A claimed hint of alien life whips up spirited debate
You may have already seen the headlines: Signs of life have reportedly been discovered on an alien world. A team of astronomers led by Nikku Madhusudhan of the University of …
Humans have shockingly few ways to treat fungal infections
Fighting fungi isn’t easy. Season two of the streaming series The Last of Us has arrived on Max (light spoilers ahead), bringing viewers back to a world where people combat …
A weird ice that may form on alien planets has finally been observed
A strange type of ice thought to dwell deep in the oceans of alien planets has finally been proven to exist. For the first time, researchers have directly observed a …
Neandertals may have hunted in horse-trapping teams 200,000 years ago
Neandertals formed sophisticated hunting parties that drove wild horses into fatal traps around 200,000 years ago. At Germany’s Schöningen site, wooden spears, double-pointed sticks, stone artifacts and butchered remains of …
Losing a key U.S. climate report would hurt future disaster prep
This year may already be on track to be the second hottest on record, after 2024. Floods and tornadoes are wracking wide swathes of the United States. And more wild …
A NASA rover finally found Mars’ missing carbon
The carbon that once warmed Mars’ atmosphere has been locked in its rusty rocks for millennia. That’s the story revealed by a hidden cache of carbon-bearing minerals unearthed by NASA’s …
How to fight Lyme may lie in the biology of its disease-causing bacteria
Not all cell walls are created equal. Take the peculiar makeup of the Borrelia burgdorferi bacterium’s cell wall. It might play a role in lingering symptoms of Lyme disease — …
Cool water could protect sea stars from a mysterious disease
A mysterious disease that has plagued sea stars for more than a decade may have met its match in the fjords of British Columbia. Sunflower sea stars discovered thriving in …
Yes, there really is a black hole on the loose in Sagittarius
For the first time, astronomers have confirmed the existence of a lone black hole — one with no star orbiting it. It’s “the only one so far,” says Kailash Sahu, …
The axolotl is endangered in the wild. A discovery offers hope
Despite capturing hearts around the world, the wild axolotl — an aquatic salamander with feathery frills and a soft smile — faces extinction. Fortunately, for both axolotls and their fans, …