These earthly godfathers of Heaven's lights, that give a name to every fixed star, have no more profit of their shining nights than those that walk and know not what they are.

— William Shakespeare

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Updated: 4 hours 13 min ago

China’s Tianwen-3 Mission Could Beat the U.S. in the Race to Grab Mars Rocks

Wed, 07/02/2025 - 8:00am

Launching in 2028, China’s Tianwen-3 Mars sample return mission could bring Red Planet rocks back to Earth as early as 2031—years ahead of competing U.S.-European efforts

Categories: Astronomy

For Dolphins, Echolocation May Be More Like ‘Touching’ Than ‘Seeing’

Wed, 07/02/2025 - 6:45am

Dolphins seem to “feel” their way across the sea with narrow, sweeping beams of sonar

Categories: Astronomy

Could AI Make Drone Shows Less Technically Challenging?

Wed, 07/02/2025 - 6:00am

AI can allow engineers to focus on artistry over technical details for drone shows

Categories: Astronomy

4 Nonfiction Books Scientific American Recommended In June

Tue, 07/01/2025 - 5:00pm

Here's a collection of exclusive book recommendations, from slithering snakes to a river's impact, for your summer reading lists, curated by Scientific American

Categories: Astronomy

U.S. National Climate Assessments Website Goes Dark

Tue, 07/01/2025 - 12:00pm

Links to the U.S.’s most comprehensive climate reports—the National Climate Assessments—disappeared from the Internet on Monday, along with the official government website that houses them

Categories: Astronomy

Could China’s New Ozempic-like Drugs Beat Out Current Weight-Loss Medications?

Tue, 07/01/2025 - 9:30am

GLP-1 drugs currently being tested in China target complications associated with obesity such as heart disease, fatty liver disease and type 2 diabetes

Categories: Astronomy

Russia’s Space Program Is Another Casualty of the War in Ukraine

Tue, 07/01/2025 - 9:00am

To achieve its ambitious plans for missions to the moon and beyond, Russia needs other spacefaring nations as partners. But the war in Ukraine is making that help increasingly hard to find

Categories: Astronomy

See Earth’s Forests as Never Before in Biomass Satellite’s First Images

Tue, 07/01/2025 - 8:00am

New images from the European Space Agency’s Biomass mission show how the satellite uses advanced radar to map flows of carbon through our planet’s most precious and remote ecosystems

Categories: Astronomy

Rubin Observatory Data Flood Will Let the Universe Alert Astronomers 10 Million Times a Night

Tue, 07/01/2025 - 7:00am

Astronomers have never had this much data available this quickly before

Categories: Astronomy

Summer Learning Loss Happens, but Kids Quickly Recover

Mon, 06/30/2025 - 3:30pm

During the summer, kids can forget some of what they learned during the school year. They recover quickly, but here are some tips to stem the slide

Categories: Astronomy

World’s Oldest Rocks Confirmed in Canada

Mon, 06/30/2025 - 1:00pm

In 2008 scientists reported that rocks in Canada were the world’s oldest. New data appear to confirm this contested claim

Categories: Astronomy

Cells Can ‘Hear’ Sounds—And Respond Genetically

Mon, 06/30/2025 - 6:45am

Audible sound can affect gene activity in mouse cells, boosting the attachment of muscle precursors to surrounding tissue and decreasing fat accumulation

Categories: Astronomy

Why Did the Company behind the Dakota Access Pipeline Sue Greenpeace?

Mon, 06/30/2025 - 6:00am

Energy Transfer, the company behind the Dakota Access Pipeline, sued the nonprofit Greenpeace over alleged conspiracy—the host of Drilled explains why

Categories: Astronomy

Weather Forecasters Lose Crucial Hurricane Detection Microwave Satellite Data

Fri, 06/27/2025 - 5:00pm

Microwave satellite data are key to capturing major changes in a hurricane’s strength, such as when a storm undergoes rapid intensification. But a main source of those data is being abruptly shut off

Categories: Astronomy

Solar-Powered Slug Steals Chloroplasts and Stores Them for Emergency Food

Fri, 06/27/2025 - 12:00pm

A certain species of sea slug steals chloroplasts from algae and houses its contraband in special organelles that it can raid for food in times of need

Categories: Astronomy

Meditation’s Benefits Stretch Beyond the Person Who Meditates

Fri, 06/27/2025 - 9:00am

Often framed as a boon for personal wellness, meditation helps us connect with and support others, too

Categories: Astronomy

New Proof Dramatically Compresses Space Needed for Computation

Fri, 06/27/2025 - 7:00am

Surprising new work bucks 50 years of assumptions about the trade-offs between computation space and time

Categories: Astronomy

Could the Solar System Lose a Planet to a Passing Star?

Fri, 06/27/2025 - 6:45am

Close stellar encounters could change the structure of our planetary system, potentially dooming Earth or other worlds to oblivion

Categories: Astronomy

Creating Bird Flu Vaccines for Humans at a Biosecure Laboratory

Fri, 06/27/2025 - 6:00am

This San Antonio, Tex., lab takes biosecurity seriously. Suit up with its scientists and go behind the scenes of the science of vaccine creation.

Categories: Astronomy

Does Using ChatGPT Really Change Your Brain Activity?

Thu, 06/26/2025 - 4:45pm

Scientists warn against reading too much into a small experiment about ChatGPT and brain activity that is receiving a lot of buzz

Categories: Astronomy