Helen Thompson

Helen Thompson

Multimedia Editor

Helen Thompson is the multimedia editor at Science News. She makes videos, creates data visuals, helps manage the website, wrangles cats and occasionally writes about things like dandelion flight and whale evolution. She has undergraduate degrees in biology and English from Trinity University in San Antonio, Texas, a master’s degree in science writing from Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, Maryland, and strong opinions about tacos. Before Science News, she wrote for Smithsonian, NPR.org, National Geographic, Nature and others.

All Stories by Helen Thompson

  1. Paleontology

    Paleontology has a ‘parachute science’ problem. Here’s how it plays out in 3 nations

    When researchers study fossils from lower-income countries, they often engage in dubious or illegal practices that can stifle science.

  2. Space

    50 years ago, cosmic rays may have caused Apollo astronauts to see lights

    Apollo astronauts reported seeing flashes of light where there were none. Fifty years later, the flashes still mess with modern astronauts’ vision.

  3. Health & Medicine

    The U.S. COVID-19 public health emergency is ending. What does that mean?

    The declaration, made early in the pandemic, made tests, vaccines and treatments free to all. On May 11, the proclamation ends.

  4. Particle Physics

    How ghostly neutrinos could explain the universe’s matter mystery

    If neutrinos behave differently from their antimatter counterparts, it could help explain why our cosmos is full of stuff.

  5. Animals

    Some hamsters are extremely susceptible to COVID-19

    Golden Syrian hamsters used in research and popular as pets can become infected with SARS-CoV-2 with very low doses of the virus, a new study suggests.

  6. Animals

    How a western banded gecko eats a scorpion

    New high-speed video details how usually mild-mannered geckos shake and incapacitate their venomous prey.

  7. Find out how we’re connecting current events to currents of the past

  8. Space

    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.

  9. Archaeology

    To find answers about the 1921 race massacre, Tulsa digs up its painful past

    A century ago, hundreds of people died in a horrific eruption of racial violence in Tulsa. A team of researchers may have found a mass grave from the event.

  10. Life

    Giant worms may have burrowed into the ancient seafloor to ambush prey

    20-million-year-old tunnels unearthed in Taiwan may have been home to creatures that ambushed prey similar to today’s monstrous bobbit worms.

  11. Animals

    Flamboyant cuttlefish save their bright patterns for flirting, fighting and fleeing

    A new field study of flamboyant cuttlefish shows they don’t always live up to their reputation.

  12. Archaeology

    X-rays reveal what ancient animal mummies keep under wraps

    A new method of 3-D scanning mummified animals reveals life and death details for a snake, a bird and a cat.