Rocket Report: Starship V3 test-fired; ESA’s tentative step toward crew launch
Blue Origin will soon launch the third flight of its New Glenn rocket, this time with a reused booster.
Stephen Clark
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106
Science // Science & Exploration
After a saga of broken promises, a European rover finally has a ride to Mars
Europe’s first Mars rover mission is now on its fourth rocket: SpaceX’s Falcon Heavy
Stephen Clark
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42
OpenAI starts offering a biology-tuned LLM
GPT-Rosalind is an LLM trained on biology workflows, available in closed access.
John Timmer
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60
Meet the Quantum Kid
Nine-year-old Kai’s podcast explores how quantum technologies can transform our daily lives.
Jennifer Ouellette
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25
New 3D map of Universe could solve dark energy mystery
Latest data must still be analyzed but could help determine if dark energy is constant or varies over time.
Jennifer Ouellette
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43
What’s the deal with Alzheimer’s disease and amyloid?
For decades, scientists have concentrated on what now looks to be a blind alley.
Jonathan M. Gitlin
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127
Physicists think they’ve resolved the proton size puzzle
“We believe this is the final nail in the coffin of the proton radius puzzle.”
Jennifer Ouellette
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71
NASA chose the right crew to launch a new era of human space exploration
“It’s a special thing to be human, and it’s a special thing to be on planet Earth.”
Stephen Clark
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44
Most Read
To teach in the time of ChatGPT is to know pain
LLM use is the most demoralizing problem I’ve faced as a college instructor.
Scott K. Johnson
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485
Shock from Iran war has Trump’s vision for US energy dominance flailing
Record domestic oil and gas production hasn’t saved US drivers from price spikes.
Inside Climate News
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438
Four astronauts are back home after a daring ride around the Moon
“I can’t imagine a better crew that just completed a perfect mission right now.”
Stephen Clark
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162
New paper argues history, not mantle plume, powers Yellowstone
A now-vanished plate under North America may open the crust below Yellowstone.
John Timmer
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61
“Oobleck” still holds some surprises
Dense drops of oobleck with high shear rates spread out like a liquid before stiffening into a solid.
Jennifer Ouellette
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53
Oldest octopus fossil found to not be an octopus
Supposed “first octopus” was something else entirely.
Jacek Krywko
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24
Orion helium leak no threat to Artemis II reentry but will require redesign
After leaks on Artemis I and II, Orion’s next flight to the Moon will need new valves.
Stephen Clark
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139
Clinical trial shows gene editing works for β-Thalassaemia, too
Improved gene editing process reactivates the fetal version of a hemoglobin gene.
John Timmer
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15
Ugandan chimps split into two factions, then killed rivals
Rare event suggests relational dynamics may play a role in collective violence, along with cultural markers.
Jennifer Ouellette
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53
The gravity of their experience hasn’t quite set in for the Artemis II astronauts
“I’m actually getting chills right now just thinking about it. My palms are sweating.”
Stephen Clark
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34
Trump’s emergency orders pushing coal power are “illegal” as well as dumb
A World War II-era policy is stopping old coal plants from closing.
Inside Climate News
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74
The Moon is already on Google Maps—did Artemis II really tell us anything new?
“I think the biggest value here is the PR. I mean, it’s getting the public excited.”
Stephen Clark
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142
Astronauts set distance record, revealing the Moon as a place to be explored
“Humans have probably not evolved to see what we’re seeing. It is truly hard to describe. It is amazing.”
Stephen Clark
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91
Trump’s next budget once again calls for massive cuts to science
Congress rejected huge cuts to science in 2026, but Trump is trying again.
John Timmer
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93
Trump proposes steep cut to NASA budget as astronauts head for the Moon
Congress will likely reject the White House’s NASA cuts, just as it did last year.
Stephen Clark
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276
Ice Age dice show early Native Americans may have understood probability
Ice Age hunter-gatherers “were intentionally relying on random outcomes in repeatable, rule-based ways.”
Jennifer Ouellette
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58
“Cognitive surrender” leads AI users to abandon logical thinking, research finds
Experiments show large majorities uncritically accepting “faulty” AI answers.
Kyle Orland
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284
Male octopuses guided through mating by female hormones
A receptor that’s used to find prey is also activated by progesterone.
Jacek Krywko
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30
New fossil deposits show complex animal groups predating the Cambrian
Collection of fossils includes Ediacaran, Cambrian species, suggesting a transition.
John Timmer
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25
Renewables dominate 2025’s newly installed generating capacity
And solar power accounted for about three quarters of the renewables.
John Timmer
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210
Research roundup: 7 cool science stories we almost missed
Sperm gets lost in space; raccoons solve puzzles; the physics of folding a crepe; and more.
Jennifer Ouellette
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47
LIGO data hints at supernovae so powerful they leave nothing behind
Pair instability supernovae create a “mass gap” in black holes.
John Timmer
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20
Sweden goes back to basics, swapping screens for books in the classroom
Sweden is bringing back books amid declining test scores.
Undark Magazine
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162
Launch day has arrived for NASA’s Artemis II mission—here’s what to expect
“It’ll go when the engines light at T-0.”
Stephen Clark
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423
NASA is leading the way to the Moon, but the military won’t be far behind
“I just don’t want to get caught flat-footed when we start to have to protect US interests out there.”
Stephen Clark
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110
What’s the best cabin layout for aircraft evacuation?
The key is to evenly distribute elderly passengers, who move more slowly, among the aircraft cabins.
Jennifer Ouellette
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132
After more than 53 years, humans may finally return to the Moon this week
“Things are certainly starting to feel real here at the Cape.”
Stephen Clark
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109
What happened to Amelia Earhart? New book takes on the case.
Rachel Hartigan on her new book, Lost: Amelia Earhart’s Three Mysterious Deaths and One Extraordinary Life.
Jennifer Ouellette
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89