Deborah Bloomfield

In just a decade, gravitational wave observatories have changed astronomy. In this short time, we have accumulated hundreds of detections, with many more coming. A wide variety of events have been discovered even among the sub-populations of these cosmic collisions. One record-breaking event has recently been reported, and a new yet-to-be-peer-reviewed paper argues that it […]

In 2025, botanist Chris Thorogood shared a video following what he described as a “life-changing” encounter in Sumatra. After days of trekking day and night, his team got to witness the opening of a Rafflesia hasseltii bloom – one of the planet’s most elusive plants and the largest flower on Earth (that also happens to […]

If you’re lucky enough to go hiking in South America’s Andes Mountains, you just might spot a strange weather phenomenon known as nieves penitentes (Spanish for “penitent snows”), so named for their resemblance to the pointed headwear of Christianity’s Holy Week penitents. The rest of this article is behind a paywall. Please sign in or […]

Cassius the crocodile cheated death for more than a century until his wild life finally caught up with him last year in Australia. Now, experts dealing with his necroscopy have revealed what ultimately led to the giant’s demise. The 5.5-metre (nearly 18-foot) saltwater crocodile died in November 2024 at the Marineland Melanesia wildlife park on […]

Harvard astronomer and origin of the unnecessary “alien spacecraft” hypothesis has admitted that interstellar comet 3I/ATLAS is “most likely natural” as it heads away from the Earth. On July 1, 2025, the Asteroid Terrestrial-impact Last Alert System detected an object traveling through our Solar System on an escape trajectory. Traveling at 54 kilometers (33 miles) […]

Previous observations have seen butterflies and moths drinking the tears of animals such as turtles and crocodiles in the Amazon or other tropical areas. However, in Green Mountain National Forest, USA, a camera trap has captured images of some moths slurping up the tears of a moose in only the second record of this behavior […]

A webcam at Yellowstone National Park has captured a so-called dirty explosion throwing a mix of superheated water, mud, and anything else handy 10-12 meters (30-40 feet) into the air above Black Diamond Pool. The explosion is one of several that have happened after a much larger explosion wrecked a boardwalk last year, but the […]

‘Tis the season of relentless dishwashing and lethargy. After ingesting half a turkey and a gallon of eggnog, it is tempting to look at the piles of dirty plates, shrug, and think, meh, they could use a long soak in the sink anyway. But here’s the dirty truth: sinks are among the most germ-ridden spots […]

Interstellar comet 3I/ATLAS has been such a fixture of the last six months that we might almost forget that discovering interstellar objects (ISOs) is actually incredibly rare. It’s thought that roughly seven ISOs pass through the inner Solar System every year, and yet we’ve only ever detected three. This year’s extraordinary finding, however, is hopefully […]

If you’ve ever owned a spider plant, you’ll know they love making babies. They do it with pride, presenting their offspring on the end of a long structure called a stolon. New research suggests that this stolon may be a vital lifeline equivalent to a mammalian placenta that provides dynamic care during a spider plant’s […]

The most recent addition to the human family tree – named after its unusually fat head – roamed northern China at the same time as the Denisovans. According to uranium-series dating, Homo juluensis existed between about 140,000 and 230,000 years ago, making it a contemporary of Homo longi – which literally means “Dragon Man”. The […]

The number of satellites in space continues to rise due to the deployment of megaconstellations. For decades, humanity has sent about 200 satellites every year into space. You need just a couple of days to deploy the same number now. This unconstrained deployment comes with many serious concerns about future utilization of space, but also […]

It’s the headline every dairy lover has been waiting to read: eating more high-fat cheese and cream is linked with a lower risk of developing dementia.  At least, that’s what a new study seems to say. “For decades, the debate over high-fat versus low-fat diets has shaped health advice, sometimes even categorizing cheese as an […]

Water can be liquid at temperatures far below freezing under several conditions; perhaps the most surprising is as a thin layer on the surface of ice. The discovery of this fact dates at least to 1859, but there have only been partial explanations, until now. Don’t you hate it when there is a well-documented phenomenon […]

Smell is a strange sense. We don’t really notice it all that much – we’re hardly nose-first animals like cats or dogs – but it’s nevertheless incredibly powerful. It has the power to evoke memories; to subconsciously heighten arousal or fear; to even change how we see the world around us. And, of course, it […]

We all know that many of the tools in human life have been inspired by nature’s creations, but how often do you stop and really think about where these products come from? A new gallery at the Natural History Museum (NHM), London is encouraging visitors to think more about their impact on the planet, as […]

Eight years ago, a popular interactive map showed you where you would pop up if you were to dig your way right through the Earth. It’s a bit of fun, even if for the vast majority the answer was “somewhere in an ocean”. But would it be possible to dig through the Earth and pop out the other […]

Africa is gradually splitting in two. As with most geological processes, it unfolds at a glacial pace over millions of years, but in time it could cause part of East Africa to break away from the rest of the continent, likely giving rise to a new ocean between the two landmasses. The rest of this […]

Who doesn’t love a long, hot shower at the end of a tiring day? Or – perhaps more relevant right now – an icy cold one in the middle of a heat wave? Well, as with everything humans enjoy, science has looked into our showering proclivities to see what exactly is going on.  It turns out hot and […]

We strongly advise you never go swimming in Burundi’s Rusizi River, but if fate deals you a cruel hand and you’re left with no other option, beware of Gustave. Gustave is a legend in this part of East Africa, surrounded by decades of folklore, fear, and fragmented accounts. Most of what we know about this […]