Vol. 198 No. 8
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More Stories from the November 7, 2020 issue

  1. Space

    A new moon radiation measurement may help determine health risks to astronauts

    China's lunar lander measured radiation at the moon’s surface, finding the daily dose is 2.6 times as high as inside the International Space Station.

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  2. Animals

    A beaked whale’s nearly four-hour-long dive sets a new record

    The animals may rely on large stores of oxygen, a slow metabolism and the ability to tolerate lactic acid to go for hours without surfacing for air.

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  3. Tech

    A new thermometer measures temperature with sound

    An acoustic thermometer takes temperature by listening to the faint hum that objects give off when they get hot.

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  4. Microbes

    50 years ago, scientists suspected microbes flourished in clouds

    In 1970, scientists presented early evidence that microbes in clouds may be alive and kicking.

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  5. Life

    A new map shows where Asian giant hornets could thrive in the U.S.

    Suitable habitat along the Pacific West Coast means so-called “murder hornets” could get a foothold in North America if they aren’t eradicated.

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  6. Space

    EHT data show turbulence makes the glowing ring around M87’s black hole wobble

    Event Horizon Telescope data spanning nearly a decade reveal that the appearance of the supermassive black hole inside galaxy M87 changes over time.

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  7. Space

    A ‘lake’ on Mars may be surrounded by more pools of water

    Radar data hint at patches of liquid water beneath Martian polar ice, but some urge caution in interpreting results.

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  8. Physics

    Fundamental constants place a new speed limit on sound

    Physicists propose a new maximum rate that sound waves can travel under conditions normally found on Earth — 36 kilometers per second.

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  9. Environment

    How planting 70 million eelgrass seeds led to an ecosystem’s rapid recovery

    The study is a blueprint for restoration efforts that capitalize on seagrass habitats’ capacity to store carbon and that can be replicated elsewhere.

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  10. Animals

    Glowing blue helps shield this tardigrade from harmful ultraviolet light

    Tardigrades have a newly discovered trick up their sleeve: fluorescence.

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  11. Paleontology

    Cannibalism in the womb may have helped megalodon sharks become giants

    The ancient sea terror Otodus megalodon may have grown to at least 14 meters long thanks to a firstborn pup’s predatory behavior, some researchers say.

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  12. Physics

    Black hole revelations win the 2020 Nobel Prize in physics

    The Nobel Prize in physics was awarded to a trio of scientists for their work on the most mysterious objects in the universe: black holes.

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  13. Health & Medicine

    Hepatitis C discoveries win 2020 Nobel Prize in physiology or medicine

    The 2020 medicine Nobel recognizes work that found that a novel virus was to blame for chronic hepatitis and led to a test to screen blood donations.

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  14. Genetics

    Gene-editing tool CRISPR wins the chemistry Nobel

    A gene-editing tool developed just eight years ago that has “revolutionized the life sciences” nabbed the 2020 Nobel Prize in chemistry.

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