New Scientist Space - Space Headlines

Recent fossil finds suggest that big brains weren't an evolutionary asset to our ancestors but evolved by accident – and are likely to shrink again in the near future

Tests on lab-grown “mini-brains” show a one-off gene therapy treatment can prevent the formation of the tau tangles associated with several neurodegenerative conditions

Europe is set to regain its capacity to launch satellites into space when the Ariane 6 rocket finally flies after years of delays

Cars carrying sensors and scanners have been touring UK cities collecting data to help property owners plan carbon-cutting retrofit projects

The technologies introduced by the Romans after they conquered Britain led to the kind of economic growth seen in the industrial age

An AI driver achieved faster lap times than the best humans in the video game Gran Turismo 7, and unlike previous versions, it only used information available to players

Generations of scientists have compared the universe to a giant, complex game, raising questions about who is doing the playing – and what it would mean to win

A type of ice that has only ever been seen in the lab has now been found in space by the James Webb Space Telescope, and understanding it could tell us more about the chemistry that led to life on Earth

Tade Thompson, author of sci-fi novel Rosewater, the latest pick for the New Scientist Book Club, on subverting the expectations of invasion narratives and writing about people not tech

In this tantalising extract from Tade Thompson’s novel Rosewater, we meet Kaaro and learn about the psychic powers he has had since an alien invasion

Crushed chicken egg shells have been turned into a structure that supports bone growth in the laboratory

A start-up in Albania co-founded by a mining industry mogul is farming plants to harvest carbon-neutral nickel from the soil while simultaneously removing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere

So-called “cool roofs” would bring down the average air temperature in cities like London during a heatwave more than green roofs, trees or solar panels do

A snorkelling tourist in East Timor has filmed a pygmy blue whale calf drinking its mother’s milk for the first time

A simple experiment and mathematical model suggest that when you snack on pistachios, you may need a surprisingly large bowl to accommodate the discarded shells

A quantum phenomenon that muddles the rules of cause and effect could make quantum computers better at performing certain operations

A grass-green snake from Vietnam with yellow eyes, blue lips and a brick-red tail has been identified as a distinct species

Giving AI systems the ability to focus on particular brain regions can make them much better at reconstructing images of what a monkey is looking at from brain recordings

Whether you are sharing a cake or a coastline, maths can help make sure everyone is happy with their cut, says Katie Steckles

From a quantum-bubble reality show from Peng Shepherd to a murderous valet bot from Adrian Tchaikovsky, enjoy this year's best science fiction so far if you're heading off on your travels, says Emily H. Wilson