Astronomy

Collecting the materials needed for renewable technologies is causing enormous environmental damage and could soon extend to the deep sea and even asteroids. Innovative solutions are poised to turn the crisis around

Directing radio waves at the olfactory system deep within our head seems to boost our ability to detect different smells

Directing radio waves at the olfactory system deep within our head seems to boost our ability to detect different smells

Carbon dioxide levels in the atmosphere have risen an extra 15 parts per million since 1960 due to the declining ability of the land and sea to soak up excess CO2

Carbon dioxide levels in the atmosphere have risen an extra 15 parts per million since 1960 due to the declining ability of the land and sea to soak up excess CO2

The National Science Foundation will stop operating the Nathaniel B. Palmer icebreaker and slash polar science funding by 70 percent, devastating Antarctic research

The Moon's light is refracted by Earth's atmosphere, giving it a spheroid shape in this April 13, 2025, photograph from the International Space Station as it orbited into a sunset 264 miles above the border between Bolivia and Brazil in South America.

A Black Moon rises tomorrow (Aug. 23), though you won't see it. Its timing makes it a rare lunar event.

This quiz is dedicated to the mechanical marvels that have rolled across the surfaces of alien worlds: the iconic space rovers!

You want a piece of this? You won't have to wait long for as this Disney+ animated sequel strikes back on Sept. 19.

A "little red dot" galaxy from when the universe was roughly half a billion years old shows signs of the most distant black hole known.

The post Distant Little Red Dot Hosts a Huge (and Growing) Black Hole appeared first on Sky & Telescope.

Take a flight with us to see Hurricane Erin through the eyes of NOAA satellites and the Air Force's Hurricane Hunters.

NASA's Artemis 2 astronauts are gearing up for their planned 2026 moon launch by photographing an inflatable version of Earth's nearest neighbor.

New research shows how the 'dancing' behaviour of dwarf satellite galaxies can predict mergers between their hosts. A distant pair of galaxies is undergoing the same type of merger that Milky Way/Andromeda will undergo. Can the behaviour of their dwarf satellites tell astronomers what will happen when the MW and Andromeda merge?

A stunning new image of a cosmic jet has helped astronomers unlock the mystery behind the unusually bright emission of high-energy gamma rays and neutrinos from a peculiar celestial object. The source is a blazar—a type of active galaxy powered by a supermassive black hole devouring matter at the heart of a galaxy. They have captured what looks like the mythical "Eye of Sauron" in the distant universe and may have just solved a decade-long cosmic puzzle.

Total reversals in scientific thinking are rare—but earth-shattering

Our anniversary celebration begins with an outstanding collection of stories about times that science itself has made a full about-face

More familiar smells and scents from complex molecules can often be more appealing

Letters to the editors for the April 2025 issue of Scientific American

Other species exhibit capabilities that were once thought to be exclusive to Homo sapiens