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Stories from Elizabeth Gamillo

In daylight, the experimental silkworms appeared pink, but under ultraviolet light, they had a bright red glow.

Silkworms Fed Quantum Dots Shine Bright Under Ultraviolet Light, Produce Fluorescent Red Silk

Caterpillars that ate carbon dots derived from mulberry leaves glowed a scarlet color that lasted until the second generation of worms

Russia controls aspects of the ISS's propulsion control systems that keep it in place and from falling towards Earth. The space station started out as a partnership between the United States and Russia.

How Sanctions on Russia Affect International Space Programs

Roscosmos is severing ties with global partners in response to restrictions

The artificial skin samples will sit in a custom device with a nutrient-filled liquid medium while they orbit in space aboard the ISS.

Scientists Will Study the Effects of Microgravity on Skin at the International Space Station

The experiment, using engineered skin samples, could lead to better skin care products

The massive aircraft was initially built as part of the Soviet aeronautical program in the 1960s and 70s while the Soviet Union was undergoing a space race with the United States.  

Ukrainian Officials Say the World’s Largest Aircraft, Antonov AN-225, Has Been Destroyed

The plane was undergoing maintenance in an airfield near Kyiv

Mountain goats carry bacterial diseases that are lethal to bighorn sheep and also compete for food.

To Protect Bighorn Sheep, Authorities Kill 58 Mountain Goats in Grand Teton National Park

The cull is part of an effort to safeguard the park’s vulnerable sheep herd from the non-native species

For the study, researchers surveyed 426 adults who had at least two dogs and had experienced the loss of one of their dogs.

Dogs May Mourn the Loss of Other Household Pets

Grieving canines ate less, slept more, and sought more attention from their human companions after the death of a furry friend, according to a survey

Head-on collisions between galaxies like the one seen in Arp 143 (pictured) may be how rings of new stars form.  

Hubble Space Telescope Captures Galaxies Caught in Triangular Tug-of-War

A collision between two galaxies may have sparked the odd shape

Magpies are highly social and live in groups of two or 12 individuals that defend, occupy, and breed cooperatively.

Sneaky Magpies Outwit Scientists by Removing Tracking Devices

The trackers were supposed to track movement behaviors but instead uncovered an unusual problem-solving behavior

Scans of the astronaut's neural networks were taken before they blasted off into space, as soon as they landed safely back home, and some cosmonauts had an additional brain scan seven months after their return to Earth. (Pictured: Astronaut Bruce McCandless II during an untethered spacewalk in 1984)  

Long-Term Space Travel May ‘Rewire’ Astronauts’ Brains

The changes may help the organ adapt to microgravity, but they seem to persist for several months after returning to Earth

Only in recent decades have researchers found that the fish have been gliding through the sea floors for hundreds of millions of years.

Rare Baby Ghost Shark Caught in New Zealand’s Chatham Rise

There are about 52 known species of chimaera, half of which were discovered in the last two decades

Out of 250,000 known marine species, scientists suspect all 126 marine mammals emit sound.

Scientists Propose the Creation of a Global Aquatic Sound Library

The first-ever international audio collection of aquatic ecosystems would aim to uncover unidentified fish species, discover regional dialects and more

Antarctic pearlwort (pictured) , grew and spread five times faster between 2009 and 2018 than growth rates observed between 1960 and 2009  

Warming Temperatures Are Turning Antarctica Green

Native flowering plant species grew faster and more densely in the last decade than in the previous 50 years combined

Linda is observant, social, and aware of new sights and sounds.

Meet Linda the Ostrich, the National Zoo’s Newest Animal Ambassador

The large feathery friend is four years old and arrived at the Zoo in November 2021

Collectors have gone out to look for rare pieces like washed-up octopuses and green dragons.

After 25 Years at Sea, Shipwrecked Lego Pieces Are Still Washing Ashore on Beaches in England

In 1997, a cargo ship was struck by a rogue wave. Among 62 shipping containers aboard, one contained five million plastic toy bricks

The star, HD 84406 is seen as 18 photons because it is refracted by the telescopes 18 misaligned mirrors.  

James Webb Space Telescope’s First Look at Outer Space Is a Kaleidoscope of Faint Starlight

As NASA astronomers adjust its mirrors over the next month, the dots of light will eventually align into one image of a star in Ursa Major

By combining evidence from CT scans and comparing Dolly's modern bird and reptile relatives, researchers suspect that the irregular bone structures likely occurred as a response to a bacterial or fungal infection like chlamydiosis and aspergillosis in Dolly's air sacs.

Meet Dolly, the First Dinosaur Discovered With a Case of the Sniffles

Abnormal growths in its fossilized neck bones suggest that the long-necked dino suffered from a pneumonia-like illness

Out of four known types of black holes, stellar-mass black holes are the most common and have masses less than 100 times the Sun.

Astronomers Spot First Lone, Free-Wheeling Black Hole in the Milky Way Galaxy

The massive void, zipping at 28 miles per second, may have been blasted into space by a supernova explosion

"Lake of Ice" by Cristiano Vendramin, Italy

A Snowy Scene at Italy’s Lake Santa Croce Wins the People’s Choice Award in Wildlife Photographer of the Year Contest

London’s Natural History Museum has announced five winners of the 57th annual competition

What a male song sparrow sings in each moment is dependent on what he sang 30 minutes ago and suggests that the birds don't have a 'bird brain,' but incredible memory and recall capacities.  

To Impress Lady Birds, Male Sparrows Sing Their Songs on Shuffle

The singers will memorize a 30-minute playlist and remix the order later to avoid losing their lover’s attention

The ice giants appear blue because of the methane in their atmospheres. Methane reflects blue light and absorbs red light. Pictured: Uranus on the left and Neptune on the right.

Why Twin-Like Ice Giants Uranus and Neptune Are Different Shades of Blue

A whiteish layer of haze forms where methane reacts with sunlight

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