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Science News

Latest science news, discoveries and scientific developments.

Two astronauts who flew farther than anyone before are taking new NASA roles
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Two astronauts who flew farther than anyone before are taking new NASA roles

Artemis II astronauts Victor Glover and Reid Wiseman are transitioning to emeritus status at NASA after their historic journey around the Moon earlier this year. The pair will continue advising and mentoring NASA teams as preparations accelerate for Artemis III and future lunar missions. Their experience with Orion and deep-space operations could prove especially valuable as NASA works toward returning astronauts to the lunar surface.

📅 2026-09-26 13:21:58    •    ScienceDaily
Zepbound and Mounjaro may turn on the body’s calorie-burning brown fat
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Zepbound and Mounjaro may turn on the body’s calorie-burning brown fat

Tirzepatide, sold as Mounjaro and Zepbound, activated calorie-burning brown fat in obese mice, revealing a potential metabolic effect beyond appetite suppression. If confirmed in humans, the finding could help explain the drug’s powerful benefits and inspire more comprehensive treatments for obesity and diabetes.

📅 2026-09-26 12:31:07    •    ScienceDaily
Molecular 'self-destruct' switch discovered: How stressed cells decide between survival and death
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Molecular 'self-destruct' switch discovered: How stressed cells decide between survival and death

A new study from Ben-Gurion University of the Negev (BGU) has identified a molecular switch that controls whether stressed human cells activate a survival mechanism or trigger programmed cell death (apoptosis). The findings, published in Redox Biology, provide insights that could help overcome chemotherapy resistance in aggressive tumors.

📅 2026-09-26 12:00:07    •    Phys.org
Digital textbooks significantly boost students' intrinsic learning motivation
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Digital textbooks significantly boost students' intrinsic learning motivation

A research team from The Education University of Hong Kong (EdUHK) and East China Normal University (ECNU) has published a meta-analysis demonstrating the impact of digital textbooks (DTs) on student motivation. Synthesizing 27 experimental and quasi-experimental studies conducted between 2000 and 2024 with 3,590 participants, the study confirms that DTs significantly enhance students' intrinsic learning motivation compared with traditional paper textbooks.

📅 2026-09-26 12:00:05    •    Phys.org
Why the tomb of the 'Disturber of the Universe' remains hidden after 800 years
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Why the tomb of the 'Disturber of the Universe' remains hidden after 800 years

History is rife with lost treasures, from Aztec gold hidden during the Spanish conquest to the Ark of the Covenant, which vanished during the destruction of Jerusalem over 2,500 years ago. In his book, "The Museum of Lost Things: True Tales of Fabled Treasures, Legendary Cities, and Mythical Creatures That Vanished From History" (National Geographic Books, 2026), writer Sam Kean examines all things lost to time. In this excerpt from the book, he looks at how the tomb of Genghis Khan, arguably the most successful ruler in history, has remained hidden for nearly 800 years and counting. If archaeologists could vote on which lost grave they'd most like to find, Genghis Khan's would likely appear...

📅 2026-09-26 12:00:00    •    Live Science
How the body’s own immune system can attack the brain
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How the body’s own immune system can attack the brain

Antibodies made by the immune system can sometimes target human brain cells, producing psychiatric symptoms. Researchers aim to better identify such rare cases as well as fine-tune treatments.

📅 2026-09-26 12:00:00    •    Scientific American
REM sleep paradox: Dreaming may drain the brain’s energy even as fuel supply rises
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REM sleep paradox: Dreaming may drain the brain’s energy even as fuel supply rises

Scientists discovered a surprising energy paradox in the brain during REM sleep, the stage most closely associated with dreaming. Blood supply to the brain begins increasing even before REM starts, but neurons’ immediately available energy, measured as ATP, then drops. The finding suggests that dreaming may require such intense internal processing that neurons consume energy faster than it can be replenished.

📅 2026-09-26 11:30:49    •    ScienceDaily
Harvest Moon 2026: See the first full moon of autumn rise alongside Saturn tonight
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Harvest Moon 2026: See the first full moon of autumn rise alongside Saturn tonight

One of the most famous full moons of the year will climb into the eastern sky on Saturday, Sept. 26. This year, the Harvest Moon will make its appearance with Saturn shining nearby — and you'll have another chance to see it rise on Sunday, Sept. 27, too.Officially full at 12:49 p.m. EDT on Saturday, the full moon will be best seen rising in the eastern sky later that day, at the time of moonrise where you are. It will appear in the constellation Pisces.This month's full moon earns the Harvest Moon nickname because it's the full moon closest to the September equinox, which fell on Tuesday (Sept. 22). This year, it coincides with the Mid-Autumn Festival — also called the Moon Festival — which ...

📅 2026-09-26 10:30:00    •    Live Science
Millions in the US Northeast brace for a powerful storm
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Millions in the US Northeast brace for a powerful storm

More than 40 million people in the northeastern United States braced Friday for heavy rain and strong winds as an unusually powerful storm for the season was forecast to crash into the region.

📅 2026-09-26 09:40:05    •    Phys.org
Indonesia fires threaten critically endangered orangutan: IUCN
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Indonesia fires threaten critically endangered orangutan: IUCN

Wildfires that tore through Indonesian Borneo's vast tropical forests have increased pressure on critically endangered Bornean orangutans, the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) said Saturday.

📅 2026-09-26 09:13:57    •    Phys.org
Guatemala ensures survival of vulnerable 'fossil' fish
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Guatemala ensures survival of vulnerable 'fossil' fish

In a freshwater canal surrounded by mangroves in southern Guatemala, hundreds of baby tropical gars—a torpedo-shaped fish with an alligator-like snout dubbed the "fossil fish"—are released into the wild.

📅 2026-09-26 09:12:30    •    Phys.org
Why does lithium work against bipolar disorder?
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Why does lithium work against bipolar disorder?

In modern times we tend to think of lithium as powering smartphones and cars, yet its historical fame comes from its role as a mood stabilizer.Lithium was first used as a treatment for bipolar disorder in 1949. Yet despite decades of research and drug development, this simple medication remains the gold standard for treating one of the most complex psychiatric conditions. But why?According to Becci Strawbridge, a senior lecturer in psychological medicine at King's College London, lithium's simplicity could be what helps it cut through the complexity of bipolar disorder, a lifelong disorder that affects about 36 million people worldwide.Clinically, bipolar disorder is defined as a mood disord...

📅 2026-09-26 09:00:00    •    Live Science
The secret to growing food on Mars could be fungi
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The secret to growing food on Mars could be fungi

Scientists think beneficial fungi could help transform nutrient-poor lunar and Martian regolith into a material capable of supporting crops. By helping plants access nutrients and withstand harsh conditions, these microbes could someday make self-sustaining space farming more realistic.

📅 2026-09-26 02:26:05    •    ScienceDaily
Don’t toss cannabis leaves: They may contain rare compounds with medical potential
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Don’t toss cannabis leaves: They may contain rare compounds with medical potential

Scientists discovered rare flavoalkaloids in Cannabis leaves for the first time, along with dozens of other phenolic compounds that had never been reported in the plant. The findings suggest that Cannabis leaves, often discarded as waste, may contain a surprisingly rich source of potentially useful chemicals.

📅 2026-09-26 01:25:10    •    ScienceDaily
Climate crisis is affecting children's nutrition
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Climate crisis is affecting children's nutrition

Wildfires, floods and other extreme weather events are no longer the only ways climate change affects children around the world. Increasingly, it also affects their diets. Droughts reduce agricultural production, floods cut off roads and disrupt supply chains, and rising prices limit families' access to fruits, vegetables and other fresh foods.

📅 2026-09-26 00:00:01    •    Phys.org
Breaking and entering: How parasites prepare host cells for invasion
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Breaking and entering: How parasites prepare host cells for invasion

Before the parasite Toxoplasma gondii can invade a cell, it has to know it has reached the right place. New research from the Whitehead Institute reveals that the parasite doesn't simply recognize a ready-made doorway into the cell. Instead, it helps create the conditions for its own entry.

📅 2026-09-25 21:40:01    •    Phys.org
Critically endangered species in the heart of Africa: Investigating Hooded Vultures in Chad
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Critically endangered species in the heart of Africa: Investigating Hooded Vultures in Chad

Slaughterhouses are places most people never want to go, and might seem like unlikely places to search for rare or endangered species. In West Africa, however, they are among the last places one can find a critically endangered species, the Hooded Vulture, which historically thrived as a human commensal species, living in close proximity to people and contributing to waste disposal.

📅 2026-09-25 21:20:02    •    Phys.org