Phys.org news

Phys.org / NASA rolls out three robotic moon missions as 2029 lunar base plans take shape

NASA on Tuesday announced new uncrewed missions to aid in the future creation of a lunar surface base, a project beginning to take shape despite recent setbacks.

Jul 1, 2026
Phys.org / Italy displays paintings from an ancient Etruscan tomb, its latest cultural acquisition

Italy on Tuesday put on display one of the best known examples of Etruscan painting, panels from a tomb that it acquired for 15 million euros ($17 million) in the Culture Ministry's buying spree of big-ticket pieces of the ...

Jul 1, 2026
Phys.org / Polymer network reconfigures in sequence, helping elastomers stay tough under strain

Shock-absorbing sneaker soles are likely made of polyurethane, a highly elastic and tough polymer. The ability of these elastomers to absorb impact without breaking is extremely important for practical applications. While ...

Jul 1, 2026
Phys.org / 3,000-year-old Irish Bronze Age site may be one of Europe's earliest 'town-like' settlements

A major prehistoric center in Ireland was among the first large, organized settlements to develop in Western Europe more than 3,000 years ago, new research reveals. The study, published today in Antiquity, identifies Haughey's ...

Jun 30, 2026
Phys.org / An iconic spear-throwing device likely wasn't used by prehistoric hunters until around 10,000 years ago

Archaeologists have long pictured prehistoric hunters taking down mammoths and other megafauna using the atlatl, a handheld spear-throwing device that uses leverage to achieve greater velocity and force when throwing darts. ...

Jun 30, 2026
Phys.org / Open cluster NGC 6134 in Norma is 1.38 billion years old and hosts a core, tidal tail and diffuse halo

Indonesian astronomers have conducted a comprehensive study of an open cluster in the constellation Norma, known as NGC 6134. Results of the new study, available in a research paper published June 23 on the preprint server ...

Jun 30, 2026
Phys.org / One of the most distant 'leaky' galaxies ever found may reveal how the universe reionized

Astronomers have identified one of the most distant candidate galaxies known to leak ionizing radiation—the same kind of radiation thought to have transformed the early universe during the epoch of reionization.

Jun 30, 2026
Phys.org / Nearby 'Super Earth' may be a better candidate for life than previously thought

Using the Hobby-Eberly Telescope at McDonald Observatory, astronomers have taken a closer look at a nearby exoplanet and discovered it may be more Earth-like than previously thought. The planet, known as GJ 3378b, orbits ...

Jun 30, 2026
Phys.org / Abundant catalyst converts methane into valuable liquid chemicals

Scientists at the U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE) Brookhaven National Laboratory and their collaborators have demonstrated a promising new approach for converting methane—the primary component of natural gas—into liquid ...

Jun 30, 2026
Phys.org / Cosmic eruption caught in the act by submillimeter array's new fastest response system

On Jan. 26, 2026, the Submillimeter Array (SMA) on Maunakea crossed an important threshold for time-domain astronomy. For the first time, scientists from the Center for Astrophysics | Harvard & Smithsonian (CfA) demonstrated ...

Jun 30, 2026
Phys.org / Scientists teach human cells to compute like tiny computers

Researchers have developed a way to program human cells to perform calculations and make autonomous decisions, similar to how computer chips work.

Jun 30, 2026
Phys.org / Astronomers find an enigmatic source that is most likely a Little Red Dot in formation

Astronomers have, for the first time, found a source in the process of becoming a Little Red Dot, using the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST). Little Red Dots are likely early galaxies and some of the most intriguing objects ...

Jun 30, 2026