News

  1. A man wearing a surgical mask passes a sign that reads "you still have to wear a mask"
    Health & Medicine

    New delta variant studies show the pandemic is far from over

    The coronavirus’s delta variant is different from earlier strains of the virus in worrying ways, health officials are discovering.

    By Tina Hesman Saey
  2. skeleton of an ancient shark attack victim at an excavation site
    Anthropology

    A skeleton from Peru vies for the title of oldest known shark attack victim

    The 6,000-year-old remains of a teen with a missing leg and tell-tale bite marks came to light after news of a 3,000-year-old victim in Japan surfaced.

    By Bruce Bower
  3. picture of a green caterpillar-like creature walking across a leaf
    Animals

    Viruses can kill wasp larvae that grow inside infected caterpillars

    Proteins found in viruses and some moths can protect caterpillars from parasitoid wasps seeking a living nursery for their eggs.

    By Erin Garcia de Jesús
  4. illustration of Chicxulub asteroid impact
    Earth

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

    A tsunami created by the Chicxulub impact could have formed giant ripples found in rock under Louisiana, a new study finds.

    By Nikk Ogasa
  5. illustration of a polar bear standing on a cliff as a rock falls toward a walrus standing on a rock below
    Animals

    Polar bears sometimes bludgeon walruses to death with stones or ice

    Inuit reports of polar bears using tools to kill walruses were historically dismissed as stories, but new research suggests the behavior does occur.

    By Gloria Dickie
  6. image of the mesh skeleton on a modern bath sponge
    Life

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

    Newly described wormlike fossils may be ancient sea sponges. If confirmed, the fossils would reveal a remarkably early start to animal life.

    By Jake Buehler
  7. close-up of a tardigrade from above
    Life

    Near-invincible tardigrades may see only in black and white

    A genetic analysis suggests that water bears don’t have light-sensing proteins to detect ultraviolet light or color.

    By Erin Garcia de Jesús
  8. star PDS 70 surrounded by dusty ring of debris, with bright dot inside ring that may be a moon forming
    Astronomy

    The tiny dot in this image may be the first look at exomoons in the making

    New ALMA observations offer some of the strongest evidence yet that planets around other stars have moons.

    By Maria Temming
  9. a crowd of people wearing face masks in Grand Central Station in New York City
    Health & Medicine

    Why the CDC says it’s crucial to start wearing masks indoors again

    While unvaccinated people are driving the spread of the coronavirus, vaccinated people infected with the delta variant may also easily transmit it.

    By Tina Hesman Saey
  10. cars lined up at a COVID-19 rapid testing site
    Health & Medicine

    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 Saey
  11. microscope image of archaea
    Paleontology

    3.42-billion-year-old fossil threads may be the oldest known archaea microbes

    The structure and chemistry of these ancient cell-like fossils may hint where Earth’s early inhabitants evolved and how they got their energy.

    By Carolyn Wilke
  12. a person prepares a syringe with a Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine dose
    Health & Medicine

    What experts know so far about COVID-19 boosters for immunocompromised people

    Some immunocompromised people remain at risk for severe COVID-19 despite being vaccinated. Studies hint that an additional vaccine dose might help.

    By Erin Garcia de Jesús