All Stories by Emily Conover
- Physics
Tiny, sunlight-powered aircraft could soar beyond airplanes’ reach
Microfliers levitate when hit with light, in conditions like those high in Earth’s atmosphere.
- Quantum Physics
‘Designer molecules’ could create tailor-made quantum devices
Scientists are making molecules suited to a variety of quantum tasks by building them up, atom by atom.
- Physics
The Milky Way’s newfound high-energy glow hints at the secrets of cosmic rays
Gamma rays with energies approaching a quadrillion electron volts emanate from the disk of the Milky Way.
- Physics
Diamond holds up at pressures more than five times those in Earth’s core
Even when pummeled with lasers, diamond retains its structure, which could reveal how carbon behaves in the cores of some exoplanets.
- Tech
A robot arm toting a Venus flytrap can grab delicate objects
By attaching electrodes to the plant’s leaves, researchers found a way to snap its traps shut on command.
- Physics
Explore every gravitational wave event spotted so far
This interactive visualization reveals the diversity of smashups that generate gravitational waves.
- Quantum Physics
Drones could help create a quantum internet
Flying drones sent entangled particles of light to two locations a kilometer apart.
- Chemistry
This weird chemical bond acts like a mash-up of hydrogen and covalent bonds
Chemistry students are taught that hydrogen bonds and covalent bonds are distinct, but a new study shows they exist on a continuum.
- Astronomy
Enormous X-ray bubbles balloon from the center of the Milky Way
Images from the the eROSITA telescope reveal X-ray–emitting blobs surrounding gamma-ray bubbles.
- Quantum Physics
The new light-based quantum computer Jiuzhang has achieved quantum supremacy
A second type of quantum computer has now performed a calculation impossible for a traditional computer.
- Physics
Newton’s groundbreaking Principia may have been more popular than previously thought
A search has uncovered over 300 copies of Isaac Newton’s famous 17th century book, the Principia, revealing a broader readership than assumed.
- Physics
Supercooled water has been caught morphing between two forms
A new experiment used ultrafast techniques to reveal high-density water transforming into low-density water at subfreezing temperatures.
