The gamma-ray burst (GRB) known as the Brightest Of All Time (BOAT) had an emission line in its afterglow, the first time one has been detected with confidence in any GRB. The astronomers who discovered the line suspect it is the product of matter and antimatter particles annihilating each other in the aftermath of the […]
Tiny Charles Darwin’s Frogs Like To Breed Upside-Down
If you thought humans were the only ones capable of getting creative in the baby-making process, think again. In the forests of India’s Andaman Islands, there’s a small species of frog with a unique breeding behavior that involves them being upside-down. Advertisement The frog in question is Charles Darwin’s frog (Minervarya charlesdarwini), named after the […]
Whale Shark “Rio Lady” Tracked For Record-Breaking 4 Years In Gulf of Mexico
Rio Lady is a whale shark (Rhincodon typus) and a swimming superstar. By following her movements with different trackers for almost two decades, including a record-breaking four-year streak, scientists have learned a lot about whale sharks and their habits. Advertisement For such big fish – Rio Lady is nearly 8 meters (26 feet) long – […]
Antarctica’s Largest Land Animal Is Smaller Than A Pea
Antarctica might conjure up images of snow-capped peaks and intrepid explorers, but against these romanticized views of one of Earth’s harshest environments are the species that have to survive there. While seals and penguins might be more well-known, what about the largest land creature on the continent? It’s time to meet the Antarctic midge (Belgica […]
Brain Wiring For Fundamental Behaviors May Be Written In The Genome, No Learning Required
Somewhere in the savannah, a gazelle is born. A lick from mom and an uncertain wobble, and she is ready to run. Somewhere on a sandy beach, a little turtle hatches. It sits with its siblings under the sand, until, suddenly, they run as a group to the surface and straight into the sea. Have […]
Aurorae Galore Expected Tonight As New Cannibal Coronal Mass Ejection Hits Earth
Millions of people saw the spectacular aurorae in May, when multiple coronal mass ejections hit our planet in the largest geomagnetic storm in decades. Tonight it looks like we might have a comparable spectacle, so if you missed that one you’ve got a chance to see it again. The NOAA Space Weather Prediction Center has […]
Saturn Likely Just Sent A Comet Hurtling Out Of The Solar System
A team of astronomers has attempted to explain an unusually high-speed comet, finding that it was likely sent on its hyperbolic trajectory following a close encounter with Saturn in 2022. Advertisement On June 14, 2024, Comet A117uUD was first spotted by the Asteroid Terrestrial-impact Last Alert System (ATLAS). Over the next month, astronomers made 145 […]
Do Women Cheat For The Same Reasons As Men? It’s Complicated
Why do people cheat? Psychologists reckon they have a good handle on this question when it comes to men, but for women the picture is less clear. A new study surveyed people from 19 countries to explore this question, but there were no simple answers to be found. Advertisement Being cheated on can be among […]
Shipwreck Loaded With 100 Bottles Of Champagne Found In Baltic Sea
A 170-year-old shipwreck overflowing with Europe’s finest champagne and mineral water has been found off the coast of Sweden. Advertisement Around 100 bottles of the bubbling booty were discovered earlier this month by the Baltictech diving group just 37 kilometers (20 nautical miles) south of the Swedish island of Öland in the Baltic Sea. “The […]
Kepler’s Sunspot Sketches Could Solve A Longstanding Solar Mystery Four Centuries Later
Sketches of the Sun made by Johannes Kepler in 1607 may tip the scales in an important debate about the nature of solar cycles, perhaps even helping us predict future solar activity. The fact that Kepler thought he was drawing Mercury, instead of a cool patch on the Sun, doesn’t matter. Advertisement Once Galileo had […]
COVID-19 Virus Found In 6 Backyard Animals – And Humans Are The Cause
With rising case numbers, COVID-19 seems to be everywhere right now. But did you know the virus might also be literally lurking in your back yard? A new study from scientists at Virginia Tech found SARS-CoV-2 in six of Virginia’s most recognizable animal species, many of which can be found across the United States. Advertisement […]
New Zealand’s Flightless Birds Are Retreating To Extinct Moa Graveyards
Researchers have found that New Zealand’s current endangered flightless bird species are seeking refuge in the places where six species of moa lived before they went extinct. The results could have significant conservation benefits. Advertisement Moa (Dinornithiformes) are a group of large flightless birds that were once endemic in New Zealand. However, current fossil evidence […]
Long COVID Fatigue May Be Down To A Protein That We Could Target With Drugs
A protein released when there’s inflammation in the brain could be behind the severe muscle fatigue seen in people with long COVID, revealing a potential target for new treatments for the condition. Advertisement Fatigue and exercise intolerance are among the most debilitating symptoms of long COVID. Scientists have learned that this goes far beyond feeling […]
Not Having Enough Sex May Have Deadly Consequences
Women who have sex less than once a week may be more likely to die early than those who engage in more regular intercourse, according to the results of a new study. While this same impact was not observed in men, the researchers did note that more frequent sex reduces the chances of an early […]
Why Is It Colder At Higher Altitudes, Despite Being Closer To The Sun?
It’s a well-known rule that the higher you go on Earth, the colder it gets. But there are a few people who haven’t quite grasped why this is the case, with some asking why it is that the tops of mountains are colder when hot air rises and others asking why the tops of mountains […]
Is There Wind On The Moon? Or Was There Once Upon A Time?
Back in the day, we simply learned that the Moon has no atmosphere. However, schools, institutions, and museums have correctly started to point out that scientists have measured an extremely thin atmosphere on the Moon. Nothing like Earth’s or even Mars’s, which is 100 times less dense than our planet’s. But it is measurable. So […]
Rock Art Shows Early Humans In South America’s Contact With New World’s Animals
When people first set foot in the Amazon Basin thousands upon thousands of years ago, they were greeted by countless never-before-seen animal species. Remarkably, a smattering of the early encounters between humans and beasts were documented in the ancient rock art of Colombia. Advertisement In a new study, researchers report the wealth of animals depicted […]
Videos Of Chimps Saying “Mama” Fuel Debate Around Speech Capabilities In Non-Human Apes
What separates us from animals that share 98.8 percent of our DNA? While there might be many varied and valid answers, something that has been at the forefront of this debate is the lack of speech from chimpanzees. Two theories exist as to why chimpanzees might not be able to make human speech sounds: either it […]
Around 4,200 Years Ago, Humans Started To Spread Domesticated Horses Across Eurasia
Around 4,200 years ago, in the third millennium BCE, humans in the western Russian steppes began a new era in human history by entangling their lives with another species of animal. Recent research has argued that, at this time, the numbers of domesticated horses bred by people expanded quickly, which introduced unprecedented changes. Horses not […]
Male Dragonfish Exhibit An “Extremely Rare” Trait To Date In The Dark
A deep-sea predator has raised a few eyebrows after revealing that, when looking for love, the eye size of males increases significantly. It’s only the second time sexual dimorphism in the visual system has been established in fish, making the male dragonfish something of an anomaly among vertebrates. Advertisement Bioluminescence is a crucial means of […]
