Europeans first discovered Antarctica in the early 19th century. An old Māori legend potentially suggests they were beaten by Polynesian explorers sailing over 1,000 years before them. Other than at a research station or occasional expedition, humans have never settled in Antarctica. While the evidence suggests the continent was once home to rainforests, swamps, and […]
“Potential Impact On Saturn”: Astronomers Appeal For Help As Video Appears To Show Object Hitting The Gas Giant
Astronomers at the Planetary Virtual Observatory and Laboratory (PVOL) are appealing for help, after an image taken by NASA’s Mario Rana appears to show an object slamming into Saturn. Saturn, like Jupiter, is a gas giant. With their impressive masses, you would expect these giants to attract their share of asteroid impacts. Unlike terrestrial planets, […]
What Is Prosopometamorphopsia? The “Exceedingly Rare” Condition That Made A Patient See Faces As Dragons
Science can’t resist a long, hard-to-get-it-out-in-one go name. Case in point: prosopometamorphopsia (which we will now call PMO to save me from wearing out the “p” on this keyboard). “Prosopometamorphopsia is this exceedingly rarely diagnosed condition,” said neuroscientist Dr Austin Lim to IFLScience. “It essentially causes a person to see other people’s faces progressively transform […]
Are We In An Enormous Void? It Could Explain What’s Wrong With Our Model Of The Universe
The universe is undergoing an accelerated expansion, but the rate of that expansion has been a very controversial topic over the last few years. Different methods suggest slightly different numbers. It is possible that our model of the universe is wrong, or that one or both of the main methods are underestimating their uncertainty. A […]
Woylies Boing Back Into Western Australia Thanks To Groundbreaking Wildlife Project
Over 100 endangered woylies have been set free from a fenced-off area of Mt Gibson Wildlife Sanctuary, marking an energetic leap in their return to life in Western Australia’s Wheatbelt region. Never mind kangaroos or koalas, woylies have to be up there with the most audaciously Aussie of all animals. Picture a mouse crossed with […]
North America’s Oldest Pterosaur And Turtle Fossils Found In Arizona’s Petrified Forest
A single deposit has produced a wealth of fossils revealing the late Triassic ecosystem, where giant amphibians cohabited with newcomers, including turtles and pterosaurs. The 12 million years leading up to the end-Triassic extinction have been relatively poorly represented in the fossil record, making this find particularly precious. Almost 209 million years ago, Arizona was […]
Proposed “Dark Dwarfs” Near The Galactic Center Could Reveal The Nature Of Dark Matter
The way to find the darkness could be to look for the light. It might be a Zen, but the statement is also the latest proposal to find the nature of dark matter. The authors think that objects powered by dark matter could be small but detectable sources of light near the center of the […]
Watch: 18-Kilometer-High Ash Cloud Looms Over Indonesia’s Mount Lewotobi Laki Laki After “Explosive” Eruption
An enormous column of ash estimated to be 18 kilometers (11 miles) high is currently looming over Mount Lewotobi Laki Laki on the Indonesian island of Flores, after the volcano explosively erupted on Monday (July 7) morning. According to a report from the head of Indonesia’s geological agency, Dr Muhammad Wafid, observations of the volcano […]
“ShipGoo001”: Mystery Of Entirely New Lifeform Discovered Coating A Great Lakes Ship
Researchers investigating a strange “goo” discovered when maintaining a ship in Cleveland have discovered an entirely new lifeform. Last September, the research vessel Blue Heron – the largest US academic research fleet vessel on the Great Lakes – was brought out of Lake Erie and into the Great Lakes Shipyard to fix a noisy propeller […]
Rare White Humpback Whale Calf Filmed By Drone Off Australia’s East Coast
Between May and August, thousands of humpback whales migrate north along Australia’s East coast to warmer waters. They travel from the chilly Antarctic waters to tropical regions such as the Great Barrier Reef to breed, and sometimes babies are born along the way. One such humpback calf is making waves for being a rare white […]
Who Was Buried At Cave Of Salome: A Female Disciple, Jesus’ Midwife, Or A Princess?
A 2,000-year-old burial cave in Israel is continuing to stir debate. Who exactly was buried here? Was it one of Jesus’ female disciples, a woman said to have assisted at the birth of Christ, or an ancient Jewish princess related to one of the biggest bad guys of the Bible? The Cave of Salome is […]
“Hidden” Changes To US Health Data Swapping “Gender” For “Sex” Spark Fears For Public Trust
A new analysis has found that over 100 health datasets from US government agencies were “substantially altered” in the two months after the beginning of the new administration earlier this year, in many cases switching the word “gender” to “sex”. Only a small number of the changes were logged, something the authors behind the analysis […]
Easter Island Was Never As Isolated As We Thought – Study Puts That “Strange Argument” To Bed
Famous for its colossal stone heads – or moai – Easter Island is the scene of one of the great archaeological mysteries, as a unique monolithic ritual culture emerged and then vanished here – all for reasons unknown. Until now, it was widely believed that this rise and fall occurred in isolation from the outside […]
If Birds Are Dinosaurs, Why Are None As Big As T. Rexes?
The discovery that birds are dinosaurs shook up how we structure the tree of life, and led to a lot of jokes about chicken nuggets. However, it has made some people wonder why they’re all so diminished in size compared to the giants of the past. There were plenty of small dinosaurs pre-asteroid, but the […]
Psychologists Demonstrate Illusion That Could Be Screwing Up Our Perception Of Time
Psychologists have demonstrated a robust psychological illusion that distorts how we remember when something happened. The illusion causes a mistaken belief that repeated experiences actually occurred longer ago than they really did. How do you judge when an event occurred in the past? For big things that happened across years, we have calendar reminders; holidays, […]
Why Are So Many Enormous Roman Shoes Being Discovered At Hadrian’s Wall?
We often assume our ancestors were smaller than us – and usually, it’s true. Out on the northern fringes of the Roman Empire, however, there appears to have been a small population of giants standing guard some 2,000 years ago – at least, if their shoes are anything to go by. “I think there is […]
Scientists Think They’ve Pinpointed Structural Differences In Psychopaths’ Brains
Researchers have found that people scoring high for psychopathy have structural changes in parts of their brains related to impulse control and emotional regulation. The results further our understanding of people with these associated personality traits and behaviors and could lead to new treatments and rehabilitation strategies. Psychopathy is a tricky subject due to decades […]
We’ve Found Our Third-Ever Interstellar Visitor, Orcas Filmed Kissing (With Tongues) In The Wild, And Much More This Week
This week, a 125,000-year-old Neandertal “fat factory” reveals that they gorged on energy-packed bone grease, a new study has found that there really is a link between eating cheese and having nightmares, and scientists were stunned to find a cave full of mummified, never-before-seen, eyeless invertebrates. Finally, in 2032, Earth may witness a once-in-5,000-year event […]
The “Eyes Of Clavius” Will Be Visible On The Moon Today, Thanks To Clair-Obscur Effect
This week, if you looked up at the right time and with the right equipment, you may have witnessed a “V” and an “X” shape on the surface of the Moon. While your chance to see that event has passed (for now), it is possible to witness another lunar event on Friday, July 4, as […]
Shockingly High Microplastic Levels Found On Remote Mediterranean Coral Reef Island
While studying a remote, coral-covered island in the Mediterranean, scientists were shocked to discover that it has become riddled with some of the highest levels of microplastic pollution ever recorded in the region. The discovery was made in the volcanic bay of Illa Grossa, located on the Columbretes Islands marine reserve around 50 kilometers (31 […]