All Stories by Maria Temming
- Planetary Science
Unlike Earth, the gases in Venus’ atmosphere aren’t uniformly mixed
Measurements of Venus’ atmospheric nitrogen show that a planet’s upper atmosphere doesn’t necessarily match the lower atmosphere.
- Space
A weird stellar explosion may have caused the brightest supernova yet seen
Astronomers may have spotted the first known example of a rare “pulsational pair-instability” supernova.
- Space
‘Spacefarers’ predicts how space colonization will happen
In Spacefarers, Christopher Wanjek provides an optimistic yet realistic view on how humans might colonize the rest of our solar system.
- Animals
Cold War nuclear test residue offers a clue to whale sharks’ ages
One unexpected legacy of the Cold War: Chemical traces of atomic bomb tests are helping scientists figure out whale shark ages.
- Space
New search methods are ramping up the hunt for alien intelligence
Six decades of radio silence hasn’t stopped scientists searching for intelligent life beyond Earth. In fact, new technologies are boosting efforts.
- Climate
These women endured a winter in the high Arctic for citizen science
Two women have spent the winter on the Norwegian archipelago of Svalbard to collect data for climate scientists around the world.
- Health & Medicine
You can help fight the coronavirus. All you need is a computer
With Folding@home, people can donate computing time on their home computers to the search for a chemical Achilles’ heel in the coronavirus.
- Environment
Legos may take hundreds of years to break down in the ocean
Sturdy types of plastic may persist in seawater for much long than scientists previously thought.
- Climate
How Hurricane Maria’s heavy rains devastated Puerto Rico’s forests
Hurricane Maria wreaked havoc on Puerto Rican forests in some unexpected ways.
- Artificial Intelligence
An AI that mimics how mammals smell recognizes scents better than other AI
An artificial intelligence modeled after the neural circuitry in mammalian brains can keep learning new aromas without forgetting others.
- Astronomy
Heavy metal may rain from the skies of planet WASP 76b
Astronomers saw hints of iron rain on an ultrahot gas giant, an exoplanet where starlike atmospheric temperatures drive weird weather.
- Chemistry
Thirdhand smoke wafting off moviegoers hurts air quality in theaters
Nonsmoking theaters can still get exposed to cigarette-related pollutants carried in on audience members’ bodies and clothing.
