FIRST ON THE MOON There are two astronauts in this 1969 photo. Buzz Aldrin stands on the moon near the Apollo 11 lunar lander while Neil Armstrong, reflected in Aldrin’s visor, takes the picture.
NASA
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Magazine
In the July 6 SN: Celebrating the 50th anniversary of Apollo 11, stone tool dates face scrutiny, ocean plastic goes deep, records of Inca taxation, erosion spurred plate tectonics and more.
TIMEPIECE Archaeological evidence suggests that early humans used the moon as a timekeeper, as first argued during the Apollo missions.
Kym MacKinnon/Unsplash
BEHIND GLASS Science News astronomy reporter Lisa Grossman visits the pristine sample lab at NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston in March. The display case holds rocks collected during Apollo 15 and 16. The 1.5-kilogram chunk of volcanic basalt in the center is 3.4 billion years old.
Felix Sanchez
LUNAR LEFTOVERS Astronauts, like those who touched down in the Apollo 15 lunar module (shown) in July 1971, left a lot on the moon’s surface, from scientific instruments to trash.
NASA
Science News
News
Botox may relieve persistent pelvic pain caused by endometriosis
The wrinkle-smoothing treatment Botox may relieve pain from muscle spasms in the pelvic floor of women with endometriosis.
Growth Curve
1 week ago
News
Longer gaps between births can halve infant deaths in developing nations
Leaving more time between successive pregnancies matters for infant survival, but only in less-developed countries.
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News
Permanent liquid magnets have now been created in the lab
Magnets that generate persistent magnetic fields are usually solid. But new little bar magnets have the mechanical properties of liquids.
Feature
How NASA has kept Apollo moon rocks safe from contamination for 50 years
NASA wouldn’t let our reporter touch the Apollo moon rocks. Here’s why that’s a good thing.
News
A flexible bone that helps mammals chew dates back to the Jurassic Period
A flexible bone that helps with chewing may have helped give rise to the Age of Mammals, a new fossil shows.
Feature
Apollo astronauts left trash, mementos and experiments on the moon
Here’s what planetary scientists are learning from the remains of Apollo outposts, and how archeologists hope to preserve it.
News
Manipulating nerve cells makes mice ‘see’ something that’s not there
Using optogenetics to stimulate about 20 nerve cells causes mice to perceive nonexistent vertical or horizontal lines.
Essay
Ancient humans used the moon as a calendar in the sky
Whether the moon was a timekeeper for early humans, as first argued during the Apollo missions, is still up for debate.
50 Years Ago
50 years ago, lambs survived but didn’t thrive inside artificial wombs
Artificial wombs to support preemie babies are closer to reality.
Feature
Moonlight shapes how some animals move, grow and even sing
The moon’s light influences lion prey behavior, dung beetle navigation, fish growth, mass migrations and birdsong.
News in Brief
A deadly fungus gives ‘zombie’ ants a case of lockjaw
Clues left on infected ant jaws may reveal how the ‘zombie-ant-fungus’ contracts ant muscles to make their death grip.
News in Brief
WHO declares a public health emergency over Congo’s Ebola outbreak
The yearlong Ebola outbreak in the Congo has been declared a public health emergency by the World Health Organization.
Science Stats
Planting trees could buy more time to fight climate change than thought
Earth has nearly a billion hectares suitable for new forests to start trapping carbon, a study finds.
News
This gene may help worms live longer, but not healthier
Antiaging therapies may have trade-offs, research on worms suggests.
News
Scientists still can’t agree on the universe’s expansion rate
A mismatch in measurements of how fast the universe is expanding might not be real, a study hints.
Science Visualized
Night-shining ‘noctilucent’ clouds have crept south this summer
Clouds high in the atmosphere that catch the sun’s rays even after sundown may be seen farther from the poles due to an increase in moisture in the air.
News
Gaps in gas disks around stars may not always mark newborn planets
New research has prompted a rethink of the theory that gaps in planet-forming disks around young stars mark spaces where planets are being created.
Feature
Accolades, skepticism and science marked Science News’ coverage of Apollo
Science News’ coverage of the Apollo program stayed focused on the science but also framed the moon missions in the broader social and political context of the era.
News
‘Sunny day’ high tide floods are on the rise along U.S. coasts
Sea level rise led to record-breaking tidal flooding in cities along the U.S. East Coast, a NOAA report found.
News
Spraying bats with ‘good’ bacteria may combat deadly white nose syndrome
Nearly half of bats infected with white nose syndrome survived through winter after being spritzed with antifungal bacteria, a small study finds.
Reviews & Previews
Celebrate the moon landing anniversary with books that go beyond the small step
New books about Apollo 11 and the mission to the moon offer something for everyone, from astronomy lovers to fans of graphic novels and self-improvement buffs.
Science Visualized
Tiny glasses help reveal how praying mantises can see in 3-D
Newfound nerve cells in praying mantises help detect different views that each of the insects’ eyes sees, a mismatch that creates depth perception.
News
This solar-powered device produces energy and cleans water at the same time
Someday, the two-for-one machine could help curb electricity and freshwater shortages.
News
3 questions seismologists are asking after the California earthquakes
After back-to-back quakes, scientists are scrambling to figure out which faults ruptured and what it means for future California quake activity.