News

  1. Astronomy

    Lucky shot

    To protect its sensitive optics, the Hubble Space Telescope had to turn its back on last November’s Leonid meteor storm, and that fortuitously put the luminous Helix nebula directly in the telescope’s sightline.

    By Ron Cowen
  2. Physics

    A new twist on ropes

    The centuries-old craft of splicing sturdy ropes for ships and ocean rigs gets mathematical scrutiny, turning up new information about wear and tear.

    By Peter Weiss
  3. Tech

    Tiny device brings out the best in sperm

    A new device with potential use in fertility treatments separates robust sperm from stragglers by exploiting a phenomenon that occurs when two microscale fluid flows merge.

    By Peter Weiss
  4. Earth

    Satellites unravel a spot of mystery

    Five satellites that happened to be in the right places at the right time may have confirmed the cause of proton auroral spots, aurora-like phenomena that appear high in Earth's atmosphere.