Phys.org news
Phys.org / Ancient charcoal reveals evidence of wildfires near the South Pole
A journey back in time to the Late Cretaceous: A swampy rainforest with conifers and tree ferns stretches as far as the eye can see, dinosaurs roam through the misty wetlands, and the climate is mild and warm. The average ...
Phys.org / Dark plasma regions reveal overlooked source of reactive atomic oxygen
Scientists from Tokyo Metropolitan University have found a way to make plasma more effective for its wide-ranging uses, from antimicrobial applications to surface conditioning in the semiconductor industry. They mapped the ...
Phys.org / New model measures economic risks solar storms pose to US power grid
In 1967, a solar storm nearly triggered World War III by jamming early-warning radar systems in the United States, causing U.S. leaders to think the Soviet Union was responsible. Though society averted catastrophe thanks ...
Phys.org / Two-color X-ray pulses capture the same nanoparticle at two moments in time
One big dream of ultrafast science has been to watch changes in nanoparticles or biomolecules on their natural timescale. Experimentally, this can be realized by taking two snapshots of the same object only femtoseconds apart. ...
Phys.org / Tiny polymer particles keep water jets stable for longer
Tiny, soft polymer particles—known as microgels—can help to stabilize extremely thin liquid jets. How this works is the finding of a study led by researchers at TU Darmstadt, which has been published in Nature Communications. ...
Phys.org / Isle of Jura research casts new light on how rivers carve through landscapes
The waters of the remote Scottish island of Jura have long been famous for making whiskey. Now, the island's rivers have helped geologists learn more about how rivers erode rocks, providing new evidence that what streams ...
Phys.org / Reconstructed ancient protein maps how bacterial enzymes evolved distinct functions
How do related proteins develop different functions? This is the question investigated by a research team involving Kiel University, DESY and the Center for Structural Systems Biology (CSSB). Led by Holger Sondermann, professor ...
Phys.org / Decades-old museum specimens reveal 10 extraordinary new worms
Scientists have discovered that one of the most unusual creatures in the animal kingdom is far more diverse and evolutionarily complex than previously known. An international team led by the University of Göttingen has reconstructed ...
Phys.org / Six unusual structures identified at Earth's core-mantle boundary with the help of deep learning
Since scientists can't drill 2,900 km (1,800 miles) to the boundary between Earth's core and deep mantle, they must use information relayed by seismic waves recorded during earthquakes to study this region. In a new study ...
Phys.org / 'Quiet' pulsar suddenly reveals three glitches in 15 years of observations
Using more than 15 years of observations from the Parkes radio telescope, astronomers detected three rotational glitches in the pulsar PSR J1637−4642—a young neutron star that had shown no signs of glitches since its discovery. ...
Phys.org / Extreme pressure turns blue pigment into record-long single-atom copper chains
As the electronics in our technology keep shrinking, traditional silicon-based chips are approaching their fundamental physical limits. Yet the wires connecting them might be able to shrink beyond conventional dimensions, ...
Phys.org / The extinct American 'cheetah' was not a cheetah after all
With their slender bodies and long front legs, Miracinonyx trumani—often nicknamed the "American cheetah"—was long thought to be a North American analog of the African big cat. But in a new study published in the journal ...
