seeking impulse we call curiosity is independent of extrinsic rewards, such as food or mating opportunities. Curiosity is purely the pursuit of understanding the unknown, driving both humans and animals to explore their environments. Still, certain
On April 29, the U.S. Supreme Court struck down Louisiana's voting map on the basis that the state had illegally used race as a consideration when it created a new majority-Black district. Observers say the ruling could have major implications across the country for how future
Ph.D. student Hanne Kloster at the University of Agder (UiA) is behind the first Norwegian study to look at three tick-borne diseases in dogs simultaneously, covering the whole country. The paper is published in the journal Acta Veterinaria Scandinavica.
In a process analogous to how solids melt into liquids, the electrons in many different metals form crystal-like patterns that can deform and melt, opening new pathways for neuromorphic computing and superconductors, University of Michigan Engineering researchers have found.
The University of Hong Kong (HKU) has spearheaded an international research collaboration to develop a pioneering theoretical framework that deciphers the predictability of complex networks. A research team including Professor Qingpeng Zhang's group at the HKU Musketeers
They’re flying on a wing and a prayer The post Most Bird Wings Aren’t Optimized for Flight appeared first on Nautilus .
The Centers for Research in Emerging Infectious Diseases were designed to study viruses that could jump from animals to people, including hantavirus, but in 2025 the National Institutes of Health said the work wouldn’t continue
Readers don't need false information to get the wrong idea. In the online attention economy, UC San Diego research finds that making science more clickable or shareable can help some readers learn more—but leaves many others with an incomplete understanding. The study is
A research team has developed a quantitative policy evaluation framework for assessing how cities can attract startups while maintaining high living standards. In this study, the team evaluated the startup ecosystem in an air-front smart city using a model that integrates
Why do organizations often return to old patterns even after leaders invest in culture change, training, and transformation programs? A conceptual analysis published in Frontiers in Psychology by researchers at Tokyo-based DroR Corporation introduces Clinical Organizational
Neanderthals may not only have feasted on rhinoceroses, they may also have used their exceptionally hard teeth as specialized tools for a range of tasks, such as retouching the edges of stone tools.
Genetic material from these improbable creatures helps pinpoint exploitation hot spots The post Mapping the Illegal Wildlife Trade Using Pangolin DNA appeared first on Nautilus .
A nanocrystal is an extraordinarily tiny piece of material—composed of anywhere from a few to a few thousand atoms—in which atoms are arranged in a precise, ordered structure. Think of it like taking a piece of gold and shrinking it down to the size of a few hundred atoms. It's
Every dollar spent on forest fuel treatments saves about $3.75 in wildfire damages, according to a new study, led by researchers at the University of California, Davis, of nearly 300 fires in the western United States. The study estimated that the treatments, such as forest
A devastating earthquake in Myanmar is giving scientists new insight into how major quakes start, spread, and grow. The findings could improve risk estimates for dangerous faults around the world. A new study, published in the journal Science and led by researchers at the USC
Small samples of DNA can reveal hotspots and trade routes in the illegal wildlife trade, according to a study published in the open-access journal PLOS Biology by Sean Heighton and Philippe Gaubert of the University of Toulouse and the Institut de Recherche pour le
No matter how fast a species under threat can move, escape can only be successful if the new destination can meet its needs. An ecological modeling study from the University of California, Davis, found that 7% to 16% of global plant species studied are expected to lose more