Phys.org news

Phys.org / Cosmic dust could play key role in cracking long-standing mystery of solar corona heating

A researcher at The University of Alabama in Huntsville (UAH), a part of The University of Alabama System, has published a new study in The Astrophysical Journal suggesting that tiny charged dust grains near the sun may significantly ...

Jul 1, 2026
Phys.org / Ancient gum disease may have helped reshape jaws before human brains expanded

Human evolution is generally explained through changes in brain size, locomotion or tool use, but new research from Wits University suggests that gum disease and changes in facial structure may have been important factors ...

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 / Were Clovis foragers in Late Pleistocene North America big-game hunters, or just big-game scavengers?

There are currently 15 well-documented Late Pleistocene localities in North America in which Clovis points are found associated with proboscidean remains (of mammoth, mastodon and gomphothere). Archaeologists routinely assume ...

Jul 1, 2026
Phys.org / Primate brains might have evolved to 'catch up' with larger bodies, but then kept growing

A new analysis supports the previously overlooked "brain lag" hypothesis—the idea that, in some primate lineages, the evolution of larger body size preceded the evolution of larger brain size—while also building on that hypothesis ...

Jul 1, 2026
Phys.org / Lake Chad supports 2.48 million waterbirds, emerging as one of Africa's top wetland refuges

A study titled "Monitoring major biodiversity stronghold in war zones: model predicts Lake Chad remains Africa's most important wetland for waterbirds" estimates that Lake Chad supports nearly 2.5 million waterbirds, making ...

Jul 1, 2026
Phys.org / Sun-powered sponges may generate 11% of tropical coral reef productivity

In marine environments, sponges tend to eat other organisms to get their nutrients. But a study published in Functional Ecology by researchers at the University of Amsterdam's Institute for Biodiversity and Ecosystem Dynamics ...

Jul 1, 2026
Phys.org / Cutting emissions more, removing carbon less could save 33,000 U.S. lives yearly

Published in Nature Climate Change, new research from the University of Wisconsin–Madison finds that reaching net-zero emissions by midcentury would substantially improve public health in the United States. However, climate ...

Jul 1, 2026
Phys.org / Superworms could be the future of skeleton cleaning

Superworms, a mealworm-like form of beetle larva commonly used as pet food, are efficient cleaners of skeletons, according to a study published in PLOS One by Fatemeh Rastekar of Ferdowsi University of Mashhad, Iran, and ...

Jul 1, 2026
Phys.org / Tree size, not age, may speed habitat recovery for endangered Indiana bats

Bugs run rampant in the summer, and if you have ever suffered a mosquito bite and regretted not putting on bug spray, you should know about nature's insect repellent: the Indiana bat. Federally endangered since 1967, the ...

Jul 1, 2026
Phys.org / Orbit overload could devastate astronomy if 1.7 million proposed satellites brighten night sky

A new European Southern Observatory (ESO) study has found that current proposals to launch more than 1.7 million satellites into orbit, including extremely bright ones, would have "devastating consequences for astronomy." ...

Jul 1, 2026
Phys.org / Webb reveals merger scars in galaxies that stopped forming stars 9 billion years ago

Research has shed new light on why some distant galaxies suddenly stop forming stars. An international team led by astronomers at the University of Nottingham has used the James Webb Space Telescope to study a large sample ...

Jul 1, 2026