Phys.org news

Phys.org / Antarctic 'sky rivers' deliver up to 90% of snowfall, 3D algorithm suggests

Atmospheric rivers act like "rivers in the sky," shuttling intense bands of warm, heavy moisture from lower to higher latitudes. When an atmospheric river encounters cold air or mountainous terrain, the moisture it carries ...

Jun 2, 2026
Phys.org / Embryonic tissues can behave like fluids or solids to reshape cell fate signals

Embryonic development is one of the most dynamic biological processes in nature. Cells and tissues organize and reorganize themselves following incredibly precise patterns, while remaining flexible and robust. Scientists ...

Jun 2, 2026
Phys.org / Six roads to safety: A critical threshold for wildfire survival

If your community was threatened by a wildfire, would you be able to quickly evacuate? A new study from UC Santa Barbara reveals that the number of roads out of a community may be one of the strongest predictors of wildfire ...

Jun 2, 2026
Phys.org / Clean drinking water gaps linked to hunger and unsafe food worldwide

A new global study has found that people without access to clean drinking water are significantly more likely to experience food insecurity and food safety threats, underscoring the urgent need for coordinated global action ...

Jun 2, 2026
Phys.org / Icy moons' ability to host life could be revealed through an ecology-based method

New observatories and spacecraft missions are probing environments in our solar system that could potentially host life but have long remained hidden. Icy moons like Saturn's Enceladus and Jupiter's Europa likely contain ...

Jun 2, 2026
Phys.org / Nanoparticles boost delivery of lung cancer drugs 30-fold

Lung cancer remains one of the world's deadliest cancers, yet despite decades of effort to develop new drugs, many fail because they don't stay in the body long enough to be effective or because they damage healthy organs. ...

Jun 2, 2026
Phys.org / Extreme weather is making Antarctic research harder, but new technology is providing some answers

When you think of Antarctica, you might imagine a stark, otherworldly continent of endless, white ice, with the only sound being the wind punctuated by the crack of a glacier calving in the distance.

Jun 2, 2026
Phys.org / Atacama Desert's extreme aridity initiated 20 million years earlier than previously thought, study finds

A collaborative study with the University of Cologne, recently published in Nature Communications, provides compelling evidence that the extreme aridity in the hyperarid core of the Atacama Desert began over 40 million years ...

Jun 2, 2026
Phys.org / Tiny membrane tethers revealed as key to plant cell survival in drought

Water deficit resistance in plants has long been a topic of interest for cultivating reliable crops. Some plants can alter their above-ground structure to lock in moisture, while others develop deep, industrious roots that ...

Jun 2, 2026
Phys.org / 'Genetic brakes' reveal how embryos shape their limbs

Canadian scientists have made a significant advance in understanding the mechanisms that enable embryos to properly form their limbs, thanks to new research led by Université de Montréal medical professor Marie Kmita at the ...

Jun 2, 2026
Phys.org / Antibiotic resistance turns up in Australian horses, raising new concerns about animal and human infections

Research into a common environmental germ that can cause severe infections in people and animals has raised concern that horses are starting to develop antibiotic resistance towards it. The University of the Sunshine Coast ...

Jun 2, 2026
Phys.org / New mantises planking their way to urban dominance

A team of scientists have discovered and named three new "leaf-planking" praying mantis species and recorded another mantis species turning up far from its assumed habitat. JCU Ph.D. candidate Matthew Connors recently discovered ...

Jun 2, 2026