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Smart News / Smart News Science

A NASA image of Florida in 1992. Coastal communities are most the vulnerable to the effects of sea level rise.

Sea Levels Rose More Than Expected in 2024, According to a NASA Analysis

Ocean warming and thus thermal expansion played a major role in last year’s increase

When the motorist stopped to take a closer look at the kittens, one of them ran under his truck.

Cool Finds

Cougar Cubs Spotted in Michigan for the First Time in More Than a Century

Two kittens, believed to be between 7 and 9 weeks old, were photographed by a motorist in the western Upper Peninsula

Spiral galaxies imaged by JWST that rotate in the same direction relative to the Milky Way (red) and in the opposite direction relative to the Milky Way (blue). The number of galaxies rotating in the opposite direction relative to the Milky Way as observed from Earth is far higher.

James Webb Space Telescope Reveals That Most Galaxies Rotate Clockwise

This preferred direction of spin might be due to one of two reasons: either our entire universe exists in a black hole, or astronomers have been measuring the universe’s expansion incorrectly

An Antarctic skua, one of the birds hardest hit by avian flu in the region. 

Avian Flu Is Rapidly Spreading Across Antarctica

A new expedition offers insights on the deadly virus’ impact in the region

Mars and Deimos viewed by Hera's Hyperscout H

Check Out These Rare Images of Deimos, One of Mars’ Mysterious Moons

The spacecraft Hera’s photographs are some of the few visuals ever captured of the Martian moon’s dark side

Researchers discovered the facial fragments in a cave in northern Spain.

New Research

Researchers Unearth Oldest Known Human Facial Bones Ever Found in Western Europe

The upper jawbone and partial cheek bone represent a mysterious unknown species that lived in present-day Spain between 1.1 million and 1.4 million years ago, according to a new study

A squat lobster discovered near Easter Island, one of the many newly identified species by the Ocean Census

From a Guitar Shark to an Octocoral, Scientists Discover More Than 800 Marine Species

The Ocean Census hopes to discover thousands of new creatures before they go extinct

The two astronauts have been helping with ongoing research and maintenance, assisting with experiments on everything from space agriculture to physical health studies in microgravity.

Why NASA and SpaceX’s Mission to Relieve Starliner Astronauts Is Delayed Again

After an unexpected nine months in orbit, astronauts Suni Williams and Butch Wilmore are waiting for the arrival of Crew-10 before they head home. That launch is now expected for Friday

The slab was donated to an Australian high school by a geologist who discovered it at a nearby coal mine.

Cool Finds

Students Walked Past This Rock for 20 Years. It Turned Out to Host 66 Dinosaur Footprints From the Jurassic Period

A paleontologist studied the 200-million-year-old prints that had been hiding in plain sight, then discovered even more tracks in another rock sitting in a nearby parking lot

Crops around the world—including corn, wheat and rice—might suffer from decreased yields as a result of microplastics interfering with photosynthesis, according to a new study.

Microplastics Are Making Photosynthesis Harder for Plants—and That Could Slash Crop Yields, Study Suggests

On average, these little particles could reduce photosynthesis in plants and algae by up to 12 percent, according to the paper

Scientists are investigating how Adélie penguin colonies along the coast of Antarctica’s Ross Sea have adapted over the last 6,000 years.

Scientists Uncover a Frozen History in 6,000 Years’ Worth of Penguin Poop, Revealing Past Ecology on Antarctica

Sediment samples from the Ross Sea coastline are revealing insights into how animals like elephant seals and Adélie penguins adapted to environmental changes long ago

An artistic rendering of Saturn and a few of its many moons

Cool Finds

Astronomers Discover 128 New Moons Orbiting Saturn, Cementing the Planet’s Title of ‘Moon King’

The sheer number of objects suggests scientists will soon have to grapple with what counts as a moon versus what’s just a large rock

The new SPHEREx telescope and PUNCH satellites took off aboard a Falcon 9 rocket on March 11.

NASA’s New Space Telescope Launches to Explore the Origins of the Universe After a Series of Delays

Called SPHEREx, the instrument will map 450 million galaxies and search for water molecules that may be clinging to space dust

Greenhouse gas emissions will decrease the amount of satellites that can safely orbit Earth, according to a new study.

Climate Change Might Increase Satellite Collisions, Limiting How Many Can Safely Orbit Earth, Study Finds

Greenhouse gas emissions could reduce drag in the upper atmosphere, leaving more space debris in orbit and making satellites more vulnerable to damage, according to new research

The Large Magellanic Cloud, photographed here by the Hubble Space Telescope, is about 160,000 light-years from Earth.

Astronomers Discover Evidence of a Stealthy Supermassive Black Hole Hiding Right ‘Under Our Noses’

The Large Magellanic Cloud is one of the most well-studied galaxies, but new findings suggest it might have been holding a giant secret

When they're alarmed, blue-lined octopuses display iridescent blue rings on their arms to ward off approaching predators.

These Male Octopuses Use Venom to Subdue Female Mates—and Avoid Being Eaten After Sex

Scientists observed male blue-lined octopuses injecting tetrodotoxin into females, which rendered them immobile for mating

The study included two species of small cats, domesticated cats and leopard cats.

New Research

A New Study Finds That Domestic Cats Traveled the Silk Road to China About 1,400 Years Ago

The animals were likely gifted to some elites, then spread throughout the region

A new study suggests that the lemon shark, pictured here, is a better analogue for the megalodon's size than a great white.

Megalodon Might Have Been Longer and Skinnier Than Previously Thought, Growing Up to 80 Feet

A new paper suggests the enormous, extinct shark looked less like a bulky great white and more like an elongated lemon shark

The Florida white is among the butterflies experiencing the most drastic population loss, according to a new study.

U.S. Butterflies Are Disappearing at Drastic Rates, With One in Five Gone Since 2000

A new study finds the popular, fluttering insects have declined by 22 percent in the last 20 years

Scientists used fragments of the child's right forearm bone to date the skeletal remains.

Mysterious Skeleton of Child With Human and Neanderthal Traits Has Finally Been Dated by Archaeologists

Discovered in Portugal in 1998, the individual dubbed the “Lapedo Child” has long perplexed scientists, thanks to a curious mix of features

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