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AI tools including Perplexity and Open AI’s GPT-4 often provide one-sided answers to contentious questions, and don’t back up their arguments with reliable sources

Time crystals, a state of matter once thought physically impossible, could soon be on a banknote

Trapping ultracold atoms with laser light let researchers magnify and then image the wave functions of atoms that were previously too close together to look like anything but a blob

Trapping ultracold atoms with laser light let researchers magnify and then image the wave functions of atoms that were previously too close together to look like anything but a blob

Scientists created the most accurate three-dimensional map of star-formation regions in our Milky Way galaxy, based on data from the European Space Agency’s Gaia space telescope. This map will teach us more about these obscure cloudy areas, and the hot young stars that shape them.  

A recent discovery solves a decades old mystery about the chemistry of Jupiter and Saturn's atmosphere. Using powerful telescopes, a team of researchers detected a molecule in the atmosphere of an ancient brown dwarf offering new ideas into how clouds form on gas giant planets.

Science is a story of coming up with theories then doing our best to disprove them. That is especially true for theories on a grand, cosmological scale, though disproving them can be particularly hard. One of the most famous examples of a hard to disprove theory is that of dark energy and dark matter. In large parts of space we see unequivocal evidence that something is messing with general relativity. But down at the scale of our own solar system, there’s no evidence of it whatsoever, at least as far as we can see. A new paper from Slava Turyshev, a physicist at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, discusses a way scientists might be able to deal with this discrepancy - by being very, very selective with the way we test for evidence of dark matter and energy in our solar system.

Is it possible that Mars could have once been warm enough to support life? New research suggests that volcanic emissions billions of years ago may have created a greenhouse effect that made the red planet surprisingly hospitable, challenging our understanding of early Martian climate. The key lies in unusual sulphur compounds that ancient Martian volcanoes released into the atmosphere.

The earliest images of 3I/ATLAS, newly uncovered by Michigan State University, reveal how the interstellar object evolved as it traveled through our solar system—and how other distant solar systems might be different from our own.

What are the constants of nature? What do they do? What do they tell us…and what do they not tell us?

Lasers aren’t just useful for entertaining cats or pointing out features of powerpoint slides. They can also drill holes on icy extraterrestrial bodies from comets to Mars polar caps. At least according to a new paper in Acta Astronautica by researchers at the Technical University of Dresden, who describe a new laser drill for use on icy surfaces throughout our solar system.

Seeking refuge in caves is natural. Animals do it, and so did our ancestors. Future lunar astronauts may do the same when they visit the Moon. Lunar caves can provide protection from the harsh radiation that bathes the Moon, the wild temperature swings on its surface, and from meteorites that can damage spacesuits and equipment. But these caves need to be explored first, and new research outlines how a team of three diverse robots working together could do the job.

Inflammation is a vital part of the immune response, but it seems that the system can sometimes go awry, resulting in chronic inflammation that has been linked to conditions such as cancer

Inflammation is a vital part of the immune response, but it seems that the system can sometimes go awry, resulting in chronic inflammation that has been linked to conditions such as cancer

A surge of asteroids might have peppered the inner solar system some 800 million years ago, in a short-lived shower that left its mark — literally — on Earth and its neighbors.

The post Did Asteroids Once Rain Down on Earth? appeared first on Sky & Telescope.

A more circular economy in textiles is a good look for the planet

Tiny fossils hint at when birds began making their mind-blowing journey to the Arctic to breed

More than 13.8 million Americans could have Alzheimer’s by 2060, and at the rate care facilities are closing, many of them will have nowhere to go. Regina Shih of the State Alzheimer’s Research Support Center (StARS) wants to help solve that problem

While our understanding of Alzheimer’s disease is far from complete, the latest therapies, and others in more than 100 clinical trials, offer new hope

Inertial confinement reactors, stellarators and tokamaks each have pros and cons