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Quest was purchased by explorer Ernest Shackleton for a Canadian Arctic expedition that was later aborted. He then set his sights on his fourth Antarctic expedition, but he died on the way. The ship was later used for seal hunting off Newfoundland and Labrador.

New Close-Up Images Reveal the Wreckage of Ernest Shackleton’s Last Ship, Now Draped in Discarded Fishing Gear and Teeming With Life

The vessel “Quest,” found in 2024 off the coast of northeastern Canada, has become a home for corals, anemones and fish. It also holds the leftovers from decades of commercial fishing that happened above it after it sank

Scientists first spotted the creatures in 2008.

Meet the Orange-Lipped ‘Likweli’ Monkey, a New Species That Was Discovered in the Congo Rainforest

The creatures, which weigh about the same as a small dog, have spiky black hair, orange-cream skin around their mouths and a white patch on their rear ends. Scientists say that they’re probably endangered

Gripping onto the edge of an iceberg in East Greenland, a polar bear looks out across the sea ice and sniffs the air. “The scene reflects a landscape that never stays still, where ice fractures, drifts and reforms around it,” photographer Rhiannon Lawler of the United Kingdom writes in a caption. Lawler captured the photo with a drone, keeping a safe distance from the animal.

These 16 Splendid Aerial Views Capture Wildlife From Above, Revealing the Beauty and Mystery of Nature

The second International Aerial Photographer of the Year contest selected its winners and 101 top images. Here’s a selection of the photos that spotlight animals from a new perspective

Cats lick each other in different contexts, and they're not all friendly.

When a Cat Licks Another Cat, It’s Not Always a Friendly Gesture. New Study Reveals They May Just Want Their Own Space

Classic feline behavior could be a passive-aggressive maneuver to get what they want

A fragment of the Hillsborough meteorite

This Meteorite Crashed Into a New Jersey Home in 2024. Now, Scientists Say It Contains Some of the Building Blocks of Life

The Hillsborough meteorite belongs to a rare class of rocks from space, according to a new study. It holds amino acids and other organic compounds, as well as evidence of salty water

Two new studies suggest that smartphones are partially to blame for declining birth rates.

Smartphones Might Be Playing a Role in the United States’ Declining Birth Rate, New Research Suggests

Some economists suspect that the technology’s widespread adoption has reduced in-person interactions and increased access to pornography and information on birth control, leading to less unprotected sex

Researchers showed each giraffe the contents of several containers, which held varying numbers of carrots, then added extra pieces to one of them. Afterward, the animal would choose a container to get the treats inside.

Giraffes Might Be Even Smarter Than We Thought. Some Can Solve Simple Math Problems, a New Study Suggests

Two of four tested giraffes seemed to be able to mentally combine numbers to get one of their favorite treats: carrots. But all the animals failed at tasks involving subtraction or multiple calculations

Brown huntsman spiders live in eastern Australia.

Scientists Ranked Hundreds of Spider Species by Running Speed. Australia’s Huge, Hairy Brown Huntsman Came Out on Top

The brown huntsman can sprint at a maximum speed of eight miles per hour, although it can only maintain that pace for a fraction of a second. The research will lead to a better understanding of the evolution and biomechanics of arachnids

An illustration of the Beta Pictoris system features the newly discovered planet, Beta Pictoris d, at the right. Its orbit is wider than those of the two other known planets moving around its star.

Astronomers Noticed a Mysterious Spot Appearing in Telescope Images. It Turned Out to Be the Faintest Exoplanet Ever Imaged From Earth

The gas giant, called Beta Pictoris d, had been hiding in plain sight for more than a decade, until two independent teams verified its existence

Researchers observed seafloor movement at the Southeast Indian Ridge, denoted by the yellow line.

In a First, Scientists Witness the Seafloor Spread in Real Time, Giving Them a Rare Glimpse at a Mysterious Geologic Process

Across a matter of days in 2024, the seafloor in part of the Indian Ocean dropped by about 13 feet, and roughly 5.7 billion cubic feet of molten rock rose to the crust’s surface, according to a new study

The sugar was detected near the center of our Milky Way galaxy, which shines brightly with stars in this artificially colored image.

In a First, Astronomers Find Sugar in the Space Between Stars, Providing New Clues About the Origins of Life on Earth

Sugars are crucial components of RNA and DNA, the basis of all known organisms alive today. In a new study, the sugar erythrulose was detected in a gas- and dust-filled cloud near the center of our Milky Way galaxy

Sotheby's is auctioning one of the largest and most complete T. rex skeletons ever found.

This T. Rex Fossil Could Fetch the Largest Sum of Any Dinosaur Ever Auctioned. Scientists Worry They’ll Lose the Chance to Study It

Bids on “Gus” will start at $19 million, a steep price for public institutions. Specimens in private collections can be harder for researchers to examine, and they’re practically impossible to include in studies in top-tier scientific journals

Andean leaf-eared mice can survive in extremely high-altitude environments with frigid temperatures and little oxygen.

Here’s How These Adorable Mice Can Live at an Extremely High Elevation Where No Other Mammal Is Known to Reside

The Andean leaf-eared mouse has adaptations that help it generate body heat efficiently in frigid, low-oxygen conditions at 22,000 feet above sea level, according to a new study

The Canopus, a pool at Hadrian's Villa in Tivoli, Italy

How Has Roman Concrete Lasted for Millennia? A 1,900-Year-Old Latrine Offers New Clues About the Material’s Impressive Durability

A chemical process called carbonation, which helps seal cracks, could help explain why many ancient Roman structures are still standing today. Researchers hope that the insights will lead to better modern-day building materials

About two-thirds of the analyzed fossils were bent left, which means that the animals were curved right when they were alive.

Meet the Earliest Known ‘Right-Handed’ Animal, a Worm-Like Creature That Lived About 550 Million Years Ago

During the Ediacaran period, the critter wriggled around on the ocean floor of what’s now South Australia and preferred to turn right, a fossil analysis suggests

A view of the uncrewed Orion capsule in space during the 2022 Artemis 1 mission, with both the Earth and moon in the background. The Earth looks smaller because it is farther away.

Artemis 1’s Orion Spacecraft Withstood the Heat of Re-entry in a Critical Test for Humans’ Return to the Moon. Now, NASA Will Loan the Historic Capsule to the Smithsonian’s National Air and Space Museum

The exact timeline for the spacecraft’s display hasn’t been announced, but the artifact will fit into an upcoming exhibition on how humans have built a long-term presence in Earth orbit and laid the groundwork for farther space travel

Aging populations are a major driver of the predicted increase in cancer incidents.

Cancer Cases Are Expected to Nearly Double by 2050, Warns the WHO. Low-Income Countries Will Be Disproportionately Affected

In a new report, the World Health Organization predicts that new annual diagnoses will rise from about 20.6 million today to almost 35 million by 2050. The biggest increases will be in Africa and the Eastern Mediterranean region

Gray whales, like this one that washed up dead in Los Angeles in April 2025, are grappling with malnutrition and ship strikes.

Nearly 150 Gray Whales Have Been Found Dead Along North America’s Pacific Shore This Year, Prompting Scientists to Sound the Alarm

The population of eastern gray whales, which migrate annually along the West Coast between the Arctic and Mexico, has been declining in recent years. Conservationists say 2026 could be one of the deadliest years on record for the marine mammals

The bones were discovered in a cave on the Swedish island of Stora Karlso.

How Did Two Wolves End Up on This Remote Island Thousands of Years Ago? Researchers Think Humans Brought Them There, Then Cared for Them

The discovery suggests humans may have maintained relationships with wolves long after domesticated dogs came on the scene

Public health experts recommend vigorously washing all produce, among other measures.

Cases of a Parasitic Infection That Can Cause Diarrhea for Weeks Are Rapidly Rising in the U.S. Here’s What to Know

The illness is caused by the microscopic parasite Cyclospora cayetanensis, which spreads via food or water contaminated with feces, usually on farms. Health officials are still investigating the source of the multistate outbreak

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