Have we found alien life? Hundreds of scientists weigh in
Two major alien-life announcements in 2025 generated enormous excitement, but most astrobiologists remained unconvinced. Only 6.6% of surveyed experts thought possible biological molecules on K2-18b probably represented extraterrestrial life, while 15.1%…
Interstellar comet 3I/ATLAS is bursting with methanol
Interstellar comet 3I/ATLAS contains exceptionally high levels of methanol, suggesting it formed under conditions very different from those that shaped most comets in our solar system. ALMA also revealed that tiny icy grains around the comet are…
Devil’s Arrows: Ancient builders hauled 55,000-pound stones 11 miles for Britain’s tallest stone row
Britain’s towering Devil’s Arrows were built from 25-tonne stones hauled at least 18 kilometers from Brimham Rocks around 4,000 years ago. The discovery reveals an astonishing feat of prehistoric engineering and suggests the stones’ distant source may…
“Parachute science” is failing the tropics, home to more than 80% of insect species
Insects quietly hold much of the natural world together, yet conservation efforts are overlooking the tropical regions where more than 80 percent of insect species live. Monash University researchers have developed a global framework to close this gap by…
Chinese scientists find a hidden atomic structure that unlocks methane
Scientists found that a tiny atomic structure that forms on nickel oxide during methane conversion is more effective than the metallic nickel long believed to drive the reaction. The discovery allowed a low-nickel catalyst to rival one containing 10…
Geologists reveal the Americas collided millions of years earlier than thought
Volcanic rocks in Colombia are rewriting the timeline of the collision between Central and South America. Their magnetic signatures show that major tectonic deformation had already weakened by the late Miocene, suggesting the most intense collision…
Dark energy debunked? Cosmic acceleration may be an illusion
A new analysis of more than 1,700 supernovae is questioning whether the universe is really accelerating at all. After accounting for the ages of the stars that produce these explosions, researchers found signs that cosmic expansion may actually be…
Astronomers detect ancient hydrogen signal that could help map the Universe
Astronomers have detected an exceptionally faint hydrogen radio signal from billions of light-years away using South Africa’s MeerKAT telescope. Instead of finding galaxies one at a time, the technique measures their combined hydrogen glow across…
Caffeine may flip an ancient cellular switch linked to slower aging
Scientists found that caffeine activates an ancient cellular energy system involved in stress resistance, DNA repair, and growth. The discovery could help explain caffeine’s links to healthier aging and may point toward new ways to target the same…
Scientists discover a powerful new antivenom hidden in rattlesnake blood
Researchers discovered that combinations of toxin-blocking proteins naturally found in rattlesnake blood can powerfully neutralize venom from several dangerous snake species. In lab tests, the mixtures were about 10 times more potent than a current…