Hard Science
All Stories
Chinese rover makes surprise discovery about liquid water on Mars
Data from the Zhurong rover suggests the Red Planet was wet more recently than we thought.
Scientists watch a crystal being born
Crystallization is an entirely random process, so scientists have developed clever ways to investigate it at a molecular level.
No music on Mars: Sound is different on the red planet
The high pitches from the flute and the harp would reach your ears before the notes from the tuba and the cello.
Cryovolcanoes: How ice volcanoes reshaped the surface of Pluto
We have long thought that Pluto was completely frozen solid, but the discovery of cryovolcanoes challenges that assumption.
Time travel could be possible, but only with parallel timelines
Equations that describe time travel are fully compatible and consistent with relativity — but physics is not mathematics.
Physicists embark on a hunt for a long-sought quantum glow
Could we finally detect the elusive Unruh effect?
Europa’s similarity to Greenland suggests its hidden ocean is close to surface
Europa may be difficult to access. But if a recent study is correct, its subsurface ocean would be more accessible than previously thought.
How general relativity could help predict volcano eruptions
Extremely precise atomic clocks are not just of theoretical interest; they could help detect impending volcanic eruptions or melting glaciers.
A radio message will be sent to an alien solar system this year. What should it say?
There are pros and cons to sending interstellar messages to aliens that may or may not exist.
Volcano-triggered mass extinction paved the way for the dinosaurs
Volcanic activity caused the end-Triassic mass extinction 200 million years ago. The dinosaurs survived and rose to dominance.
What leaking helium-3 gas can tell us about Earth’s origin
Ancient helium-3 from the dawn of time leaks from the Earth, offering clues to our planet’s formation. A key question is where it leaks from.
Searching for Planet 9
Pluto failed to meet the definition of a planet, but some astronomers think there might be a legitimate Planet 9 out there.
Staring into the depths of the Sun with ultraviolet eyes
The European Space Agency’s Solar Orbiter recently captured images that could help scientists better under the mysterious physics of our Sun.
Neil deGrasse Tyson explores 3 mind-blowing space facts
Dr. Tyson explains where we might find aliens, why "dark matter" is a misleading term, and why you can blame physics for your favorite team's loss.
Conger ice shelf has collapsed: what you need to know, according to experts
A floating platform the size of Rome collapsed off of Antarctica.
Astronomy’s 10-year wish list: Big questions and bigger telescopes
An optical telescope with a massive 20-foot (6-meter) mirror has an eye-popping price tag of $11 billion.
Volcanoes and blobs: Earth’s interior is more mobile than we thought
Scientists have known blobs existed for a long time, but how they have behaved over Earth’s history has been an open question.
6 essential books on existentialist philosophy
Wander into the deep recesses of the mind and never return the same with these existentialist books.
Earendel: Hubble smashes record for farthest star ever seen
The light from Earendel took 12.9 billion years to reach Hubble. The star is millions of times brighter than our Sun and 50 times as massive.
Why Mercury could be encrusted with diamonds
Due to a crust of carbon, the absence of oxygen, and constant bombardment from meteorites, the planet Mercury may be littered with diamonds.
Cloud seeding might not be as promising as drought-troubled states hope
On Nov. 13, 1946, a scientist dropped crushed dry ice from a plane into supercooled stratus clouds.
Using the Moon as a gravitational wave detector to study the origin of the Universe
To study the origin of the Universe, we could build a constellation of six expensive spacecraft — or we could just use the Moon.
Alien life: What would constitute “smoking gun” evidence?
Multiple lines of evidence — physical, chemical, and biological — must converge for scientists to conclude that alien life has been found.
Solar storms can destroy satellites with ease – a space weather expert explains the science
Forty Starlink satellites were destroyed earlier this year in a geomagnetic storm.
NASA opens vacuum-sealed moon rock container from 50 years ago
Knowing that technology would advance in the future, NASA put some moon rock samples into storage without opening them. Now, they have.
An asteroid impact could wipe out an entire city. Here’s NASA’s plan
60% of all potentially dangerous asteroids remain undetected.
“Supermountains” may have influenced the course of life on Earth
Gigantic ranges called "supermountains" formed twice in Earth's history, and they may have had a profound influence on evolutionary history.
See 25,000 supermassive black holes in one map of the sky
Astronomers used supercomputers and an international network of antennas to create the stunning map.
How can we produce electronics sustainably? Extract rare-earth elements from waste
A new method of extracting rare-earth elements could put us on the track toward a circular economy.
How Mars lost its magnetic field — and then its oceans
Chemical changes inside Mars' core caused it to lose its magnetic field. This, in turn, caused it to lose its oceans. But how?