Scientists are raising concerns that we may be overlooking evidence of extraterrestrial life even when it is present。 Hidden biosignatures, limitations in detection technology, and assumptions about what life should look like can all create dangerous false negatives。 The researchers say future missions should focus not only on finding life, but als
Astronomers have uncovered 31 of the oldest known quasars, including the two earliest ever detected, shining from a time when the universe was only about 670 million years old。 Powered by supermassive black holes billions of times the Sun’s mass, these incredibly bright objects challenge scientists’ understanding of how such enormous black holes fo
"You promised me that you would never take power in your name
Engineers at a deep underground research facility noticed something strange during major rainstorms: airflow underground sometimes reversed direction。 Using new sensors and mathematical modeling, they found that water rushing down a shaft was effectively pushing air through the tunnels like a giant piston。 The breakthrough explains a long-standing
NASA’s upgraded Cold Atom Lab is turning the International Space Station into a frontier for quantum research, creating ultra-cold matter that behaves in astonishing ways。 The experiments could unlock new discoveries about the universe while paving the way for powerful future technologies in space and on Earth
An unusual gravitational wave signal has renewed hopes that primordial black holes, long considered purely theoretical, may finally be within reach of discovery。 If confirmed, they could solve one of astronomy's greatest mysteries by explaining the nature of dark matter
Astronomers may have witnessed one of the rarest and most dramatic cosmic events ever seen: a long-sought intermediate-mass black hole ripping apart a dense white dwarf star and devouring it。 The Einstein Probe space telescope caught the explosion in its earliest moments, revealing an unusual sequence of intense X-ray flashes unlike anything seen i
Celebrating the United States' 250th anniversary, NASA released a stunning Hubble portrait of Messier 3, an ancient globular cluster with more than 500,000 stars。 The remarkable cluster is helping scientists unravel the Milky Way's past thanks to its rare stars and possible origins in a long ago cosmic merger
AI cheating leads to "a failed society," professor says
Two newly confirmed "super-puff" planets are so diffuse that they are less dense than cotton candy, despite being about the size of Jupiter。 Their rare orbital relationship and enormous, lightweight atmospheres could provide valuable clues about how some of the strangest planets in the galaxy come to exist
A strange "chirping" signal from a distant supernova has revealed the birth of a magnetar, confirming that these incredibly magnetic neutron stars can power the universe's brightest stellar explosions。 The discovery also marks the first time Einstein's general relativity has been used to explain the mechanics of a supernova
A new quantum device can generate precisely controlled bursts of sound-like particles, or phonons, by forcing electrons through an ultra-thin crystal at extremely low temperatures。 The surprising behavior pushes beyond the limits predicted by current theories, suggesting scientists need to rethink how energy moves through advanced materials。 In the
Physicists have developed a new optical centrifuge that can precisely spin molecules inside a superfluid for the first time。 The advance could help unravel some of the biggest mysteries of quantum liquids and reveal how superfluidity breaks down at the atomic scale