Astronomy

A sand quarry in Ecuador has yielded South America’s first amber with bio-inclusions, including a spider's web and a collection of mosquitoes, beetles, flies, wasps and biting midges that lived 112 million years ago

Mutations can result in viruses that infect cells, but can't copy themselves without help from other viruses - now it seems these cheats may outnumber normal viruses in a third of influenza cases, reducing the severity of infections

Mutations can result in viruses that infect cells, but can't copy themselves without help from other viruses - now it seems these cheats may outnumber normal viruses in a third of influenza cases, reducing the severity of infections

These dogs can extend words to new objects based on function the way children do in early language learning

A new comet approaching from sunward could make a fine dusk appearance in October. There was chatter on the boards this past Friday September 12th, about a comet seen in the Solar Wind Anisotropies (SWAN) images near the Sun. Tentatively named SWAN25B and now formally designated as C/2025 R2 SWAN, this comet could put on a brief show in late September into October if it holds up.

It’s rather strange to think about catching a planet in the act of being born given that the process takes millions of years but for the first time, astronomers have done just that! The evidence reveals a planet actively forming and feeding from its surrounding disk of gas and dust. The discovery of hydrogen emission from the protoplanet offers a new glimpse into the violent stages of planetary formation, revealing processes that shaped our own Solar System billions of years ago.

ISOs like Comet 3I/ATLAS are fascinating yet fleeting visitors from distant solar systems. New research suggests that when captured by a young solar system that's still forming planets, these objects could act as planetary seeds for the formation of planets.

Can a planet that lacks plate tectonics and has very little carbon dioxide support life? Maybe. Can it support life long enough for a technological civilization to arise? New research says no.

According to every experiment, the constants of nature appear to be constant.

A bizarre new type of object could solve one of astronomy's most puzzling mysteries. The James Webb Space Telescope spotted some “little red dots” and until now, it’s been thought they were galaxies. Now, a team of astronomers have come up with an alternative theory, supermassive black holes wrapped up in a thick envelope of gas and they are calling them ‘black hole stars!’

Three vaccines were on the agenda for this week’s meeting of ACIP, the CDC’s key advisory panel on immunization: the combined measles, mumps, rubella and varicella vaccine, the hepatitis B vaccine and COVID vaccines

These hobbyists use GPS coordinates to hunt for secret prizes around the world

Two experiments with different quantum computers showcase their growing ability to simulate materials and quantum matter that have so far proven elusive in the lab

Two experiments with different quantum computers showcase their growing ability to simulate materials and quantum matter that have so far proven elusive in the lab

Rejigging the meal choices on offer in a canteen can prompt people to make healthier, climate-friendlier decisions

Rejigging the meal choices on offer in a canteen can prompt people to make healthier, climate-friendlier decisions

Taking vitamin D2 supplements seems to reduce levels of vitamin D3 in our body

Taking vitamin D2 supplements seems to reduce levels of vitamin D3 in our body

The dark, inner shadow of planet Earth

The first peer-reviewed study of the DeepSeek AI model shows how a Chinese start-up firm made the market-shaking LLM for $300,000