Phys.org news

Phys.org / How the global fish trade is spreading 'forever chemicals' around the world

Eating fish may well be good for you, but it carries a hidden risk of exposure to so-called "forever chemicals." A new study published in the journal Science has revealed that the global seafood trade is acting as a massive ...

Dec 23, 2025 in Earth
Phys.org / West Antarctica's history of rapid melting foretells sudden shifts in continent's 'catastrophic' geology

Due to its thick, vast ice sheet, Antarctica appears to be a single, continuous landmass centered over the South Pole and spanning both hemispheres of the globe. The Western Hemisphere sector of the ice sheet is shaped like ...

Dec 23, 2025 in Earth
Phys.org / New reactor produces clean energy and carbon nanotubes from natural gas

Scientists from the University of Cambridge have developed a new reactor that converts natural gas (a common energy source primarily composed of methane) into two highly valuable resources: clean hydrogen fuel and carbon ...

Dec 23, 2025 in Physics
Phys.org / Raindrops form 'sandballs' as they roll downhill, contributing more to erosion than previously thought

What happens as a raindrop impacts bare soil has been fairly well-studied, but what happens to raindrops afterward is poorly understood. We know that the initial splash of raindrops on soil contributes to erosion, but a new ...

Dec 23, 2025 in Physics
Phys.org / The chaotic 'Dracula's Chivito': Hubble reveals largest birthplace of planets ever observed

Astronomers using NASA's Hubble Space Telescope have imaged the largest protoplanetary disk ever observed circling a young star. For the first time in visible light, Hubble has revealed the disk is unexpectedly chaotic and ...

Dec 23, 2025 in Astronomy & Space
Phys.org / Converting CO₂ into valuable chemicals in acidic environments: Iodide ions unlock efficient ethylene production

The emission of carbon dioxide (CO₂) is one of the primary factors contributing to air pollution and climate change on Earth. In recent years, energy engineers have thus been trying to develop systems that could reduce ...

Dec 23, 2025 in Chemistry
Phys.org / New species are being discovered faster than ever before, study suggests

About 300 years ago, Swedish naturalist Carl Linnaeus set out on a bold quest: to identify and name every living organism on Earth. Now celebrated as the father of modern taxonomy, he developed the binomial naming system ...

Dec 23, 2025 in Biology
Phys.org / We discovered an ancient 'party boat' in the waters of Alexandria. Here's what might have happened on board

Beneath the shifting waters of Alexandria's eastern harbor, on Egypt's Mediterranean coast, lie the drowned remnants of a once-splendid city—ports, palaces and temples swallowed by the sea. Submerged by earthquakes and ...

Dec 23, 2025 in Other Sciences
Phys.org / Hunting pressure drives female turkeys to produce more daughters, study suggests

Female turkeys could be running the roost for years to come. New research from the University of Georgia published in the Journal of Avian Biology found that the gender of turkey offspring may depend on whether the birds ...

Dec 23, 2025 in Biology
Phys.org / Earth's growing heat imbalance driven more by clouds than air pollution, study finds

Earth is taking in more energy than it releases back to space—a growing "energy imbalance" that is fueling global warming. A new study led by scientists at the University of Miami Rosenstiel School of Marine, Atmospheric, ...

Dec 23, 2025 in Earth
Phys.org / A molecular switch for green hydrogen: Catalyst changes function based on how it's assembled

Hydrogen production through water electrolysis is a cornerstone of the clean energy transition, but it relies on efficient and stable catalysts that work under acidic conditions—currently dominated by precious metals like ...

Dec 23, 2025 in Chemistry
Phys.org / Ultrafast fluorescence pulse technique enables imaging of individual trapped atoms

Researchers at the ArQuS Laboratory of the University of Trieste (Italy) and the National Institute of Optics of the Italian National Research Council (CNR-INO) have achieved the first imaging of individual trapped cold atoms ...

Dec 23, 2025 in Physics