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Change is afoot along the Pacific Northwest coast. While hordes of crabs and spiders might be invading New York, something slightly different is happening to the whale population on the other side of the country. Scientists studying gray whales (Eschrichtius robustus) have found that they seem to be shrinking. Over in the North Atlantic, right […]

The ship that witnessed the death of polar explorer Ernest Shackleton has been found in remarkable condition on the seafloor around 15 nautical miles from the coast of Canada. Advertisement A team of international experts led by the Royal Canadian Geographical Society (RCGS) located the ship, called Quest, at a depth of 390 meters (1,280 […]

NASA astronauts Tracy C. Dyson and Matthew Dominick are currently getting ready to exit the International Space Station (ISS). No, they are not coming back to Earth, they will be taking the airlock to perform an extravehicular activity (EVA), better known as a spacewalk, around the station, which is being streamed live today. Part of […]

The Earth’s inner core has been slowing down since 2008, the first time this has happened since we have had the capacity to measure it. This could eventually affect the whole planet’s rotation, lengthening our days, but if there are effects big enough for us to notice, they are more likely to be on the […]

IFLScience needs the contact information you provide to us to contact you about our products and services. You may unsubscribe from these communications at any time. For information on how to unsubscribe, as well as our privacy practices and commitment to protecting your privacy, check out ourPrivacy Policy Deborah BloomfieldSource Link: What Is The World’s […]

While stood on planet Earth, it’s easy to forget that we are sat on a rock hurtling through the Solar System on a path which could feasibly collide with other (smaller) space rocks, largely because we can’t feel that motion. Advertisement If you ever have the urge to feel completely at the mercy of random […]

Archaea, hardy single-celled organisms that form the third domain at the top of the universal tree of life, have survived for billions of years in some of the most extreme environments on Earth. Now, scientists have taken a big leap forward in explaining how that is possible, discovering how these organisms use hydrogen as a […]

A hidden camera has caught extremely rare footage of a family of endangered Bornean clouded leopards (Neofelis diardi borneensis) as they scamper and prowl around the rainforest. Advertisement Orangutan Foundation, together with Tanjung Puting National Park, recently captured the adorable video (below) using a camera trap in the dense lowland forests of Indonesian Borneo. While […]

Tiger sharks are voracious predators that will eat pretty much anything they can get their jaws around – but even they can’t stomach an echidna. Advertisement Scientists from James Cook University in Australia witnessed a bizarre animal interaction after seeing a tiger shark throw up an echidna, a small and spikey monotreme that is a […]

Being born a twin was bad news if you happened to live in ancient Mayan times, as the iconic civilization apparently had a thing for sacrificing relatives, including identical siblings – and especially if they were boys. At the world-famous site of Chichén Itzá in southern Mexico, researchers have just identified the remains of 64 […]

Just over a year ago, people across this planet received a challenge from the heavens: Solve an encoded message. The message was created by Daniela de Paulis, Artist in Residence at the SETI Institute. The goal was to simulate an alien signal – and despite its earthly creation, it really came from another planet. Advertisement […]

Many species in the natural world have a certain little something that goes beyond the striking patterns visible on their fur and feathers. From fungi to wombats, many species have been found to be fluorescent – and now a whole range of glowing sea creatures from the Banda Sea in Indonesia and the Red Sea […]

The Secretary-General of the United Nations (UN), António Guterres, has warned the world not to allow artificial intelligence (AI) a role in the decision to launch nuclear weapons. Advertisement Speaking at a meeting of the Arms Control Association (ACA), Guterres warned that “humanity is on a knife’s edge”, with the risk of nuclear weapons use […]

The results of the 2024 Vaquita Survey are in, and it’s a mixed bag for the world’s rarest mammal. According to Sea Shepherd, who conduct the annual survey, the data shows 6 to 8 vaquita porpoises were sighted during the survey, a decline from 2023 when 8 to 13 individuals were observed. There were no […]

South Australia’s Yorke and Fleurieu Peninsulas host some unusually colored beaches. The pink color was already known to be pulverized garnet, but an attempt to find the source has revealed a very unlikely location buried in ice and thousands of kilometers away. Advertisement South Australia is known for pink things, including its famous lakes and […]

The battery revolution would see humanity move away from burning fossil fuels in favor of electric power, but in order to get there, we need metal. A lot of metal. Vast crops of “deep sea potatoes” have been located in the Clarion-Clipperton Zone bursting with crucial battery ingredients, but what do we know so far […]

If you were hoping the next invasion of New York would be somewhat less eight-legged, we’ve got bad news: invasive crabs that harass fishers, alter food webs, and even shut down power plants have made it to the state’s waters. On the upside, they do have very cute little mittens. Advertisement Describing it as “anything […]

Piranhas’ vegetarian cousins are known as pacus, and you’ve likely seen photos of their curiously human-like teeth circulating online. Now, a knew member has joined the ranks after being identified in the Amazon, and it’s been named Myloplus sauron after the Dark Lord of the same name in J.R.R. Tolkein’s The Lord Of The Rings […]

NASA has confirmed a grim, albeit expected, milestone with the release of global average temperatures for last month. The year 2024 has set a new record for the hottest May since global record-keeping began, just like April, March and every month back to June 2023. The last time a month didn’t set a global record […]

We at IFLScience love an illusion (as apparently does Mars). So, naturally, we were thrilled to hear about a new twist on the visual rabbit illusion – also called the visual saltation illusion. Advertisement Typically, the illusion involves two dots flickering in quick succession at one point and a third dot flashing at a different location. Thanks […]