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Cool Finds

The view from GJ 1132b

New Research

Atmosphere Detected Around an Earth(ish)-Sized Planet

Just 39 light years away, GJ 1132b is 1.4 times the Earth’s radius and has an atmosphere that may be composed of steam or methane

Entrance into the newly discovered pyramid

Cool Finds

New Pyramid Discovered in Egypt

Earlier this week the interior structure of pyramid was uncovered at the Dahshur Necropolis, home to some of Egypt’s earliest pyramids

Previously unrecorded portrait of Harriet Tubman

Trending Today

Smithsonian and Library of Congress Purchase Rare 1860s Photo of Harriet Tubman

Part of an album of 44 photos of prominent abolitionists, the unique photo was recently acquired at auction

New Research

Artifacts Found in Indonesian Cave Show Complexities of Ice Age Culture

Pendants and buttons as well as carvings suggest the inhabitants of Wallacea were as advanced as Europeans during the Ice Age

The seven species studied

New Research

Slo-Mo Footage Shows How Scorpions Strike

Using high speed cameras, researchers uncovered the defensive patterns used by scorpions, including the super-fast death stalker

SpaceX launches it's first re-used Falcon 9 rocket

Cool Finds

Watch SpaceX’s Recycled Rocket Stick Its Landing

The reused Falcon 9 booster rocket may usher in an era of cheaper and more frequent trips into space

Cool Finds

Now Everyone Can Track Yosemite’s Bears Online

The park is displaying delayed GPS data on a new website to stop curious humans from scouting out the creatures in real time

If bed is your calling, consider volunteering for an exhaustive—and exhausting—French study.

France Wants You to Lie on Your Back for 60 Days in the Name of Space Research

But only if you’re a man

The Svalbard Global Seed Vault. A new vault will protect the world's books, archives and documents on long-lasting film

Cool Finds

A Second Doomsday Vault—This One to to Preserve Data—Is Opening in Svalbard

Known as the Arctic World Archive, it will store copies of books, archives and documents on special film

The tick discovered preserved in amber

New Research

30-Million-Year-Old Tick Full of Monkey Blood Found in Ancient Amber

Scientists think the tick was plucked from a primate before being dropped in a puddle of sticky tree resin

Cool Finds

Nanocars Will Race Across (a Very, Very Tiny Bit of) France

Ladies and gentlemen, start your molecules

Christo's "Floating Piers" racked up 1.2 million visitors in just over two weeks.

Cool Finds

What Kind of Art is the Most Popular?

It’s not always in museums—and historic name recognition is starting to matter less

Behold the glory of the middle of the Milky Way—thanks to an even better photo database at NASA.

Cool Finds

NASA Launches the Galaxy’s Most Glorious Space Database

Now you can easily peruse more than 140,000 of the agency’s photos, videos and visualizations

One of the panther kittens photographed with trail cameras north of Florida's Caloosahatchee River

Future of Conservation

Panther Kittens Spotted in Florida Give Hope for Their Species’ Survival

Trail cameras caught a mother panther trailed by two kittens

One of the submerged walls found in Ampelakia Bay

Cool Finds

Naval Base Believed to Have Been Used in the Legendary Battle of Salamis Found

Researchers have discovered the harbor in Salamis’ Ampelakia Bay where the Greek fleet prepared to battle the much larger Persian navy

View out of the window during the inaugural Flight to the Lights

Cool Finds

New Charter Flight Takes Passengers to See the Southern Lights

The first “Flight to the Lights” took 130 skygazers to get up close with the Aurora Australis

The O'Briens have amassed over 1.25 million insects over six decades.

Cool Finds

This Couple Just Donated Their Collection of More Than a Million Insects

The O’Briens have carried on a decades-long love affair with the critters—and each other

Put on your sunglasses—when in action, this artificial sun is 10,000 times brighter than the usual solar radiation here on Earth.

Cool Finds

This New Man-Made Sun Is 10,000 Times More Intense Than Sunlight on Earth

It’s a bright idea that just might help humans create solar fuel

Asperitas clouds

Cool Finds

Cloud Atlas Adds First New “Species” in Almost 70 Years

The update includes 12 new cloud-related features, including volatus clouds, contrails, and wave-like asperitas discovered by citizen scientists

A new website features 100 years of Japanese animation.

Cool Finds

New Website Documents 100 Years of Japanese Animation

From propaganda to experimental cartoons, these films showcase the early days of a national art form

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