Phys.org news

Phys.org / Urban aerosols grow faster in polluted air, sharpening climate model gaps

Aerosols and clouds play a key role in Earth's climate budget. However, the extent to which they reflect solar energy depends heavily on how much water the particles can absorb. This so-called hygroscopicity has so far been ...

May 20, 2026
Phys.org / How economic growth in low-income countries can also protect biodiversity

For decades, environmental debates have been framed around a stark trade-off: economic growth lifts people out of poverty but comes at the expense of forests, wildlife, and climate stability. More people and richer diets ...

May 20, 2026
Phys.org / Dominant fish face higher microplastic risk than subordinates in social groups

Fish who display dominant traits are more at risk of consuming microplastic pollution than others in their social group, according to new research. The study, led by the University of Glasgow and published in Proceedings ...

May 20, 2026
Phys.org / Asteroid impact site reveals possible traces of early life

A discovery by a South Korean research team suggests that impact-generated lakes may have fostered early oxygen-producing life. A team of South Korean scientists has uncovered new evidence that could help explain how Earth's ...

May 20, 2026
Phys.org / Space storms light up Japan's sky with red auroras climbing far higher than expected

On a special night, if you are lucky, you might catch a faint red glow quietly lighting up Japan's sky, stretching low along the horizon and easy to miss if you are not looking carefully. Subtle and diffuse, it probably appears ...

May 20, 2026
Phys.org / Fragility found in a high value shark population

The vulnerability of a shark population to losing even small numbers to fishing has been highlighted by researchers from the University of Chester and partners in the Philippines using a remote stereo camera system. The team ...

May 20, 2026
Phys.org / When Mendel's rules don't apply: Mouse study reveals hidden epigenetic inheritance

Scientists have long known that the DNA code in genes is not the only way to pass genetic traits from parents to offspring. "Epigenetic" marks—chemical modifications to DNA that don't change the DNA code itself—can also be ...

May 20, 2026
Phys.org / Climate change spurs weight gain in owl monkeys

Azara's owl monkeys, a small primate species found in South America, are heavier today than those that lived a quarter-century ago, and evidence suggests that rising temperatures might have driven the weight gain, according ...

May 20, 2026
Phys.org / How climate change is destroying Arctic cultural heritage sites

Climate change is rapidly destroying cultural heritage sites across the Arctic, as exemplified in a 17th century "whalers' graveyard" which provides invaluable insights into early whalers' way of life, according to a study ...

May 20, 2026
Phys.org / Rising seawater heat may collapse coral oxygen flow before bleaching appears

Tropical coral reefs support the highest levels of biodiversity in the ocean. This vital ecosystem depends on reef-building corals, which form colonies of thousands of tiny coral animals that secrete calcium carbonate skeletons, ...

May 20, 2026
Phys.org / Carbon markets underestimate the risks U.S. forests face from climate change, researchers warn

The world's forests form a vast network of carbon reservoirs, keeping carbon sequestered from the atmosphere where its presence is disrupting Earth's climate systems. Many corporate, national and state climate policies rely ...

May 20, 2026
Phys.org / Food and drink plastics dominate marine litter across 112 nations, research reveals

Plastic food packaging, caps and lids, and plastic bottles are the planet's predominant items of marine litter, according to the world's first overview of marine litter by usage type.

May 20, 2026