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A bathroom towel welcomes millions upon millions of bacterial visitors after just a single use, so it might worry you to hear that a concerning proportion of people only wash their towels a couple of times a year (at least if this survey from the UK is anything to go by).  A recent study courtesy […]

The “no-hair theorem” of black holes, which greatly simplifies the way we model them, may not be true if an alternative theory of gravity known as the teleparallel formulation is correct, an unpublished paper argues. This could make the study of black holes considerably more complicated, but it would also allow physicists to understand them […]

During the 1990s, locals and archaeologists recovered some unusual items in the mountains of the Eilat region in Southern Israel, on a route that was often taken by pilgrims traveling to Mecca. Now, researchers believe the items were used by types of sorcerers who performed popular magic ceremonies. The research was conducted by Dr Itamar […]

A rewilding success story is being celebrated in the Caribbean where, in just a few short years, the barren moonscape of the island of Redonda has been transformed into a lush wildlife sanctuary. Now named the Redonda Ecosystem Reserve, it’s been assigned protected status, becoming one of the largest protected areas in the Caribbean. Spanning […]

Tomorrow’s the day if you want to have the best possible chance of gazing upon the green spectacle of Comet Nishimura. You’ll need to be prepared for an early start, but this comet takes 437 years to do a lap of the Solar System, so we really are talking about a once in a lifetime […]

Ethiopia has completed the final phase of filling a reservoir for its highly controversial hydroelectric dam on the Blue Nile River, much to the annoyance of Egypt who fear it could sever them from the Nile’s precious waters. Fueled by climate change and ongoing geopolitical tension, it’s often been said that the problem of water […]

Over the weekend, a lot of people living in the UK woke up and found their cars were dirtier than they would usually be.  Brits found a layer of dust covering their vehicles or windows. The dust, of course, did not target cars but cars are especially good at showing up the dirt.  Advertisement ⓘ IFLScience […]

NASA’s Perseverance rover has now produced enough oxygen to keep a small dog alive on Mars for 10 hours, NASA has announced, despite no plans to weird a dog out shortly before its demise. When Perseverance landed on Mars in February 2021, it took with it the Mars Oxygen In-Situ Resource Utilization Experiment (MOXIE) aimed […]

In the 1970s, astronauts placed three seismometers on the lunar surface, to collect data between October 1976 and May 1977. A new study has looked at this seismograph data, discovering that some of the repeating tremors appear to be coming from the Apollo 17 lander. When earthquakes occur on Earth, waves of energy are sent […]

The planet’s largest-known lithium deposit may have been found hiding beneath an ancient supervolcano along the Nevada–Oregon border in the US. Given the skyrocketing demand for lithium, this deposit could be a treasure trove – although obtaining it could come with a bunch of challenges and dangers.  An estimated 20 to 40 million metric tons […]

The largest collection of prehistoric cave art in Eastern Iberia has been discovered in a cavern in Spain’s Valencia region. Consisting of over 100 images, the extensive array of engravings and paintings features at least 19 different animals and has been dated to over 24,000 years old. Found in a cave known as Cova Dones, […]

Evidence has been found of black holes a tenth of the distance of the previous closest observation to Earth. Moreover, unlike previous discoveries, this is one where anyone with access to moderately dark skies can stick out their finger and say, “They’re there.” The Hyades Star Cluster is overshadowed in the public mind by the […]

After lifting off last Saturday, India’s solar probe has now sent back some remarkable images of the Earth and Moon, as well as a cheeky selfie. Advertisement The two images were taken on September 4 by a camera mounted on Aditya-L1, with the most striking picture showing the Moon as a tiny speck beside the […]

Cut off from the rest of the world 5.5 million years ago, the Movile Cave has developed a unique and bizarre ecosystem like no other place on Earth. Sitting a few miles from the Black Sea coast in Romania, the cave is one of the most isolated places on the planet, having been sealed off […]

Through the science of seismic imaging, researchers have revealed that an ancient ocean floor may be wrapped around the Earth’s core.  The layer in question sits at the core-mantle boundary (CMB), the region inside the Earth at which the molten outer core meets the silicate rock mantle, around 2,900 kilometers (1,800 miles) below the surface. […]

The idea of space-based solar power (SBSP) – using satellites to collect energy from the sun and “beam” it to collection points on Earth – has been around since at least the late 1960s. Despite its huge potential, the concept has not gained sufficient traction due to cost and technological hurdles. Can some of these […]

At least 632 people have died following a powerful earthquake that struck Morocco’s High Atlas mountains late on Friday night. The earthquake hit just after 23:00 local time and measured 7.2 on the Richter scale according to Morocco’s geophysical center, categorizing it as a major earthquake event. Approximately 10 to 20 such major earthquakes occur […]

Supermassive black holes are found at the center of almost every galaxy, and when they get enough material around them they enter a feeding frenzy phase we call an active galactic nucleus, or AGN. There was an expectation that when the universe was more active in the past, with enhanced star formation and galaxy mergers, […]

Romantic relationships are known to have many benefits, but they can sometimes also threaten a person’s sense of independence, individuality, and autonomy. Now, researchers have developed a quick questionnaire to measure levels of individuality in your relationship, which can help develop healthier dynamics. What is individuality in a relationship?  Most adults will experience at least […]