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Image: Hubble captures the Small Magellanic Cloud

Say hello to one of the Milky Way’s neighbors! This NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope image features a scene from one of the closest galaxies to the Milky Way, the Small Magellanic Cloud (SMC). The SMC is a dwarf galaxy located about 200,000 light-years away. Most of the galaxy resides in the constellation Tucana, but a […]

‘Half ice, half fire’: Physicists discover new phase of matter in a magnetic material

Two scientists at the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Brookhaven National Laboratory have discovered a new phase of matter while studying a model system of a magnetic material.

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How an unconventional type of quantum computer opens a new door to the world of elementary particles

The standard model of particle physics is our best theory of the elementary particles and forces that make up our world: particles and antiparticles, such as electrons and positrons, are described as quantum fields. They interact through other force fields, such as the electromagnetic force that binds charged particles.

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British Astronaut Tim Peake makes shocking statements about Alien life

According to British Astronaut Major Tim Peake, life exists elsewhere in the universe. Major Tim is confident that we are not the only intelligent species in the universe. Peake has joined a long list of Astronauts and government officials who claim that Alien life does exist in other parts of the universe.

“There is […]

We’re one step closer to a giant interferometer on the moon

What’s on and in a star? What happens in an active galactic nucleus? Answering those questions is the goal of a proposed giant interferometer on the moon. It’s called the Artemis-enabled Stellar Imager (AeSI) and would deploy a series of 15–30 optical/ultraviolet-sensitive telescopes in a 1-km elliptical array across the lunar surface.

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Why can’t physicists decide if warp drives are real?

In the years since Miguel Alcubierre came up with a warp drive solution in 1994, you would occasionally see news headlines saying that warp drives can work. And then a few months later you’ll see that they’ve been ruled out. And then after that you’ll see that warp drives kind of work, but only in […]

Webb unmasks true nature of the ‘Cosmic Tornado’ spiral galaxy

The NASA/ESA/CSA James Webb Space Telescope has captured a beautiful juxtaposition of the nearby protostellar outflow known as Herbig-Haro 49/50 with a perfectly positioned, more distant spiral galaxy. Due to the close proximity of this Herbig-Haro object to Earth, this new composite infrared image of the outflow from a young star allows researchers to examine […]

OQTOPUS: Researchers launch open-source quantum computer operating system

The University of Osaka, Fujitsu Limited, Systems Engineering Consultants Co., LTD. (SEC), and TIS Inc. (TIS) today announced the launch of an open-source operating system (OS) for quantum computers on GitHub, in what is one of the largest open-source initiatives of its kind globally. The Open Quantum Toolchain for Operators and Users (OQTOPUS) OS can […]

Texas police remove incendiary devices from Tesla dealership in Austin

The discovery follows a string of violent acts targeting Tesla across the country with President Donald Trump calling the attacks “domestic terrorism”

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What rules actually prohibit us from building a warp drive?

In 1994, Miguel Alcubierre was able to construct a valid solution to the equations of general relativity that enable a warp drive. But now we need to tackle the rest of relativity: How do we arrange matter and energy to make that particular configuration of spacetime possible?

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Organic molecules of unprecedented size discovered on Mars

The longest organic molecules identified to date on Mars have recently been detected by scientists from the CNRS, together with their colleagues from France, the U.S., Mexico, and Spain. These long carbon chains, containing up to 12 consecutive carbon atoms, could exhibit features similar to the fatty acids produced on Earth by biological activity.

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Scalable nanotechnology-based lightsails developed for next-generation space exploration

Researchers at TU Delft and Brown University have developed scalable nanotechnology-based lightsails that could support future advances in space exploration and experimental physics. Their research, published in Nature Communications, introduces new materials and production methods to create the thinnest large-scale reflectors ever made.

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Using algorithms to help find life on icy ocean worlds

Scientists have long thought that our solar system’s ocean worlds, such as Jupiter’s moon Europa and Saturn’s moon Enceladus, may harbor extraterrestrial life in the form of microbes. But detecting it could be a challenge because missions to ocean worlds have relied on probes, not landers.

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Asteroid 2024 YR may not hit Earth in 2032, but it—and others—will keep coming back

In late 2024, astronomers spotted asteroid 2024 YR4 on a trajectory that could potentially threaten Earth. This observation triggered a fervid series of observations of the object—possibly as big as a football field—to determine that it will not hit. However, an impact on the moon cannot be ruled out.

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When systems suddenly tip: New insights into hard-to-predict transitions

Many systems in nature—and in society—can suddenly change their properties: Water freezes at normal pressure at 32°F, a power grid collapses when a central substation fails, or a society splits into opposing factions following a major event. All of these processes are examples of so-called phase transitions—tipping points where a system abruptly shifts into a […]