Space
We summarize the week's scientific breakthroughs every Thursday.
- Astronomy
With the launch of TESS, NASA will boost its search for exoplanets
The Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite will set the stage for the next chapter of exoplanet exploration.
- Physics
Einstein’s general relativity reveals new quirk of Mercury’s orbit
A tiny effect of general relativity on Mercury’s orbit has been calculated for the first time.
- Particle Physics
The search for mysterious dark matter underdogs steps up
Dark matter particles called axions are finally being put to the test.
- Astronomy
Dark matter isn’t interacting with itself after all
Hints that a distant galactic collision knocked dark matter askew fizzled with new observations.
- Paleontology
Readers debate dinosaur designation and more
Readers had questions about the dino family tree and Venus' habitability.
- Astronomy
A dozen new black holes found in Milky Way’s center
Twelve small black holes spotted in the Milky Way’s center suggest thousands more in the galaxy’s inner region.
- Cosmology
Why the Nobel Prize might need a makeover
In Losing the Nobel Prize, astrophysicist Brian Keating discusses the downsides of science’s top honor.
- Astronomy
A Chinese space station will fall to Earth this weekend
The Chinese space agency’s first space station is coming back to Earth this weekend. It probably won’t cause damage, but it will cause fireworks.
- Astronomy
Dark matter is MIA in this strange galaxy
A galaxy without dark matter bolsters the case that the invisible substance really exists.
- Planetary Science
Water may have killed Mars’ magnetic field
Extra hydrogen near the Red Planet’s iron core could have shut down convection.
- Planetary Science
This spinning moon shows where debris from giant impacts fell
A new map shows that light-colored lunar plains point back to huge impact basins, raising questions about the age and history of the moon.
- Planetary Science
Venus may be home to a new kind of tectonics
Venus’ surface seems to be divided into jostling blocks of crust, defying conventional wisdom about how the surfaces of rocky planets work.
