Phys.org news

Phys.org / From the lab to the moon: Lunar cement alternative survives 6 months on ISS and returned stronger in some tests

Building material samples from the University of Delaware spent six months mounted outside the International Space Station, where the harsh conditions of low Earth orbit tested their limits.

Jul 8, 2026
Phys.org / Scientists discover rare 'super-Jupiter' planet with 180-day long orbit

Scientists from Queen's University Belfast have led an international team in the discovery of a rare new planet, which is larger than Jupiter and orbits a distant star every 180 days. Named NGTS-38 b, it is an exoplanet—a ...

Jul 8, 2026
Phys.org / Slowing Atlantic current could fuel stronger California atmospheric rivers by century's end

A slowing Atlantic Ocean current is projected to intensify powerful storms in California while reducing snowfall over Greenland, according to a recent University of California, Riverside study. The Atlantic Meridional Overturning ...

Jul 8, 2026
Phys.org / Tiny 60,000-neuron ant brains reveal how parental care evolved from feeding circuits

Long before the dawn of modern parenting, animals laid eggs and moved on, leaving their progeny to fend for themselves. Now, a study published in Nature uncovers one of the elegant ways evolution transformed neglect into ...

Jul 8, 2026
Phys.org / Wavelength-multiplexed diffractive optical storage enables massively parallel image retrieval

The explosive growth of data generated by artificial intelligence, cloud computing and modern digital infrastructure is placing increasing pressure on existing information storage technologies. Although magnetic storage systems ...

Jul 8, 2026
Phys.org / Caddisfly silk gene evolves quickly without losing adhesive power

Caddisflies are among nature's master underwater builders, capable of spinning sticky silk that they use to form protective cases and webs in freshwater streams. Scientists like the University of Utah's Russell Stewart have ...

Jul 8, 2026
Phys.org / Astronomers dig deep to find tiny dangerous space debris

In a new study, published in the Journal of the Astronautical Sciences, Warwick researchers led an international effort to uncover some of the faintest debris in geosynchronous orbit ever observed, finding fragments as small ...

Jul 8, 2026
Phys.org / X-pinch plasma achieves radial proton acceleration for crisp imaging

Plasma pinches: From pursuits of nuclear fusion to an attractive point source of accelerated protons for proton radiography.

Jul 8, 2026
Phys.org / Space sensor could spot hidden nuclear weapons in orbit with 99% accuracy

In 2024, a U.S. government official warned that Russia could be developing a new satellite designed to carry nuclear weapons into space. The statement followed the launch of a suspicious Russian satellite into low-Earth orbit ...

Jul 8, 2026
Phys.org / Why some glasses break suddenly while others deform smoothly

If a liquid is cooled slowly to its freezing point, it becomes a crystal in which the constituent particles are arranged in an ordered pattern. In contrast, when the liquid is cooled very quickly, the particles are unable ...

Jul 8, 2026
Phys.org / New deep-sea measurements show how the ocean floor forms

The first-known direct observations of a seafloor spreading event at a mid-ocean ridge in the Indian Ocean are presented in Nature. The observations offer insight into how new oceanic crust is created.

Jul 8, 2026
Phys.org / Ancient atmospheric oxygen found in iron ore deposits

How do some of geology's most mysterious iron ore deposits form? This question has preoccupied the geosciences for more than a century. An international research team led by Dr. Stefan Peters from the Leibniz Institute for ...

Jul 8, 2026