NASA’s Curiosity rover finds a mysterious honeycomb landscape on Mars

NASA’s Curiosity rover has encountered an extraordinary landscape while climbing through a Martian valley nicknamed “Valle Grande.” Images sent back by the rover show the ground covered with honeycomb-like patterns known as polygonal fractures, each measuring about 1.5 to 3 inches (4 to 8 centimeters) across. Curiosity has seen small…

Tiny black holes may be secretly exploding stars across the Milky Way

An international research team has found that primordial black holes may trigger white dwarf stars to explode as Type Ia supernovae. These unusual explosions could also help explain a chemical abundance pattern observed among stars in the Milky Way, according to a recent study published in The Astrophysical Journal. Primordial…

Scientists detect a sharp acceleration in global warming

Global warming has sped up since around 2015, according to a new analysis from the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research (PIK). After removing the effects of natural temperature swings, researchers found the first statistically significant evidence that the planet’s long-term warming rate is accelerating. Over the past decade, global…

Ant brains reveal how evolution turned hunger into parenting

For much of evolutionary history, many animals reproduced and then left their offspring to survive alone. A study published in Nature now offers a possible explanation for how caregiving emerged from those distant, nonparental beginnings. By studying clonal raider ants, researchers found that evolution may not have created entirely new…

Tiny aerosol particles could supercharge tropical storm clouds

Tiny aerosol particles may be able to strengthen tropical convective clouds, but scientists have debated the idea for decades. Aerosols influence the formation and growth of cloud droplets, which can affect condensation and the release of latent heat. One proposed process, called condensational aerosol convective invigoration, depends on clouds developing…

Eating one avocado a day may lower heart disease risk

Eating one avocado each day may modestly reduce heart disease risk in adults with obesity, according to new research led by scientists in the Penn State Department of Nutritional Sciences. The findings were published in the Journal of Clinical Lipidology. The researchers found that daily avocado consumption was linked to…

Scientists may have found a way to prevent statin muscle pain

Millions of people take statins to lower cholesterol and reduce their chances of having a heart attack or stroke. For some patients, however, the medications can cause muscle pain, weakness, and difficulty exercising, making it harder to stay on treatment. Researchers at McMaster University have now identified a biological pathway…

Scientists left water inside a battery and nearly doubled its power

Sodium ion batteries could offer a more sustainable way to store large amounts of energy, and new research suggests they may eventually serve another valuable purpose: helping remove salt from seawater. Scientists at the University of Surrey have found that a sodium-based battery material performs much better when its natural…

Superheated magma may power towering lava fountains

Scientists have identified a heat-driven process inside magma that could help explain why volcanoes with similar characteristics sometimes erupt in very different ways. An international research team led by The University of Manchester analyzed magma from the 2021 Tajogaite eruption on La Palma, Spain. The scientists found that “superheating,” which…

Blood cancer’s genetic warning signs may appear years early

Long-term tracking of chronic blood cancers has revealed major genetic differences between patients whose conditions remain stable and those whose diseases eventually become more severe. The findings suggest that DNA changes may help doctors improve diagnoses, monitor patients more accurately, assess how treatments are working, and identify signs of progression…

Scientists found two mysterious ‘ghost’ ancestors hiding in our DNA

Two previously unknown human relatives left traces of their DNA in people alive today, adding another layer to the genetic legacy already inherited from Neanderthals and Denisovans. The discovery reinforces a growing view of human evolution as a long history of encounters and interbreeding among many related hominin populations. Earlier…