Phys.org news

Phys.org / Scientists observe water's behavior in a single molecular layer

New research has revealed that water behaves differently when confined to spaces just one molecule thick. For the first time, scientists have directly measured the vibrational signatures of truly two-dimensional water. In ...

10 hours ago
Phys.org / Older than the sun: Astronomers find new clues to the origin of interstellar comet 3I/ATLAS

Astronomers have used the European Southern Observatory's Very Large Telescope (ESO's VLT) to study the composition of 3I/ATLAS, the brightest interstellar object ever seen, in detail. By measuring specific chemical fingerprints—the ...

11 hours ago
Phys.org / Earth's deepest rocks help define upper limit for viscosity beyond which materials effectively become rigid

Viscosity is one of the most fundamental physical properties used to describe how materials flow. It governs the movement of liquids, molten rocks and even slowly deforming regions deep inside the Earth. While scientists ...

11 hours ago
Phys.org / New workflow tool gives scientists a clearer view of how DNA is regulated

Researchers from the Cancer Science Institute of Singapore (CSI Singapore) at NUS have developed a new method that allows scientists to better understand how DNA is organized and regulated inside cells. The study, published ...

10 hours ago
Phys.org / China's space probe reaches asteroid after 1-billion-kilometer chase for first sample return

China's Tianwen-2 space probe, which is set to bring back samples from an asteroid for research, has reached its target after traveling 1 billion kilometers (620 million miles) over more than a year, the Chinese space agency ...

15 hours ago
Phys.org / Euclid discovers the most ancient quasars in the universe

The European Space Agency's Euclid space telescope has discovered 31 of the most ancient quasars ever found. Two of these giant and dazzling galaxy cores, powered by gargantuan black holes, are the earliest quasars yet observed ...

16 hours ago
Phys.org / Researchers use AI to evaluate a systematic framework to describe molecular order in liquid water

Water is the most abundant liquid on Earth's surface, and it is highly anomalous compared with other liquids because it expands upon freezing. The anomalies in water have been linked to how its microscopic structure changes ...

14 hours ago
Phys.org / Neutral lipids enable precision control over supramolecular polymerization

The formation of supramolecular polymers within living cells is an emerging strategy for regulating cellular functions, and lipid droplets (LDs) are promising environments for such processes. LDs are cellular organelles composed ...

14 hours ago
Phys.org / Scattered bronze bells in Chinese lord's 2,600-year-old tomb point to ritual deactivation

When archaeologists opened the 2,600-year-old tomb of an ancient Chinese lord, they discovered his magnificent bronze bells had been scattered, their wooden hangings broken. But the most mysterious part of all: This was apparently ...

Jul 5, 2026
Phys.org / Rats show empathy, according to model

A rat first frees a cagemate rat and then shares food with it. Is this animal just as empathetic as humans? In an American study from 2011, researchers observed that rats first freed their fellow rats from a cage and then ...

Jul 5, 2026
Phys.org / Rare 309-million-year-old fossils suggest early tetrapods developed without tadpole phase

Scientists have long posited that the earliest water animals to transition to land had amphibious tadpole features, going through a metamorphosis akin to that of today's frogs.

Jul 5, 2026
Phys.org / European cities short on shade as heat waves hit, urban mapping reveals

More than four in five homes and workplaces across 25 European cities have less nearby tree canopy than what is needed for meaningful cooling, according to an open-data analysis by an urban greening expert.

Jul 5, 2026