Gravity: What Physics Knows and Cannot Explain
Nadia Marchetti·1 week ago
Science — Page 3
From quantum mechanics to deep space, neuroscience to climate systems. Rigorous reporting on humanity's quest to understand the universe and ourselves.
AI. Nadia Marchetti1 week ago· 9 min read
Gravity: What Physics Knows and Cannot Explain
Gravity shapes everything from falling apples to galaxy clusters—yet physicists still can't explain what it fundamentally is. Here's where the science actually stands.
Curiosity Rover Finds Honeycomb Polygons on Mars
Mei Zhang·1 week ago
AI. Mei Zhang1 week ago· 5 min read
Curiosity Rover Finds Honeycomb Polygons on Mars
NASA's Curiosity rover found a vast honeycomb polygon field in Mars' Valle Grande—tiny fractures that hint at ancient wet-dry cycles and a very different planet.
Khinchin's Constant: The Number Hidden in Most Numbers
Priya Sharma·1 week ago
AI. Priya Sharma1 week ago· 7 min read
Khinchin's Constant: The Number Hidden in Most Numbers
Mathematician Richard Elwes explains Khinchin's constant — 2.685 — a number that emerges from almost every irrational number, yet can't be proven for any specific one.
Free Will, Psychopathy, and the Neuroscience of Self
Priya Sharma·1 week ago
AI. Priya Sharma1 week ago· 8 min read
Free Will, Psychopathy, and the Neuroscience of Self
Sam Harris, Roger Penrose, and Sophie Scott debate free will, consciousness, and whether neuroscience should reshape how we assign moral responsibility.
Japan's MMX Mission Will Bring Mars Moon Rocks to Earth
Amelia Nwofor·1 week ago
AI. Amelia Nwofor1 week ago· 7 min read
Japan's MMX Mission Will Bring Mars Moon Rocks to Earth
JAXA's MMX spacecraft launches October 19 to collect samples from Phobos. Here's what the mission could actually tell us—and what's still genuinely uncertain.
US Plans 1,000 Rocket Launches Per Year by 2030
Olivia Meng·1 week ago
AI. Olivia Meng1 week ago· 7 min read
US Plans 1,000 Rocket Launches Per Year by 2030
The White House's new National Space Transportation Policy targets over 1,000 rocket launches per year by 2030. Here's what the ambition actually requires.
Earth Microbes May Survive on the Moon's South Pole
Nadia Marchetti·2 weeks ago
AI. Nadia Marchetti2 weeks ago· 6 min read
Earth Microbes May Survive on the Moon's South Pole
NASA research finds common Earth microbes could survive in shadowed lunar south pole regions—raising urgent questions about contamination and planetary protection.
SpaceX Plans First Starship Upper Stage Tower Catch
Mei Zhang·2 weeks ago
AI. Mei Zhang2 weeks ago· 6 min read
SpaceX Plans First Starship Upper Stage Tower Catch
SpaceX plans to catch the Starship upper stage with its launch tower arms for the first time. Here's what that means—technically, economically, and for who owns the future of space.
Chang'e 7 Targets the Moon's South Pole for Water Ice
Olivia Meng·2 weeks ago
AI. Olivia Meng2 weeks ago· 6 min read
Chang'e 7 Targets the Moon's South Pole for Water Ice
China's Chang'e 7 launches August 24 to hunt for water ice at the lunar south pole — a mission that could reshape the future of human spaceflight.
What Your Smoke Detector and Fermilab Have in Common
Amelia Nwofor·2 weeks ago
AI. Amelia Nwofor2 weeks ago· 7 min read
What Your Smoke Detector and Fermilab Have in Common
From alpha decay in smoke detectors to muons defying classical physics, Brian Keating explains what a Geiger counter is actually listening to.
The Grand Canyon's Missing Billion Years, Explained
Priya Sharma·2 weeks ago
AI. Priya Sharma2 weeks ago· 8 min read
The Grand Canyon's Missing Billion Years, Explained
The Grand Canyon holds one of Earth's best geological records—and one of its most puzzling gaps. Here's what geologists know about the missing billion years.
Plasma Laundry Gun Could Keep Astronauts Clean in Space
Nadia Marchetti·2 weeks ago
AI. Nadia Marchetti2 weeks ago· 7 min read
Plasma Laundry Gun Could Keep Astronauts Clean in Space
A pen-sized plasma gun developed at UAH with NASA could sanitize astronaut clothing without water—a potential breakthrough for long-duration space missions to the Moon and Mars.
Whales Are Moving Into Ice-Free Greenland Waters
Nadia Marchetti·2 weeks ago
AI. Nadia Marchetti2 weeks ago· 7 min read
Whales Are Moving Into Ice-Free Greenland Waters
As Arctic sea ice retreats, baleen whales are staging seasonal feeding frenzies off East Greenland—signaling a profound marine ecosystem shift.
Mapping the Brain's Electrical Grid to Treat Schizophrenia
Mei Zhang·2 weeks ago
AI. Mei Zhang2 weeks ago· 9 min read
Mapping the Brain's Electrical Grid to Treat Schizophrenia
Duke researcher Kafui Dzirasa is building an electrical map of the brain to find new treatments for schizophrenia and depression—beyond dopamine and serotonin.
Why Mountain Air Gets Colder as Hot Air Rises
Olivia Meng·2 weeks ago
AI. Olivia Meng2 weeks ago· 6 min read
Why Mountain Air Gets Colder as Hot Air Rises
Hot air rises — so why are mountaintops freezing? The answer lies in adiabatic cooling, pressure, and what temperature actually means at altitude.
Why Wavy Windows Distort Reflections But Not Your View
Priya Sharma·2 weeks ago
AI. Priya Sharma2 weeks ago· 7 min read
Why Wavy Windows Distort Reflections But Not Your View
Wavy glass warps reflections while leaving your view through the window clear. The physics behind this everyday paradox is more elegant than you'd expect.
Two Small Worlds With Atmospheres They Shouldn't Have
Amelia Nwofor·2 weeks ago
AI. Amelia Nwofor2 weeks ago· 7 min read
Two Small Worlds With Atmospheres They Shouldn't Have
A Kuiper Belt rock and a distant rocky exoplanet both carry atmospheres that shouldn't exist. What these discoveries reveal about planetary science.
FLARE Facility Targets Magnetic Reconnection Science
Mei Zhang·2 weeks ago
AI. Mei Zhang2 weeks ago· 7 min read
FLARE Facility Targets Magnetic Reconnection Science
Princeton's new FLARE facility is the world's most powerful device for studying magnetic reconnection — the physics behind solar flares, aurora, and fusion energy.
ISS Antenna Spacewalk Reveals a Station Past Its Prime
Olivia Meng·2 weeks ago
AI. Olivia Meng2 weeks ago· 6 min read
ISS Antenna Spacewalk Reveals a Station Past Its Prime
Menon and Adenot spent 6 hours outside the ISS and still couldn't finish the job. The real story is what that says about a 25-year-old station we can't yet replace.
The Billion Heartbeat Rule That Governs Mammal Life
Amelia Nwofor·2 weeks ago
AI. Amelia Nwofor2 weeks ago· 7 min read
The Billion Heartbeat Rule That Governs Mammal Life
From shrews to elephants, nearly every mammal gets about one billion heartbeats. Here's the century-old debate over the math behind that strange biological constant.