Science

Experts say the discovery of superionic ice vindicates computer predictions, which could help material physicists craft future substances with bespoke properties. And finding the ice required ultrafast measurements and fine control of temperature and pressure, advancing experimental techniques. "All of this would not have been possible, say, five years ago," said Christoph Salzmann at University College London, who discovered ices …

The US Air Force has, traditionally, done a terrible job of buying new rockets. Now, as lawmakers consider a total reorganization of the US military's space operations, the Pentagon's latest attempt to purchase new launch vehicles has become a hotly contested rivalry featuring the military-industrial complex and rocket billionaires Elon Musk and Jeff Bezos. Of course, there is a Russia …

NASA awarded SpaceX and Boeing with the major commercial contracts for space research support. SpaceX hopes that its first manned flight will start this year despite the fact that one of Crew Dragon pods last month exploded during a test – something the company dismissed as an "anomaly". However, the US Air Force has the ultimate power to delay a …

Nanoceria particles (green) intermingling with cells (blue). Image: Gianni Ciofani An upcoming experiment involving the International Space Station will test the effects of microgravity on living cells mixed with tiny ceramic particles. The test could result in powerful new antioxidants to treat the deleterious effects of prolonged exposure to space as well as various age-related diseases. The raw materials for …

In search of life on Mars, some rare meteorites found on earthquakes blown from the Mars surface by past effects – play a unique role. Because they represent our only samples of Mars (at least so far), the meteorites allow scientists to judge whether habitable states once existed on the planet and whether there is still a microbial life there …

Communicating through your thoughts alone is possible – with a little technical assistance. Scientists at the University of Washington's Center for Neurotechnology have figured out how to network human minds together to collaborate using only thoughts It works like this: Three players, including one main player, sit in separate rooms and watch game pieces cascade down a computer screen. Using …

Image source: YouTube Video Screenshot Physicists around the world continue to learn about the formation of black holes and the collisions that cause them. Now, the National Science Foundation's Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave Observatory (LIGO) has recorded the first collision between a black hole and a neutron star, giving more insight into how black holes grow. LIGO has made a great …

Ashback: Killer tree disease set to cost UK £ 15bn BBC News Ashback tree fungus could cost Britain £ 15 billion and Wipe out the UK's 125 million ash trees Daily Mail Ashback back to British economy nearly £ 15bn The Guardian Ash dieback: Deadly tree fungus could cost UK £ 15bn, researchers say The Independent View full coverage on …

On the second day of a conference on cosmetic threats to our planet, the proceedings were interrupted by an urgent message from Paul Chodas, the manager of NASA's Center for Near-Earth Object Studies. New calculations suggested there was a 10 percent chance that an asteroid named 2019 PDC would strike Earth in eight years, unleashing enough energy to a whole …

Two neutron stars rip each other apart to form a black hole in this NASA simulation. New research suggests that a star collision like this happened very close to our solar system about 4.6 billion years ago, which sparked our cosmic neighborhood with many of the important elements that were crucial to life. Credit: NASA Goddard Two astronomers believe they …