Earth's Place in the Universe
- Space
This space physicist uses radios to study eclipses
Nathaniel Frissell uses radio data to study how eclipses affect a layer of the atmosphere called the ionosphere.
- Planets
Huge polygons on Mars hint its equator may once have been frozen
A Chinese rover used radar to reveal long-buried terrain. The discovery hints that Mars’ equator was once much colder and wetter.
- Chemistry
Pollution power? A new device turns carbon dioxide into fuel
Scientists made a device that converts the greenhouse gas into formate. This salt can then run a fuel cell to make electricity.
- Planets
Jupiter has a never-before-seen jet stream — and it’s speedy
Spotted in images from the James Webb telescope, the high-altitude current may help untangle the workings of the giant planet’s atmosphere.
- Space
NASA’s OSIRIS-REx spacecraft brought back bits of the asteroid Bennu
Dirt from the asteroid Bennu could hold clues about the material that built our solar system — and possibly where life comes from.
- Physics
A new tool shows tiny changes in the ’24-hour’ length of a day
An underground instrument known as ‘G’ uses laser beams to measure Earth’s rotation — a gauge of day length — with extreme precision.
- Planets
Analyze This: Neptune’s cloud cover syncs up with the solar cycle
Telescope observations hint how sunlight-driven chemistry may boost cloud cover on our solar system’s farthest planet.
- Planets
In a first, astronomers spot the aftermath of an exoplanet smashup
Infrared light from a distant star appears to be leftovers of an impact between a pair of Neptune-sized worlds.
- Space
You can get involved in science during the 2024 solar eclipse
The sun will be near the peak of its activity cycle during the eclipse on April 8, 2024. That will make it a great time to crowdsource solar research.
- Space
Weird black holes may reveal secrets of the early universe
Emerging evidence points to the existence of rogue black holes and other cosmic oddities — such as big black holes in tiny galaxies.
- Space
Experiment: A puzzling parallax helps stargazers
In this project, we explore how perspective, or parallax, can be used to measure the distances to objects such as stars.
- Space
Ghost particles paint a new picture of the Milky Way
Scientists tracked neutrinos from space to create a new map of our galaxy. It’s the first image of the Milky Way to be made without light.
