Phys.org news
Phys.org / Something coming: what scientists know about a potential 'super' El Nino
Forecasters say a potentially "super" El Niño is rapidly taking shape in the Pacific—but whether it evolves into a history-making event could hinge on fickle winds and other volatile atmospheric shifts.
Phys.org / Why we live alone—and what it means for the climate and our sense of community
Solo living in your own home places a greater strain on the planet's resources than living with others, as everyone needs their own appliances—a toaster, a washing machine and so on. The Nordic countries stand out: Almost ...
Phys.org / 'Designer' superconducting diamond: Researchers uncover path to multi-modality quantum chips
Diamond is extremely valuable to science and technology not for its sparkle but for its extreme hardness, high thermal conductivity, transparency to a large fraction of the light spectrum, and a host of other exceptional ...
Phys.org / Hidden for 100 years, bright pink shrub identified as new Australian species
Botanists at the University of New England (UNE) have formally described a new plant species endemic to northeastern New South Wales (NSW), ending more than a century of scientific misidentification. The research has been ...
Phys.org / Novel porous gel changes color, shrinks and hardens when it detects target molecules
Researchers at Kyoto University and Tohoku University have developed a new porous polymer gel that selectively recognizes specific molecules (referred to as "guests" in the study) through coordination chemistry and converts ...
Phys.org / Just outside Jupiter, one region may have forged six meteorite parent bodies
When the solar system formed, a disk of gas and dust orbited the young sun. Over the course of millions of years, the dust gradually clumped together to form kilometer-sized chunks known as planetesimals. Some grew into planets, ...
Phys.org / Atlas reveals rocks with rare earth element potential, helping pinpoint new deposits
A new atlas charts the global distribution of unusual, critical-metal-bearing igneous rocks, finding that they often form near the thick and ancient cores of the world's major continents. Researchers from Cambridge's Department ...
Phys.org / Arctic thaw unleashes mining-like pollution across hundreds of Arctic waterways
Thawing permafrost is rapidly transforming dozens of Arctic streams into acidic, metal-laden waterways, according to new research published in Science. The study shows how thawing permafrost exposes sulfide minerals that ...
Phys.org / Scientists discover thriving hard-substrate fauna in Oceania's deep sea
In the crushing darkness of the hadal zone—deep ocean trenches plunging 6,000 m to nearly 11,000 m—scientists have uncovered a hidden community. A study published in Science on May 14 reports the discovery of a protist-dominated ...
Phys.org / Nickelate reveals nodeless gap, providing key clue to high-temperature superconductivity
The mechanism of high-temperature (TC) superconductivity is a key challenge in condensed matter physics. Recently, Chinese scientists made significant progress in the study of high-TC nickelate superconductors.
Phys.org / Some technologies use accelerated natural processes to capture carbon, but can they store it durably?
Natural geological processes have been regulating Earth's climate for millions of years. Accelerated versions of these processes are now being promoted as technologies to draw down carbon from the atmosphere—and some are ...
Phys.org / Key switch controlling soil fungi symbiosis could solve a longstanding agricultural problem
Over the course of evolution, plants have developed an elegant strategy to counteract a lack of phosphate in the soil—they form symbiotic relationships with soil fungi. These mycorrhizal fungi efficiently supply their plant ...
