Smart News Science

Divers receive verbal instructions from operators at the surface, who have access to real-time sonar imagery.

3D Sonar Images of Baltimore's Key Bridge Reveal the Underwater Wreckage in Detail

Divers clearing the Patapsco River are grappling with poor visibility and dangerous conditions, so they rely heavily on real-time sonar observations

Phases of the 2017 total solar eclipse, captured from Farewell Bend State Recreation Area in Oregon.

Watch the Total Solar Eclipse From Your Home With These Live Streams Online

Not in the path of totality? See the moon blot out the sun, revealing its magnificent corona, from your computer or phone

The six inmates who filed the lawsuit come from different religious backgrounds but agree that the total solar eclipse is significant to their beliefs.

Six New York Inmates Successfully Sue to Watch the Total Solar Eclipse

The state's prison agency settled a lawsuit with the incarcerated men, allowing them to watch the eclipse on religious grounds. But for now, the rest of New York's correctional facilities will remain locked down on April 8

In a modified version of the mirror self-recognition experiment, eastern garter snakes showed signs that they recognize their own scent.

Can Snakes Recognize Themselves? One Species Has Passed a Modified 'Mirror Test' Based on Smell

Eastern garter snakes might recognize their own scents, suggesting the reptiles are more cognitively complex than thought, according to a new study

Earth rises over the moon's horizon, as seen from the Apollo 11 spacecraft in 1969.

NASA Will Create a New Time Zone for the Moon, Called Coordinated Lunar Time

With dozens of lunar missions on the horizon, a standard time-keeping system for the moon will assist with precise navigation, docking and landing

A picture of the International Space Station captured by the Space Shuttle Discovery in 2007. Last month, a two-ton pallet of batteries released by the space station in 2021 re-entered Earth's atmosphere. It was expected to mostly burn up upon re-entry, but a two-pound piece of debris that struck a Florida home may have come from the batteries.

Falling Object That Crashed Into Florida Home May Be Debris From the International Space Station

Nobody was hurt by the mysterious, two-pound object, but experts speculate it may be a piece of batteries ejected from the station in 2021

The solar eclipse’s path of totality stretches across North America in a roughly 115-mile-long band, from Mexico to Canada.

Listen Live to the Total Solar Eclipse, Transformed Into a Real-Time Musical Composition

A composer based at San Francisco’s Exploratorium museum will use data coming from the eclipsed sun to create an out-of-this-world “sonification” on April 8

Methane plumes observed at a Louisiana landfill during the study. More than 14 percent of U.S. methane emissions were reported to have come from landfills in 2021.

More Than Half of U.S. Landfills May Be Methane 'Super-Emitters,' Study Finds

Aerial observations of hundreds of large landfills across 18 states found they are leaking 40 percent more methane than is reported to the EPA

A person has tested positive for the H5N1 strain of bird flu just days after livestock across four states were reported to be infected.

First Human Case of Bird Flu in Texas Confirmed, Following Infections in Cattle—Here's What to Know

This marks only the second time in U.S. history that a human has contracted the H5N1 strain of avian influenza

Researchers found that lyrics in each of five popular music genres were becoming more repetitive and charged with negative emotions.

Song Lyrics Have Become Angrier, Simpler and More Repetitive, Scientists Find

An analysis of more than 12,000 rap, pop, country, rock and R&B songs from the past 50 years shows more emotional and straightforward lyrics

Wildlife biologists are trying to figure out what's killing smalltooth sawfish and other species in Florida.

Florida Fish Are Mysteriously Dying After 'Spinning and Whirling,' and Scientists Can't Explain It

The abnormal behavior has raised special concerns about the endangered smalltooth sawfish, an odd-looking ray with chainsaw-like teeth, as 28 of them have died

A composite image showing multiple stages of 2019's solar eclipse as seen from Chile.

This Handheld Device Allows Blind People to Experience the Solar Eclipse With Their Ears

The technology, which translates the intensity of sunlight into a range of sounds, was designed to make eclipses more accessible to visually impaired people

This staircase, part of an active construction site, has been preserved since the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79 C.E.

Cool Finds

Archaeologists in Pompeii Find Ancient Construction Site, Undisturbed Since Vesuvius' Eruption

The discovery is cluing researchers into the techniques used to build Rome’s most remarkable structures

Black-capped chickadees' ability to remember where they've stashed food helps them survive barren winters.

Black-Capped Chickadees Are Masters of Memory—and Scientists Are Finding Out Why

The small birds use brain “barcodes” to remember where they stash food, according to new research

In the lab, researchers tested soil samples dating to the first or early second century C.E.

New Research

Microplastics Are Contaminating Ancient Archaeological Sites

New research suggests plastic particles may pose a threat to the preservation of historic remains

One difference between resident and transient killer whales is their fins. Residents have more rounded, curved dorsal fins, while those of transients are straighter and more pointed.

Two New Species of Killer Whale Should Be Recognized, Study Says

A couple of eastern North Pacific populations of orcas have qualities that set them apart, according to researchers

The digital reconstruction of Emperor Wu's face (left), alongside a painting made of him from the 'Thirteen Emperors Scroll' (right).

See The Face of Emperor Wu, a Sixth-Century Chinese Ruler Brought to Life with DNA Analysis

Genetic analysis of DNA from his skeleton offers not only a first glimpse at his face, but also insight into his mysterious death

Several species of birds participated in the study, including this hyacinth macaw.

Watch Pet Parrots Learn to Play Tablet Games—With Their Tongues

Scientists are studying how the intelligent, social birds interact with touchscreens to help design mobile apps that serve as enrichment for the birds

Melting ice redistributes mass to Earth's equator, slowing its spin rate. Changes in Earth's spin affect its synchronization with atomic clocks.

Melting Polar Ice Sheets Are Slowing Earth's Rotation. That Could Change How We Keep Time

As ice melts into water and flows toward the equator, it redistributes mass around the Earth, affecting the planet's spin, a new study finds

The container ship Dali hit Baltimore's Francis Scott Key Bridge on March 26, 2024, causing the entire structure to fall within seconds.

Cargo Ships Keep Getting Bigger, and Infrastructure Is Racing to Keep Up

A massive container ship hit Baltimore's Francis Scott Key Bridge this week, calling attention to the demands that ever-growing shipping vessels are placing on ports, canals and bridges

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