Deep inside the wreckage of Chernobyl’s Unit Four reactor, a black fungus is doing more than surviving. Cladosporium sphaerospermum appears to grow in the presence of ionizing radiation, prompting scientists to question whether it may be interacting with radiation in a way no complex organism was previously known to do. Nearly 40 years after the
Over 4 billion years ago, an asteroid called Bennu was drifting through the solar system. Three years ago, NASA brought 121.6 grams of that space rock back to Earth. Scientists wanted to see if the sample contained clues about how life began. What they found instead was so much stranger: the sample contained molecules that
It’s not easy to find silver linings amid the rapid, human-driven destabilization of Earth’s climate—though that hasn’t stopped researchers from trying. One longstanding theory suggests that glacial melt could actually help slow climate change by feeding algae, but a new study just dumped cold water on the idea. The findings, published in the journal Nature
The arid expanse of the Nefud Desert in the northern Arabian Peninsula currently holds some of the most hyper-arid conditions on Earth. However, the geological record indicates that this landscape underwent radical transformations during the late Pleistocene. Intervals of increased monsoon rainfall periodically converted these dunefields into a network of lush grasslands and perennial freshwater
Nasa announced on Friday radical changes to its delayed Artemis III mission to land humans back on the moon, as the US space agency grapples with technical glitches and criticism that it is trying to do too much too soon. The abrupt shift in strategy was laid out by the space agency’s recently confirmed administrator,
A blood-red moon will soon grace the skies for a total lunar eclipse — and there won’t be another until late 2028. The spectacle will be visible Tuesday morning from North America, Central America and the western part of South America. Australia and eastern Asia can catch it Tuesday night. Partial stages of the eclipse
NEW YORK (AP) — A blood-red moon will soon grace the skies for a total lunar eclipse — and there won’t be another until late 2028. The spectacle will be visible Tuesday morning from North America, Central America and the western part of South America. Australia and eastern Asia can catch it Tuesday night. Partial
Updated 12 p.m. Eastern with additional details and comments. WASHINGTON — NASA announced major changes to its Artemis lunar architecture, adding a test flight of lunar landers in low Earth orbit while canceling planned upgrades to the Space Launch System. At a Feb. 27 briefing, NASA said it would change the schedule of upcoming Artemis
NASA on Friday announced an abrupt change to its pathway to getting astronauts back on the lunar surface, opting to add in an additional crewed test flight before attempting to land. Space agency officials said that “Artemis III” — the mission name that had previously been used to refer to a moon landing slated to
The way this document is written suggests that when NASA scores bidders for the Mars Telecommunications Network, the addition of a camera or other scientific payloads won’t be a net positive. However, if they pose an overall risk to the mission, they would be a net negative. New award to Rocket Lab may complicate things