Chennai, on India’s southern coast along the Bay of Bengal and with a metropolitan population of about 8.7 million, shines with white LED streetlights in this photograph taken at approximately 9:13 p.m. local time on May 2, 2026, from the International Space Station. Earth observations from the space station let us see how our planet […]
The Payload for Ultrahigh Energy Observations (PUEO) is a NASA Astrophysics Pioneers Program mission designed to detect the most energetic particles in the universe.
For Jaclyn Kagey, preparing astronauts to put boots on the Moon is part of her daily work. As the Artemis extravehicular activity lead in NASA’s Flight Operations Directorate, Kagey plays a central role in preparing astronauts to safely explore the lunar surface. During Artemis missions, astronauts will explore the Moon’s South Pole, a region never visited by humans, paving the way for future deep space exploration. Kagey helps define […]
In a precursor to Memorial Day, people in Charleston, South Carolina, honored fallen Civil War troops with flowers, songs, and marches at an event at a racetrack on May 1, 1865.
As NASA pushes the boundaries of exploration and innovation for the benefit of humanity, the agency is looking for partners to share mission stories covering Artemis Moon missions, nuclear propulsion, aeronautics, and more. NASA published an Announcement for Proposals on May 21 asking filmmakers, documentarians, songwriters, storytellers, poets, and others to submit proposals to partner […]
NASA will provide live coverage on Wednesday, May 27, as two Roscosmos cosmonauts conduct a spacewalk outside the International Space Station. The spacewalk is scheduled to begin at approximately 10:15 a.m. EDT and last roughly five hours. Watch NASA’s live coverage beginning at 9:45 a.m. on NASA+, Amazon Prime, and the agency’s YouTube channel. Learn […]
This near-infrared image released on May 6, 2026, shows a section of one of the spiral arms of Messier 51 (M51). M51 is one of four nearby galaxies observed by NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope in a study of nearly 9,000 star clusters. Data from the study shows that more massive star clusters emerge more […]
From high‑speed research flights to high‑altitude science campaigns, NASA depends on aircraft that perform at their best and the ground crews who keep them mission ready. At NASA’s Armstrong Flight Research Center in Edwards, California, specially trained maintenance crews are essential to keeping the agency’s aircraft flying safely and reliably. This year, NASA added two […]
NASA announced plans Friday to compete the next contract for managing and operating the agency’s federally funded research and development center (FFRDC) in Southern California at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), to ensure continued accountability and strong value for U.S. taxpayers. The California Institute of Technology (Caltech) has managed the laboratory since its inception in […]
Ever since a 2018 blaze destroyed priceless artifacts and scientifically important specimens, museum staff have devoted themselves to reopening its doors to the public
In Norway’s highest mountains, experts are scouring perilous terrain for pieces of the past, long stored in mint condition in ice patches. As temperatures rise across the world, glacial archaeologists must find the emerging artifacts before they degrade forever
“Baby brain” isn’t the deficit it’s stereotyped to be, research suggests. Neural adaptations during pregnancy can prime soon-to-be-moms to become more attuned to their children and enhance social cognition
Researchers around the planet grew up watching documentaries hosted by the English broadcaster and naturalist, which sparked their love of the natural world. Now, their discoveries become tributes to his legacy
Survivors have a heightened risk of developing cardiovascular disease, pain, insomnia, psychosocial distress and new cancers. Many, patient advocates say, are not receiving adequate long-term care
Pesticides, habitat loss and climate change have taken their toll on the beloved insects. But the experts working with them still find hope for their future
Scientists speculate that the wild cats are trying to improve hydration or ease their cubs’ transition to solid food. The finding points to resilience in one of the world’s most endangered felines
Intensifying wildfires across the continent are spewing air pollution, putting human health at risk, particularly Americans living with chronic illnesses
As the historic lunar flyby comes to a close, space companies and nations around the world are also shooting for the moon. Upcoming landings aim to change the landscape of space exploration
Gretchen Kay Stuart has chronicled the work of a small team of biologists who are trying to keep a little known and breathtakingly beautiful endangered species from disappearing
A triple threat of pollution, extinction and warming temperatures is altering the way the planet smells. Scientists are only beginning to understand the stakes for humans
A young bottlenose dolphin has taken up residence in the waters of the French beach town of Saint-Jean-de-Luz, delighting locals and tourists while raising concerns about the animal's safety.
An international team of scientists has used artificial intelligence and 35 years of satellite data to uncover the shocking scale of environmental destruction in one of the world's most important ecosystems.
When it comes to technology and innovation, we have a lot to thank Mother Nature for. Learning from the natural world has led to a range of useful products, including Velcro, self-cleaning paint, and ultra-strong body armor. And now, a study published in the journal Nature Communications reports that scientists have developed a way to turn a corn protein into a plastic-like material using a method inspired by spider silk. The breakthrough could one day lead to biodegradable food packaging wraps to help reduce environmental waste.
Carboranes are molecules composed of carbon, boron and hydrogen atoms that are proving to have applications of great interest in chemistry, materials science and biomedicine. They are being used, for example, in the fight against cancer through boron neutron capture therapy (BNCT), an experimental form of radiotherapy against malignant tumors that is highly selective at the cellular level. These compounds, which are highly stable at high temperatures and under radiation, possess unique electronic properties and can interact with various biochemical molecules. However, chemically modifying them to expand their potential properties and applications remains a challenge.
The first small satellite of the CloudCT network has been integrated, tested, and prepared for launch from California in June 2026. This precursor mission will be followed, if successful, by the launch of 10 additional CloudCT satellites in 2027, helping to fill gaps in our understanding of clouds and their role in climate.
Insects are declining across Europe. Czech scientists have determined this decline can be mitigated by returning large ungulates—horses, aurochs cattle, and wisents—to landscapes. This has been shown by a recent study by a group of researchers from the Biology Centre of the Czech Academy of Sciences (BC CAS), who surveyed five insect groups across eleven sites rewilded by large ungulates in Czechia. Their results have just been published in the Journal of Applied Ecology.
Spectroscopy has many applications, ranging from fundamental tests of quantum electrodynamics and investigations of molecular structure to environmental sensing, biomedical diagnostics and industrial monitoring. A highly promising spectroscopic instrument that has the potential to transform the field has emerged over the years: the dual-comb spectrometer, which relies on the interference of two mode-locked ultrafast lasers that produce broad frequency combs composed of evenly spaced narrow spectral lines.
A new study by the University of Turku and partners provides fresh insights into an individual buried near Lake Kitka in Kuusamo, Finland, at the turn of the 17th century. DNA and isotope analyses show that the individual, whose grave has been linked to Sámi cultural heritage, had a genetic connection to present-day Sámi populations and spent part of his life outside Finland.
A new study led by the Universidad Carlos III de Madrid (UC3M) describes the mechano-chemical mechanism by which the acidity of the cellular environment destabilizes microtubules, the "avenues" that organize internal cellular traffic. This finding is key to understanding pathologies such as cancer, diabetes, or certain infectious processes, where extracellular acidosis is a distinctive feature in tissues.
In today's scientific and industrial fields, high-dimensional data in which numerous variables are observed simultaneously, such as genomic, climate, financial, and sensor data, are rapidly increasing. In such data, it is important to learn the dependent structures connecting the variables and to identify a "dependence map" that reveals hidden information in massive data sets.
Approximately 75% of marine organisms are bioluminescent, with specialized light-emitting organs called photophores. They use the light they produce for various purposes, like attracting mates, luring prey, or confusing predators.
The outer regions of the brain, the cortex, have specific layers of different cells—neurons—that are similarly ordered among all mammals, from tiny mouse brains to huge elephant brains. However, the proportions of different cell layers vary widely among species, and little is known about how and why this variation happens.
Garlic, as your grandmother may have told you, repels mosquitoes; it also completely blocks them from mating and laying eggs. Diallyl disulfide, it turns out, deserves the credit.
There are black holes that are too big to be born from the death of a star but aren’t quite supermassive either. There’s finally evidence for where those came from.
Once dismissed as empty expanses between galaxies, cosmic voids are becoming one of the most promising tools for probing the universe’s biggest mysteries.
A fascinating, unclassifiable orb found in the Gulf of Alaska is not an alien object, as some speculated, but the remains of a poorly documented animal.
Recreation.gov was supposed to make access to public lands more equitable and streamlined. Instead, it’s rife with bots and inequality, while a government contractor benefits.
The work of Peter Aaby and Christine Stabell Benn has long been controversial. Until Robert F. Kennedy Jr. became US health policy chief, most vaccine scientists tended to ignore it. Now they can’t.
