SIDE BY SIDE A Jupiter-sized planet and a Neptune-sized moon cross in front of the star Kepler 1625 in this artist’s illustration. Hubble spotted signs of the moon in observations made in October 2017.
Dan Durda
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Magazine
In the Oct. 13 SN: 2018’s scientists to watch, superconductors heat up, the world’s oldest drawing, a sneaky superbug slayer, Ceres’ ice volcanoes, the birth of a neutron star, kidney stones close-up and more.
SPOT ON Giraffes get their characteristic patterns of spots from their mothers, a new study finds.
kimvanderwaal/Flickr (CC BY 2.0)
THE WEIGHT OF WATER By measuring how the land morphed daily under Hurricane Harvey’s floodwaters in Houston, scientists were able to calculate the weight of the water — and how it eventually evaporated or flowed out to sea.
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RIPE FOR DOMESTICATION Ground cherries make tasty fruit, but aren’t widely grown because some traits make them difficult to farm. Researchers are using gene editing to rapidly tame the berries into potential cash crops.
Sebastian Soyk
Science News
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Speeding up evolution to create useful proteins wins the chemistry Nobel
The three winners, which include the fifth woman to win the chemistry prize, pioneered techniques used to fashion customized proteins for new biofuels and drugs.
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Lemur study suggests why some fruits smell so fruity
A new test with lemurs and birds suggests there’s more to fruit odors than simple ripening.
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Hubble may have spotted the first known exomoon
A single sighting with the Hubble Space Telescope seems to confirm that there’s a Neptune-sized moon orbiting exoplanet Kepler 1625b.
Feature
The SN 10: These scientists defy limits to tackle big problems
With a drive to understand how things work, these young researchers are making a mark in sustainable energy, medicine, astronomy and technology.
News in Brief
A 90,000-year-old bone knife hints special tools appeared early in Africa
The discovery of a bone knife in a Moroccan cave points to the ancient emergence of specialized toolmaking in the region.
News in Brief
The first rovers to explore an asteroid just sent photos home
Japan’s Hayabusa2 spacecraft has deployed a pair of rovers to the surface of asteroid Ryugu.
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Giraffes inherit their spots from their mothers
Africa’s tallest creatures get their characteristic patterns of spots from their moms, a new study finds.
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Dazzling laser feats earn these physicists a Nobel
The 2018 Nobel Prize in physics went to scientists — including the third-ever female winner — who made optical tweezers and boosted the strength of laser pulses.
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Tracking how rainfall morphs Earth’s surface could help forecast flooding
After Hurricane Harvey, scientists used GPS networks to track how Earth’s surface morphed under the weight of floodwaters.
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Discovery of how to prod a patient’s immune system to fight cancer wins a Nobel
Two scientists share the 2018 medicine Nobel for identifying proteins that act as brakes on tumor-fighting T cells.
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Gene editing can speed up plant domestication
CRISPR/Cas9 replays domestication to make better ground cherries and tomatoes.
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Smuggling a CRISPR gene editor into staph bacteria can kill the pathogen
A new way fight antibiotic-resistant bacteria co-opts toxin-producing genes.
Rethink
We may not have found aliens yet because we’ve barely begun looking
A new calculation says SETI searches have combed the equivalent of a hot tub out of Earth’s oceans looking for extraterrestrial intelligence in space.
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Hints of weird particles from space may defy physicists’ standard model
Signals from the ANITA experiment don’t square with the properties of elementary particles cataloged in the standard model.
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Warm tropical Atlantic waters juiced the 2017 hurricane season
Anomalously warm ocean waters in the tropical Atlantic Ocean drove 2017’s hurricane powerhouses.
News in Brief
This reflective paint could keep sunbaked buildings cool
A new type of polymer coating that reflects sunlight to control heat could supplement or replace air conditioning systems.
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Feral cats appear to be pathetic at controlling New York City’s rats
When cats are on the prowl, rats may become harder to see, but roaming cats actually killed only a few.
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Laser mapping shows the surprising complexity of the Maya civilization
A large-scale lidar survey of Guatemalan forests reveals evidence of ancient, interconnected Maya cities.
News in Brief
In China, a deadly strain of bird flu now easily infects ducks
H7N9 evolved the ability to infect ducks just as a vaccine for chickens came into use.
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Survey raises worries about how screen time affects kids’ brains
A large study of U.S. children ties lots of screen time to lower thinking skills, but the relationship between the two is still unclear.
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Manta rays have an unusual mouth filter that resists clogging
Manta rays filter feed differently than other ocean creatures.
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Fiberglass-spinning robots could be construction workers of the future
A team of fiberglass-spinning robots could create tubing to help build bridges, buildings or other structures.
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A new species of high-altitude hummingbird may already be in trouble
Researchers have discovered a new species of hummingbird high up in the Ecuadorian Andes.
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Here’s why we care about attempts to prove the Riemann hypothesis
The Riemann hypothesis could hold the key to understanding prime numbers.