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Smart News / Smart News Science

Cats are known for their ability to squeeze into tight spaces.

Cats May Be Aware of Their Body Size, Suggests Study of Their Famously ‘Liquid’ Behavior

A scientist used at-home experiments to test whether cats hesitated when moving through increasingly shorter or narrower openings

Two comb jellies have fused together and are being probed by a pipette.

These Frankenstein-Like Sea Creatures Can Actually Fuse Their Bodies Together

Two comb jellies can merge their digestive and nervous systems and even sync their bodily functions, according to new research. The discovery could have implications for human medicine

An area of the mosaic released by ESA’s Euclid space telescope on October 15, 2024, which is zoomed in 36 times compared to the large mosaic.

See the First Section of the Largest-Ever Cosmic Map, Revealed in Stunning Detail by the Euclid Space Telescope

The final 3D atlas of the sky will help scientists study dark matter and dark energy, which make up 96 percent of the universe but remain mysterious

Researchers found roughly 40 depressions on the lake bed of Lake Michigan within the Wisconsin Shipwreck Coast National Marine Sanctuary.

Mysterious Craters Discovered on the Bottom of Lake Michigan Could Hold Lessons About Early Life on Earth

Scientists aren’t sure how the circular indentations some 450 feet below the surface formed, but they hope to investigate further

The researchers examined eight Iranian swords in their study.

New Research

These Iron Age Swords Were Smuggled Out of Iran and Modified to Increase Their Value on the Black Market

Using advanced imaging techniques, researchers discovered modern glue, drill holes and even a fragment of a drill bit in the pastiches

A full moon rises in Denali National Park and Preserve in Alaska. The full moon this week is the closest one of the year.

See the Super Hunter’s Moon Tonight, the Biggest and Brightest Full Moon of the Year

This week’s supermoon is closer to Earth than any other in 2024

An aerial view of the new park modeled after Vincent van Gogh's 1889 masterpiece The Starry Night

This Park Recreates Vincent van Gogh’s ‘The Starry Night’ With a Dazzling Display of Plants, Trees and Winding Pathways

At a new park in Bosnia and Herzegovina, two dozen gardeners have spent years replicating the Dutch artist’s masterpiece using the land as their canvas

The lions have been housed as taxidermy specimens at the Field Museum in Chicago since 1925.

Two Lions Went on a Man-Eating Spree in 1898. Now, DNA Evidence Reveals Their Diets

The notorious predators, nicknamed the “Man-Eaters of Tsavo,” terrorized railway workers in Kenya for roughly nine months

Andrew Irvine, back left, stands beside George Mallory and other members of the British Mount Everest expedition in 1924.

Famous Explorer’s Remains Discovered on Mount Everest Offer Clues in a Century-Long Mystery

In 1924, Andrew “Sandy” Irvine joined George Mallory’s expedition to the world’s highest peak. Now, Irvine’s recently found foot and boot hint at what might have happened on that ill-fated undertaking

The Super Heavy booster returning to the launch tower.

SpaceX Launches Starship Mega-Rocket and Catches Its Booster in Midair on First Try

The success is a giant leap toward the company’s goal to take humans and cargo all the way to Mars on the world’s biggest and most powerful launch vehicle

Qing Bao, a 3-year-old female, is one of two giant pandas making the long journey from China to Washington, D.C. 

Pandamonium

The Smithsonian National Zoo’s New Giant Pandas Will Make Their Public Debut on January 24

A pair of 3-year-old giant pandas—a male named Bao Li and a female called Qing Bao—have officially arrived at the Zoo, where they will first acclimate to their new home

A rendering of the upcoming RTX Living in the Space Age Hall at Smithsonian's Air and Space Museum, featuring the New Shepard rocket booster.

Historic New Shepard Rocket Booster and Crew Capsule Will Go on Display at the Air and Space Museum

The two artifacts donated by Blue Origin achieved record-breaking feats and will extend the museum’s story of trailblazing space travel into the present

A group of old men playing cards in a bar in Acciaroli, southern Italy, in 2016. The town has a disproportionately high number of centenarians.

Human Lifespan Might Be About to Hit a Ceiling, Experts Say

In the ’90s, many scientists disputed an epidemiologist’s warning that the fast-paced life extension of the 20th century would plateau. Now, a new study suggests he was right

Elephants' wrinkly trunks might serve a purpose and reveal whether the individual prefers to bend the handy appendage to the right or the left.

How an Elephant’s Wrinkles Reveal Whether It Is Right- or Left-Trunked

A new study sheds light on the muscular, dexterous appendage, suggesting trunk wrinkles are more important than many people realize

Two lynx shelter from the wind behind their parent, who looks into the camera.

See 15 Winning Images From the Wildlife Photographer of the Year Contest

Breathtaking shots shine a light on the wonders of wildlife and the threats that human activities pose to the natural world

Volunteers looked at the original artworks in the museum and posters in the gift shop.

Art Meets Science

Seeing Vermeer’s ‘Girl With a Pearl Earring’ in Person Stimulates the Brain More Than Looking at Reprints, Study Suggests

Scientists used EEG headsets, MRI machines and eye trackers to study volunteers’ responses to five paintings housed at the Mauritshuis museum in the Netherlands

In the 1980s, there were only 22 surviving California condors. Now, after careful conservation measures, there are over 300 in the wild and 200 in captivity. (The above bird is not Milagra.)

Meet Milagra, a Rare Condor Rescued as an Egg and Newly Released Back Into the Wild

Milagra, Spanish for “miracle,” was hatched and raised in captivity by foster condor parents after her mother died of avian flu in April 2023

An illustration of a pluripotent stem cell, which can be coaxed to develop into various kinds of tissue

World-First Stem Cell Treatment Reverses Diabetes for a Patient in China, Study Suggests

Scientists converted the patient’s own cells into blood sugar-regulating cell clusters before injecting them back into her abdomen—and one year later, she still doesn’t need insulin injections

The northern lights, seen from Alaska on October 7, 2024

You Could See Dazzling Auroras Tonight as ‘Strong’ Solar Storm Hits. Here’s What to Know

Predicted to bring the northern lights as far south as parts of California and Alabama, a large coronal mass ejection from the sun collided with our planet Thursday morning

David Baker, Demis Hassabis and John M. Jumper shared the Nobel Prize in Chemistry on Wednesday for their work on protein structure.

Scientists’ Work on Protein Structure, Which Governs All Aspects of Life, Wins Nobel Prize in Chemistry

David Baker, Demis Hassabis and John M. Jumper revealed how amino acids shape protein structure, a finding that could aid in drug discovery

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