Hubble snaps a radiant galaxy lit up by a very active black hole
The Hubble Space Telescope captured a brilliant image of spiral galaxy NGC 3254, which has a particularly luminescent and active core emitting as much energy as the rest of the…
Giant rhino fossils shed light on the biggest land mammals in history
A newly discovered species of gigantic rhino that used to roam Asia around 25 million years ago was detailed by scientists in a paper published in Nature Thursday. With a…
Space tourism sounds fun. But it could be terrible for the planet.
Space travel has environmental costs. For research, it might be worth it. To send Jeff Bezos, Richard Branson, and other wealthy tourists into orbit? That’s debatable. Companies including SpaceX, Virgin…
Why the heat wave hitting the Western U.S. is so intense
Records will break. A mid-June heat wave, lasting through the week’s end, is baking much of the Western U.S. A hot weather pattern amplified by a climate change-exacerbated drying trend…
Wooden satellite could be orbiting the Earth by 2021
A satellite made of wood sounds like a concept ripped from the pages of Leonardo da Vinci’s sketchbooks. But Finnish company Arctic Astronautics wants to launch one into space by…
Scientists discovered a new mammal. Hear its haunting bark.
[embedded content] On our wildly diverse planet, scientists are still finding new species. Even mammals. While on an expedition in Nigeria in 2009, researchers noticed a curious bark-like call in…
The fat bear cams are back, baby
They’re back. The wildlife streamers explore.org officially turned on the Alaskan brown bear cams on Monday, June 14. The cameras, situated along the salmon-rich Brooks River in Katmai National Park…
In year of isolation, this $3,000 telescope may have changed citizen astronomy forever
After a couple hours of sleep, Rachel Knight woke to an alarm set for 2 a.m. Two alarms, actually. Her phone and Amazon Echo clamored in tandem to make sure…
Why cicadas love to land on you, irresistible human
Even on an Air Force base tarmac, a cicada landed on the president’s neck. The spectacular emergence of the Brood X cicadas — with some 1.5 million of the harmless…
Hubble catches sight of a beautifully swirling galaxy in flux
Hubble’s latest look into deep space is a real dazzler. Image: ESA/Hubble & NASA, A. Riess et Say hello to NGC 4680. This distant galaxy — it’s more than 350…