Physics

Now that's a big bubble.

Here’s How to Blow the Perfect Giant Soap Bubble, According to Physics

Sometimes, science really blows

The TEQ experiments will attempt to induce a quantum collapse with a small piece of silicon dioxide, or quartz, measuring nanometers across—tiny, but much larger than individual particles.

A New Experiment Hopes to Solve Quantum Mechanics' Biggest Mystery

Physicists will try to observe quantum properties of superposition—existing in two states at once—on a larger object than ever before

In the heart of a new dark matter detector, LUX-ZEPLIN (LZ), a 5-foot-tall detector filled with 10 tons of liquid xenon, will search for hypothetical dark matter particles to produce flashes of light as they traverse the detector.

New Generation of Dark Matter Experiments Gear Up to Search for Elusive Particle

Deep underground, in abandoned gold and nickel mines, vats of liquid xenon and silicon germanium crystals will be tuned to detect invisible matter

MIT researchers develop a mathematical model to predict a knot’s stability with the help of color-changing fibers.

The Mathematics of a Well-Tied Knot

Fibers that change color under pressure helped researchers predict knot performance

Vera C. Rubin, who advanced our understanding of dark matter, operating the 2.1-meter telescope at Kitt Peak National Observatory.

For the First Time, a National U.S. Observatory Has Been Named for a Female Astronomer: Vera Rubin

The Vera C. Rubin Observatory will image the entire visible night sky every few nights

These are ten of the biggest strides made by scientists in the last ten years.

The Top Ten Scientific Discoveries of the Decade

Breakthroughs include measuring the true nature of the universe, finding new species of human ancestors, and unlocking new ways to fight disease

NASA's Sun-Orbiting Probe Reveals New Secrets of Our Host Star

The first findings from the Parker Solar Probe change what we know about the workings of our nearest star

Jupiter and its Great Red Spot as seen by the Hubble Telescope on June 27, 2019.

Jupiter's Great Red Spot May Not Be Dying Out Just Yet

Earlier this year, the spot appeared to be losing big chunks, but new research suggests it was gobbling up a smaller storm

Although ammonoids died out around the same time as most dinosaurs, new computer models are revealing how these marine animals moved through the water.

Video Game-Inspired Models Demonstrate How Prehistoric Squid Relatives Swam Through the Seas

By simulating liquid flows around the shells of ammonoids, scientists study how these ancient animals moved

An artist's concept showing a "naked-eye" view of a GRB up close. Observations suggest that material is shot outward in a two-component jet (white and green beams). Credit: NASA/Swift/Mary Pat Hrybyk-Keith and John Jones

Astronomers Detect Record-Breaking Gamma Ray Bursts From Colossal Explosion in Space

A powerful outburst in a distant galaxy produced photons with high enough energies to be detected by ground-based telescopes for the first time

The Ancient Greeks Used Machines to Lift Stones 150 Years Earlier Than Previously Believed

An examination of grooves on blocks of stone from early temples suggest they were lifted and then levered into place using a frame

Samples of trinitite from the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History.

A Chunk of Trinitite Reminds Us of the Sheer, Devastating Power of the Atomic Bomb

Within the Smithsonian's collections exists a telltale trace of the weapon that would change the world forever

The rotation and convection of molten iron at the center of the planet creates a dynamo effect, generating Earth's magnetic field.

Earth's Magnetic Field Could Take Longer to Flip Than Previously Thought

New research suggests a polarity reversal of the planet takes about 22,000 years, significantly longer than former estimates

An artist's visualization of the star S0-2 as it passes by the supermassive black hole at the galactic center. As the star gets closer to the supermassive black hole, it experiences a gravitational redshift that is predicted by Einstein's general relativity. By observing this redshift, we can test Einstein's theory of gravity.

A Star Orbiting in the Extreme Gravity of a Black Hole Validates General Relativity

The star S0-2 gets so close to the supermassive black hole at the center of the galaxy that it can be used to test our fundamental understanding of gravity

How a Toaster-Sized Atomic Clock Could Pave the Way for Deep Space Exploration

NASA's Deep Space Atomic Clock is now orbiting Earth for a year-long test run

The Future of Helium Is Up in the Air

The world is experiencing a shortage of the gas, a byproduct of natural gas production, threatening MRIs, scientific research and birthday parties

A Nanoscale Light Trick Is the Key to Peacock Spiders' Super-Black Spots

A new study shows how patches of bumpy microlenses capture 99.5 of the light that hits them

Uhlenbeck's work on minimal surfaces was instrumental to the foundation of the mathematical field of geometric analysis

Karen Uhlenbeck Is the First Woman to Win Math’s Top Prize

The Abel Prize honoree was recognized for "the fundamental impact of her work on analysis, geometry and mathematical physics"

The Holy Fire at Lake Elsinore, California, when only about five percent of the fire was contained, August 9, 2018.

Untangling the Physics Behind Drifting Embers, 'Firenadoes' and Other Wildfire Phenomena

Fires can leap rapidly from building to building and even cause extreme weather events such as pyrocumulonimbus storm clouds

An ultraviolet image of the Andromeda galaxy, the closest major galaxy to the Milky Way, taken by NASA's Galaxy Evolution Explorer space telescope. Like our own galaxy, Andromeda is a spiral galaxy with a flat rotating disk of stars and gas and a concentrated bulge of stars at the center.

Streams of Stars Snaking Through the Galaxy Could Help Shine a Light on Dark Matter

When the Milky Way consumes another galaxy, tendrils of stellar streams survive the merger, containing clues about the universe's mysterious unseen matter

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