Major Discoveries
352 reportsTo examine what has not yet been demonstrated, reports set correction history beside discovery claim and effect size. They also address what qualifies as a discovery, making peer review status and later corrections explicit.
A Fire Amoeba Sets a New Heat Limit for Complex Life
A NASA-supported study identifies an amoeba from California hot springs that reproduces at 63°C, remains active at 64°C and can recover after brief exposure to temperatures approaching 70°C.
Hubble captures a spiral galaxy with a twisted core
NASA's Hubble Space Telescope has imaged NGC 4698, a spiral galaxy in Virgo whose central bulge and inner rotation axis are set at right angles to its disk, hinting at a past shaped by external gas or a minor merger.
NASA orbiter spots largest new lunar crater in a century
NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter has found a 728-foot-wide impact crater on the Moon's eastern limb, created between April and May 2024 by a building-sized asteroid or comet. The discovery gives scientists a rare look at how the lunar surface changes after a major collision.
NASA tracks Earth's shifting center of mass with satellites
NASA scientists have measured how Earth's center of mass moves by millimeters each year as water, ice, and air shift across the globe, using satellite laser ranging and GPS data.
Youngest exoplanet yet found emerges from archival telescope data
Astronomers have identified Elias 2-24 b, the youngest known exoplanet, using direct imaging techniques and archival data from the Keck Observatory. The planet is less than a million years old and still sits within its birth disk.
Solar Storm Forces Historians to Revise Timeline of Early Technology Disruption
A new review of historical records has corrected the date of a well-known 19th-century train delay caused by a solar storm, offering a clearer picture of how early electrical systems responded to space weather.
US military expands defense planning from ocean floor to lunar orbit
The US military's top officer says future conflicts could extend from the seafloor to the Moon's orbit, as the Space Force openly acknowledges operating defensive weapons in space for the first time.
SpaceX Falcon 9 landing team wins Neil Armstrong Space Prize
SpaceX's Falcon 9 booster landing team has received the first Neil Armstrong Space Prize, recognizing their work in making large-scale rocket reuse routine and changing the economics of space launches.
Vampire white dwarfs can collapse into neutron stars under precise conditions
Researchers have modeled how certain white dwarfs feeding on companion stars can collapse into neutron stars if their mass and accretion rate fall within a narrow range, revealing a rare but physically distinct pathway for stellar evolution.
V-2 Rocket Explosion Cut Albert III's Spaceflight Short
A V-2 rocket carrying the monkey Albert III exploded seconds after launch in 1949, exposing the dangers of early animal spaceflight and the technical limits of postwar rocketry.
Neil deGrasse Tyson releases Lost in Space, a new encyclopedia of the cosmos
Neil deGrasse Tyson and Lindsey Nyx Walker introduce Lost in Space, a 400-page National Geographic encyclopedia packed with thousands of facts, images, and profiles of planets, telescopes, and cosmic phenomena.
Silicon Spin Qubit Chip Integrates Quantum Gates and Readout on 300mm Wafer
Quobly has demonstrated single-chip readout and quantum gate operations on its QSOI architecture, fabricated with industrial 300mm FD-SOI CMOS technology and enriched silicon-28, marking a step toward scalable silicon-based quantum processors
Superconducting Quantum Processor Runs Qubit-Efficient Optimization Algorithm
Rigetti Computing has used a superconducting quantum processor to run an optimization algorithm that packs more classical variables into each qubit, letting the hardware tackle larger problems with fewer resources. The team benchmarked the approach against standard methods.
Zapata Quantum Restructures After Failed SPAC and Cancer Research Milestone
After a failed SPAC deal in 2024 left Zapata Quantum with new debt and little fresh capital, the company restructured and shifted its focus. Zapata now highlights progress in quantum resource estimation and cancer research, but faces ongoing engineering and scalability hurdles.
Webb spots puzzling changes in Chariklo's rings between Saturn and Uranus
The James Webb Space Telescope has recorded unexpected changes in the rings of Chariklo, a small centaur object between Saturn and Uranus, challenging assumptions about the stability of minor ring systems in the outer solar system.
Hubble captures a superbubble shaping star formation in the Large Magellanic Cloud
A new Hubble Space Telescope image reveals a vast cavity in nebula LHA 120-N44, showing how massive stars reshape their surroundings and spark new star birth in a neighboring galaxy.
GPU-Accelerated Digital Twin Maps Quantum Sensor Error Sources
A team led by MITRE has developed a GPU-accelerated simulation tool that pinpoints how different physical mechanisms limit sensitivity, accuracy, and robustness in quantum sensors.
Researchers suggest searching the Moon for alien technology fragments
A new study proposes that tiny fragments of ancient alien technology might be preserved in the Moon's surface. The authors outline how future lunar samples and advanced analysis could help search for these microscopic technosignatures.
Humanoid Robot GEAIR 2.0 Automates Tomato Flower Pollination in Beijing
A humanoid robot called GEAIR 2.0 has been demonstrated in Beijing performing autonomous hybrid pollination of tomato flowers. The system aims to reduce manual labor in crop breeding by combining robotics, AI, and gene editing in real greenhouse conditions.
Iron Age Longhouse and Rare Coin Reveal Distant Connections in Poland
Excavations at Łysa Góra in central Poland have uncovered a 2,500-year-old longhouse and a rare Thracian coin, providing new insight into Iron Age settlement patterns and long-distance contacts across Europe
Mercury's Surface Hides Evidence of Greater Planetary Shrinkage
A new study using NASA MESSENGER data finds Mercury may have shrunk by up to 30 percent more than earlier models indicated, with impact debris masking the true scale of planetary contraction
AI reconstructs black hole jet motion from decades of radio data
A new AI-driven analysis of 27 years of radio telescope data has produced the sharpest reconstruction yet of a black hole jet, revealing unexpected details about plasma motion in the blazar 3C 345
ALMA reveals chaotic birth of massive binary stars in real time
Astronomers using ALMA have reconstructed the formation of a massive binary star system just 5,300 light-years away, finding evidence that the two stars joined forces only decades ago rather than forming together
Fluffy Robot MOFU Tested for Lifelike Movement in Animacy Study
A Japanese team built MOFU, a spherical robot that expands and contracts its body to test whether volumetric movement makes machines seem more alive. Nearly 500 participants rated its lifelikeness in controlled video experiments
High Energy Photon From Distant Gamma Ray Burst Challenges Physics Limits
A photon with record-breaking energy from the gamma ray burst GRB 221009A reached Earth despite theoretical barriers. New analysis suggests a possible explanation involving axion-like particles and Lorentz invariance violation
US Space Command simulates orbital maneuvers in live satellite exercise
US Space Command has conducted its first live orbital maneuver exercise, using satellites to simulate close-approach operations and test military tactics for potential conflict in Earth orbit
China Targets 2028 Launch for Mars Sample Return Mission
China's Tianwen 3 mission is advancing toward a 2028 launch window, with plans to return Martian surface samples to Earth by 2031 using a multi-stage spacecraft and strict planetary protection protocols
Unitree G1 Robot Demonstrates Autonomous Sparring Using UnifoLM-X2-1.0
Unitree Robotics has released footage of its G1 humanoid robot sparring with a human using the UnifoLM-X2-1.0 AI model, highlighting advances in predictive perception and autonomous motion planning for dynamic physical tasks
OpenAI System Claims to Find Navier Stokes Singularity in Fluid Equations
OpenAI reports that a network of AI agents has produced a formal proof suggesting a finite-time singularity in the three-dimensional Navier Stokes equations, a result that could resolve a longstanding Millennium Prize Problem if verified
Quantum test reveals Einstein's gravity holds for falling atoms
A new experiment using ultra-cold rubidium atoms has measured how gravity affects quantum waves, providing the first direct test of Einstein's equivalence principle in the quantum regime
Genesis Sample Capsule Carash Exposed a Critical Spacecraft Design Flaw
NASA's Genesis mission was meant to return solar wind samples from deep space but ended with its capsule shattered in the Utah desert after a parachute system failure. The mission's outcome forced a reexamination of spacecraft safety and sample recovery methods
Gemini North Telescope Captures Spiral Galaxies in Active Merger
A new image from the Gemini North telescope on Maunakea reveals two spiral galaxies, NGC 7253, in the process of merging. The observation, led by local students, highlights the dynamic interactions that drive galaxy evolution
Simulations Reveal Moon May Have Formed in Hours After Giant Impact
New computer models suggest the Moon could have assembled rapidly from debris after a collision between early Earth and a Mars-sized body, with the timing and temperature of the impact playing a critical role
Webb Telescope Reveals Rare O-Type Star Cluster in Carina Nebula
A new James Webb Space Telescope image exposes a dense cluster of newborn stars, including a rare O-type giant, inside the Treasure Chest globule in the Carina Nebula, offering a detailed look at early stellar evolution in one of the Milky Way's most active star-forming regions
NASA adds new Goldstone antenna to expand deep space communications
NASA has activated a new 34 meter antenna at Goldstone to increase the Deep Space Network's capacity as Artemis and other missions strain existing communication infrastructure
Part 1 of 11