Phys.org news

Phys.org / Ancient Antarctica reveals a 'one–two punch' behind ice sheet collapse

When we think of global warming, what first comes to mind is the air: crushing heat waves that are felt rather than seen, except through the haziness of humid air. But when it comes to melting ice sheets, rising ocean temperatures ...

Jan 5, 2026 in Earth
Phys.org / XRISM gives sharpest-ever glimpse at growth of a rapidly-spinning black hole

Astronomers have obtained the sharpest-ever X-ray spectrum of an iconic active galaxy, providing the most accurate, precise view ever obtained of the extreme relativistic effects imprinted onto the spacetime around a supermassive ...

Jan 5, 2026 in Astronomy & Space
Phys.org / Researchers develop non-destructive spectrometry technique for analyzing fragile archaeological ivory

A research team led by Prof. Wang Zhenyou at the Aerospace Information Research Institute of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (AIRCAS) has developed a microscopic time-gated Raman spectrometer capable of non-destructive, micrometer-scale ...

Jan 5, 2026 in Other Sciences
Phys.org / Earliest, hottest galaxy cluster gas on record challenges cosmological models

An international team of astronomers led by Canadian researchers has found something the universe wasn't supposed to have: a galaxy cluster blazing with hot gas just 1.4 billion years after the Big Bang, far earlier and hotter ...

Jan 5, 2026 in Astronomy & Space
Phys.org / Worms as particle sweepers: How simple movement, not intelligence, drives environmental order

When observing small worms under a microscope, one might observe something very surprising: the worms appear to make a sweeping motion to clean their own environment. Physicists at the University of Amsterdam, Georgia Tech ...

Jan 5, 2026 in Physics
Phys.org / Astronomers reveal hidden lives of the early universe's ultramassive galaxies

An international team of astronomers has uncovered multiple evolutionary paths for the universe's most massive galaxies. Observations of ultramassive galaxies, each containing more than 100 billion stars, show that less than ...

Jan 5, 2026 in Astronomy & Space
Phys.org / AI approach takes optical system design from months to milliseconds

A team of researchers at Penn State have devised a new, streamlined approach to designing metasurfaces, a class of engineered materials that can manipulate light and other forms of electromagnetic radiation with just their ...

Jan 5, 2026 in Nanotechnology
Phys.org / Geometry shapes life: Embryo curvature acts as instruction manual for coordinated cell division

Life begins with a single fertilized cell that gradually transforms into a multicellular organism. This process requires precise coordination; otherwise, the embryo could develop serious complications. Scientists at ISTA ...

Jan 5, 2026 in Biology
Dialog / Infrastructure design is the hidden architecture of disaster risk

When we talk about disasters, we often default to the language of nature. We describe storms as "unprecedented," floods as "once-in-a-century," and heat waves as "record-breaking." While these descriptors may be technically ...

Jan 5, 2026 in Earth
Phys.org / Discoveries rewrite how some minerals form and dissolve

Two related discoveries detailing nanocrystalline mineral formation and dynamics have broad implications for managing nuclear waste, predicting soil weathering, designing advanced bioproducts and materials and optimizing ...

Jan 5, 2026 in Nanotechnology
Phys.org / Survey across 153 countries links the effects of LGBT-phobia and economic insecurity

LGBTQ+ people face unequal treatment across different human societies. Several concomitant factors can contribute to this discrimination at various levels of society, resulting in diminished living conditions. In a study ...

Jan 5, 2026 in Other Sciences
Phys.org / Smart polymers harden on demand with light or gentle heat activation

Chemists at Ben-Gurion University of the Negev have developed a "smart" polymer that could make industrial curing, 3D printing and repairs simpler, safer and more energy-efficient with materials whose properties may be tuned ...

Jan 5, 2026 in Chemistry