New Scientist Space - Cosmology
Your body clock has seasonal rhythms and it matters for vaccines
We think of our body clock ticking over on a 24-hour cycle, but evidence is growing that it has seasonal rhythms, which could affect our response to vaccines
Categories: Astronomy
The ‘doomsday’ glacier’s giant ice shelf is about to break away
The floating ice shelf of world’s widest glacier – Thwaites glacier in Antarctica – is detaching, with worrying implications for global sea-level rise
Categories: Astronomy
The hidden pockets of the universe where the future can cause the past
Inside some very special black holes, there may be a boundary called a Cauchy horizon. Columnist Leah Crane explores the place beyond which physics breaks and anything is possible
Categories: Astronomy
Himalayan wolf-dog hybrids emerge as a threat to wolves and people
In Ladakh, Himalayan wolves are increasingly breeding with feral dogs, giving rise to a new animal known as khipshang that could injure humans and outcompete other carnivores
Categories: Astronomy
First test of CO2 removal with green sand finds no harm to marine life
Adding olivine to the ocean could remove CO2 from the atmosphere, and a pilot project in New York state found no signs of adverse effects on seafloor organisms
Categories: Astronomy
SpaceX is about to launch tallest and most powerful rocket in history
A record-breaking new version of Starship, due to launch within days, could form the basis of NASA's ambitious Artemis programme that aims to put humans back on the moon as soon as 2028
Categories: Astronomy
Cleaning up air pollution could weaken vital AMOC ocean current
Global warming already threatens to destabilise the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation, and new research shows that regional clean-air policies could reduce its strength further
Categories: Astronomy
CAR T-cell therapy bolstered by stiffening up cancer cells first
CAR T-cell therapy has been hugely successful in treating certain types of tumours, and stiffening up cancer cells beforehand could make it even more effective
Categories: Astronomy
Where do you think your ‘self’ is? Your answer is revealing
People who imagine their self to reside in their head or their heart have different approaches to life. Columnist David Robson explores the benefits of learning to shift where you sense your self, and how this practice could improve your relationships and decision-making
Categories: Astronomy
Vocal fry is more common in men, actually, find scientists
The creaky noise known as vocal fry that people generally associate with young women – and some find irritating – is actually more common in men
Categories: Astronomy
Will burying dead trees after a wildfire keep their carbon locked up?
Partially burnt trees still standing after a wildfire are typically felled and burned, but a US start-up claims burying them instead will trap the carbon underground for centuries
Categories: Astronomy
3 things you need to know about quantum computers, from an expert
What use is a quantum computer? Perhaps both more and less than you think, according to quantum computing expert Shayan Majidy
Categories: Astronomy
Melting of Greenland ice sheet could release methane 'fire ice'
Seismic surveys and sediment cores suggest that dozens of deep pockmarks on the sea floor were created when Arctic methane stores were disrupted by climate change after the last glacial maximum – and scientists warn it could happen again
Categories: Astronomy
Melting of Greenland ice sheet could release large stores of methane
Seismic surveys and sediment cores suggest that dozens of deep pockmarks on the sea floor were created when Arctic methane stores were disrupted by climate change after the last glacial maximum – and scientists warn it could happen again
Categories: Astronomy
Rebooting stem cells builds aged muscles and assists injury recovery
Muscle stem cells, which are crucial for building new muscle, don’t work as well as we get older, but giving them an artificial boost could rejuvenate them
Categories: Astronomy
Neanderthals treated a dental cavity by drilling into the tooth
A Neanderthal tooth shows clear signs of human intervention to treat bacterial decay, showing that the earliest dentistry began at least 59,000 years ago
Categories: Astronomy
Shocking turtle photo reveals efforts to combat illegal wildlife trade
Winner of an environmental photography award, this shot of a sea turtle seen under ultraviolet light shows how forensic evidence is being used to help catch poachers and animal traffickers
Categories: Astronomy
Arctic fires are releasing carbon stored for thousands of years
A study of soils around the Arctic and boreal forests has found that some wildfires are releasing carbon stored over millennia, meaning higher CO2 emissions than assumed
Categories: Astronomy
Science doesn't have a monopoly on good ideas
Scientific disciplines often shy away from asking fundamental "what if" questions. But philosophy – if unencumbered by dogma or ideology – has much to offer evidence-based enquiry
Categories: Astronomy
New Scientist recommends a smart new account of human exceptionalism
Why did humans decide they weren't like other animals, or animals at all? Has this exceptionalism twisted us out of shape? Michael Bond's book Animate offers a page-turning account of where we are now
Categories: Astronomy

