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black and white image of swirls that represent subatomic particles

Particle Physics

How particle detectors capture matter’s hidden, beautiful reality

Old and new detectors trace the whirling paths of subatomic particles.

By Emily Conover4 hours ago

Moon

Space

A lunar magnetic field may have lasted for only a short time

By Carolyn Gramling20 hours ago

illustration of gravitational waves forming around two black holes spiraling around one another

Physics

A bounty of potential gravitational wave events hints at exciting possibilities

By Emily ConoverAugust 4, 2021

Animals

Snake-eating spiders are surprisingly common

By Asher JonesAugust 4, 2021

Earth

A new book reveals stories of ancient life written in North America’s rocks

By Alka Tripathy-LangAugust 3, 2021

Physics

Black holes born with magnetic fields quickly shed them

By Emily ConoverAugust 3, 2021

Earth

Greece’s Santorini volcano erupts more often when sea level drops

By Maria TemmingAugust 2, 2021

Space
A lunar magnetic field may have lasted for only a short time

By Carolyn Gramling20 hours ago
Physics
A bounty of potential gravitational wave events hints at exciting possibilities

By Emily ConoverAugust 4, 2021
Animals
Snake-eating spiders are surprisingly common

By Asher JonesAugust 4, 2021
Particle Physics
How particle detectors capture matter’s hidden, beautiful reality

By Emily Conover4 hours ago
Health & Medicine
New delta variant studies show the pandemic is far from over

By Tina Hesman SaeyJuly 30, 2021
Earth
A new book reveals stories of ancient life written in North America’s rocks

By Alka Tripathy-LangAugust 3, 2021
Animals
Polar bears sometimes bludgeon walruses to death with stones or ice

By Gloria DickieJuly 29, 2021
Physics
Black holes born with magnetic fields quickly shed them

By Emily ConoverAugust 3, 2021

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The Coronavirus Pandemic

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Why it’s still so hard to find treatments for early COVID-19

Small studies, unexpected side effects and incomplete information about how drugs work can stymie clinical trials for drugs that can treat COVID-19.

By Tina Hesman SaeyJuly 27, 2021
One mutation may have set the coronavirus up to become a global menace
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From the Archives

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Science News Bulletin

April 2, 1921 No. 1

Science News Magazine

cover of the July 31, 2021 issue of Science News

July 31, 2021 Vol. 200 No. 2

Featured Media

telescope image of a star cluster, which is surrounded by a blue haze

How do scientists calculate the age of a star?

There are a few different methods to determine the age of a star, but none are perfect.

an elephant takes a drink from a lake

Newly recognized tricks help elephants suck up huge amounts of water

illustration of a black hole merging with a neutron star

Gravitational waves reveal the first known mergers of a black hole and neutron star

scores of small silver fish swimming

Tiny crystals give a plain fish twinkling, colorful dots under light

Monica Quintana wears a mask and face shield and dons a gown in a hospital hallway

The surge in U.S. coronavirus cases shows a shift in who’s getting sick

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More Stories

Life

If confirmed, tubes in 890-million-year-old rock may be the oldest animal fossils

By Jake BuehlerJuly 28, 2021
Near-invincible tardigrades may see only in black and white

By Erin Garcia de JesúsJuly 28, 2021
‘Wild Souls’ explores what we owe animals in a human-dominated world

By Jonathan LambertJuly 26, 2021

Humans

Only a tiny fraction of our DNA is uniquely human

By Tina Hesman SaeyJuly 16, 2021
‘The Joy of Sweat’ will help you make peace with perspiration

By Bethany BrookshireJuly 13, 2021
How wielding lamps and torches shed new light on Stone Age cave art

By Jaime ChambersJuly 6, 2021

Climate

A stunning visualization of Alaska’s Yukon Delta shows a land in transition

By Carolyn GramlingJuly 26, 2021
Hurricanes may not be becoming more frequent, but they’re still more dangerous

By Carolyn GramlingJuly 13, 2021
The first step in using trees to slow climate change: Protect the trees we have

By Susan MiliusJuly 13, 2021

Astronomy

A super-short gamma-ray burst defies astronomers’ expectations

By Maria TemmingAugust 2, 2021
The tiny dot in this image may be the first look at exomoons in the making

By Maria TemmingJuly 28, 2021
The latest picture of a black hole captures Centaurus A’s massive jets

By Maria TemmingJuly 19, 2021

Physics

With Steven Weinberg’s death, physics loses a titan

By Tom SiegfriedJuly 24, 2021
An atomic clock that could revolutionize space travel just passed its first test

By Maria TemmingJune 30, 2021
Dark matter may slow the rotation of the Milky Way’s central bar of stars

By Emily ConoverJune 25, 2021

Health & Medicine

New delta variant studies show the pandemic is far from over

By Tina Hesman SaeyJuly 30, 2021
Why the CDC says it’s crucial to start wearing masks indoors again

By Tina Hesman SaeyJuly 27, 2021
What experts know so far about COVID-19 boosters for immunocompromised people

By Erin Garcia de JesúsJuly 23, 2021

Earth

Dinosaur-killing asteroid may have made Earth’s largest ripple marks

By Nikk OgasaJuly 29, 2021
Mixing trees and crops can help both farmers and the climate

By Jonathan LambertJuly 14, 2021
Satellites show how a massive lake in Antarctica vanished in days

By Carolyn GramlingJuly 12, 2021

Science & Society

What 20th century science fiction got right and wrong about the future of babies

By Robin Marantz HenigJuly 15, 2021
How science overlooks Asian Americans

By Sujata GuptaJuly 12, 2021
The gap in parenting time between middle- and working-class moms has shrunk

By Sujata GuptaJuly 9, 2021