Phys.org news

Phys.org / Radio telescopes confirm 3.3-million-light-year halo in unusually quiet galaxy cluster

Astronomers have employed the upgraded Giant Metrewave Radio Telescope (uGMRT) and the MeerKAT radio telescope to observe a galaxy cluster known as RXCJ0232–4420. Results of the new observations, published April 29 on the ...

6 hours ago
Phys.org / Cut marks on 1.6 million-year-old bones reveal early humans moved prized meat

There is an old adage that goes, "you are what you eat," meaning that the food you consume helps build your body and fuel your mind. The same is true now as it ever was. When it comes to early humans, studying what they ate ...

9 hours ago
Phys.org / Good vibrations for quantum communications: Engineers couple single phonon to single atomic spin

Researchers at the Harvard John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences (SEAS) have demonstrated, for the first time, a single quantum of vibrational energy interacting with a single atomic spin, seeding a pathway ...

3 hours ago
Phys.org / Alaska's near‑record landslide tsunami sent a wave 1,580 feet up the fjord walls

On the evening of Aug. 9, 2025, passengers on the Hanse Explorer finished taking selfies and videos of the South Sawyer Glacier, and the ship headed back down the fjord. Twelve hours later, a landslide from the adjacent mountain ...

5 hours ago
Phys.org / Under mushroom caps, 17-plus bacterial species help drive stubborn blotch disease

A University of Florida study has made a key discovery in understanding a disease that for over a century has plagued the white button mushroom—a nutrient-dense vegetable that is valued for its versatility and health benefits. ...

7 hours ago
Phys.org / Reading genetic activity from living cells without destroying them

Until now, studying the genetic processes in cells required destroying them—making it impossible to observe these processes over extended periods of time. A team from the Technical University of Munich (TUM) and Helmholtz ...

12 hours ago
Phys.org / Ganymede's unique magnetic field may be powered by ongoing core formation—not a cooling core

Ganymede is not only Jupiter's largest moon, but also the largest in our solar system and one of the few that hosts a massive ice ocean. Adding to this planet-like moon's uniqueness is the fact that among the hundreds of ...

May 9, 2026
Phys.org / A close brush with Mars will reshape NASA's Psyche journey in a way few missions attempt

NASA's Psyche spacecraft will get a boost from Mars on Friday, May 15, passing just 2,800 miles (4,500 kilometers) from the planet's surface at some 12,333 mph (19,848 kph). The spacecraft will harness the planet's gravitational ...

May 9, 2026
Phys.org / CRISPR safeguard changes how engineered microbes can be controlled

Engineered microorganisms are widely used in industrial biotechnology and biopharmaceutical applications, including the production of biofuels, sustainable chemicals, and therapeutic compounds. However, concerns remain regarding ...

May 9, 2026
Phys.org / Genetics link Angola's 'ghost elephants' to populations hundreds of miles away

For more than a decade, conservation biologist Steve Boyes searched for "ghost elephants"—nocturnal giants rumored to roam a remote, high-altitude wetland in eastern Angola. When a motion-sensor camera finally captured their ...

May 9, 2026
Phys.org / How river DNA can track fish, frogs, fungi and human feces all at once

A single scoop of water from an Irish river has revealed evidence not only of Ireland's only frog species—as expected—but also signs of the dreaded B. dendrobatidis fungus, marking the first time this devastating amphibian ...

May 9, 2026
Phys.org / Non-rotating early galaxy is a surprise to astronomers

Astronomers using the James Webb Space Telescope have made a surprising discovery about a galaxy long, long ago and far, far away: It isn't rotating. That's something only seen in the most massive, mature galaxies that are ...

May 9, 2026