News in Brief

  1. Astronomy

    Solar system sits within major spiral arm of Milky Way

    The solar system appears to live in one of the major spiral arms of the Milky Way, not in an offshoot as previously thought.

    By Christopher Crockett
  2. Animals

    Barnacles track whale migration

    The mix of oxygen isotopes in the shells of barnacles that latch on to baleen whales may divulge how whale migration routes have changed over millions of years.

    By Thomas Sumner
  3. Planetary Science

    Europa spouting off again

    Plumes of presumably water erupt from the surface of Jupiter’s frozen moon Europa, in images taken by the Hubble Space Telescope.

    By Christopher Crockett
  4. Climate

    Methane didn’t warm ancient Earth, new simulations suggest

    Scarce oxygen and abundant sulfate prevented methane from accumulating enough to keep Earth warm hundreds of millions of years ago, reviving the faint young sun paradox.