The natural world has undergone an almost unimaginable regime change, reflecting the vast and growing dominance of humanity on our planet’s most important resource: freshwater. Researchers say this is the first global survey of human effects on the water cycle. Scientists have used NASA’s satellite measurements to remotely measure the …
Read More »
Like all stars, our sun is powered by the fusion of hydrogen into heavy elements. Nuclear fusion is not only what makes stars shine, it is also the primary source of the chemical elements that make up the world around us. Much of our understanding of stellar fusion comes from …
Read More »
Earlier this year, astronomers announced a dazzling discovery. A rapid radio burst named FRB 121102 was not just repeated – it was repeated on a recognizable cycle. For about 67 days, the source is silent. Then, for about 90 days, it wakes up, spits out repeated millisecond radio flights before …
Read More »
Just when you thought it was safe to go back to ignoring Betelgeuse, the red giant star began to reappear. After its first round of dimming, and then clear, Betelgeuse has now once again started dimming again. Moreover, this new dimming is consistent with the current cycle of Betelgeuse variation …
Read More »
Not all glaciations are equally brutal. In the most extreme glaciation events known to science, ice spreads from Earth’s polar regions and spreads to lower latitudes, literally reshaping the face of the planet. Evidence of such epic transitions can be found in the geological record, most recently in formidable glaciations …
Read More »