Science

Science spans our understanding of how Earth and the cosmos work. Get the biggest news on biology, physics, space, dinosaurs, and more—along with the latest episodes of the Ask Us Anything and Weirdest Thing podcasts.

Latest in Science

a pink galaxy shaped like a koi fish
Science

Space ‘koi fish’ caught by telescope

By Laura Baisas

A seahorse in the Mediterranean,.
Animals

8 animal fathers that take care of their eggs

By Ben Guarino

NASA astronaut and Expedition 68 Flight Engineer Woody Hoburg rides the Canadarm2 robotic arm while maneuvering a roll-out solar array toward the International Space Station's truss structure 257 miles above the Pacific Ocean. In the rear, is the SpaceX Dragon crew vehicle that docked to the Harmony module's forward port on March 3 carrying four SpaceX Crew-6 crew members.
International Space Station

‘Check his pulse one more time’: NASA accidentally airs ISS emergency test

By Andrew Paul

swimming in the pool
Diseases

How to avoid getting sick at the barbecue, in the pool, or on the trail this summer

By Bill Sullivan / The Conversation

Brooding squid
Animals

Incredible footage shows new squid species tending to enormous eggs

By Andrew Paul

still from the animated film "inside out 2." red anger, purple fear, yellow joy, blue sadness, and green disgust meet with new emotions. Envy is teal, anxiety is orange, and embarrassment is pink.
Biology

The science of awkward puberty brain from ‘Inside Out 2’

By Laura Baisas

Bronze Age ruins on the Greek island Aegina, surrounded by sparkling blue waters and mountains
Archaeology

Ancient, surprisingly well-preserved purple dye uncovered in Greece

By Laura Baisas

two dogs cuddle together in a bed in an animal shelter
Animals

Shelter dogs appear ‘less stressed’ when paired with a buddy

By Laura Baisas

Haliskia peterseni
Dinosaurs

New species of flying dinosaur found in Australia

By Tom Hawking

Detail from the reconstructed stone tzompantli, or skull rack, at Chichén Itzá.
Archaeology

Ancient Mayan human sacrifices involved twins

By Andrew Paul

Steve
Science

Have you seen Steve? Look up and you might spot the sky phenomenon.

By Briley Lewis

a black widow spider on a leaf. the spider is black with a red marking on its abdomen.
Animals

New experimental black widow venom antidote uses human antibodies

By Laura Baisas

Microplastic pile close-up
Climate Change

Every human semen sample contained microplastics in new study

By Andrew Paul

Astronaut conducting spacewalk outside ISS
Biology

NASA astronauts will scrape microorganisms off ISS during upcoming spacewalk

By Andrew Paul

arctic
Science

The good news about ‘giant viruses’ found in the Arctic Circle

By Tom Hawking

twin baby elephants stand under their mother
Animals

Set of rare elephant twins born in Thailand

By Laura Baisas

Five mysterious ancient artifacts that still puzzle archaeologists
Archaeology

Five mysterious ancient artifacts that still puzzle archaeologists

By Natasha Harlow / The Conversation

a juvenile dolphin lifts its head out of the water
Animals

Young dolphins mimic sex as part of play

By Laura Baisas

two juvenile elephants greet each other near a watering hole. their trunks are interlocked.
Animals

African elephants use name-like calls to address each other

By Laura Baisas

human bladder
Health

To pee or not to pee? That is a question for the bladder—and the brain

By Emily Underwood / Knowable Magazine

text that says 'netflix in 1984' over an image of a disc video player
Popular Science Videos

The $580 million vinyl movie disaster that destroyed an empire

By Popular Science Team

As the planet warms, many of Alaska’s glaciers are retreating. This is destabilizing cliff faces throughout the state’s myriad bays and fjords.
Environment

Sailing in Alaska? Watch out for tsunamis

By Christian Elliott / Hakai Magazine

milky way above a barn and tent
Science

10 spectacular images from Milky Way Photographer of the Year awards

By Popular Science Team

Concept art of MouthPad wearable medical device
Health

New device enables tongue-controlled mouse cursor

By Andrew Paul

An orange tree stays next to a damaged buildings in Antakya, Hatay province, on February 5, 2024, after one year the February 2023 earthquake. The disaster, which killed more than 53,500 people in Turkey and nearly 6,000 in Syria, was the region's deadliest in many centuries. (Photo by Ozan KOSE / AFP) (Photo by OZAN KOSE/AFP via Getty Images)
Science

New data on ‘the Big One’ offers a clearer view of inevitable earthquake catastrophe

By Lauren Leffer

Magnetic resonance spectroscopy machine in hospital laboratory.
AI

New technology could shrink bulky MRI machines

By Andrew Paul

A colorful adult female Joro spider. These arachnids are native to parts of Southeast Asia.
Animals

No, ‘flying’ venomous spiders are not coming for you this summer

By Laura Baisas

There is no science behind eye exercises to improve sight
Health

There is no science behind eye exercises to improve sight

By Benjamin Botsford / The Conversation

Watch a meteor’s incredible light show above Spain and Portugal
Science

Watch a meteor’s incredible light show above Spain and Portugal

By Andrew Paul

a school of yellow and white swim near a reef
Animals

Fish swimming together fare better in turbulent waters

By Laura Baisas

a tiger shark swimming in the ocean (left). a small spiky mammal with a pointy nose canned an echidna (right) on land
Animals

Unlucky shark vomits up hedgehog-like animal, shocks scientists

By Laura Baisas

Starship fourth liftoff
Engineering

SpaceX’s fourth Starship launches

By Andrew Paul

oysters plate
Animals

Climate change is coming for your oysters

By Devon Fredericksen / Hakai Magazine

blue swirls swirling around white clouds and a brown surface on jupiter
Science

Surprisingly, storms on Jupiter and Earth have something in common

By Laura Baisas

An NA Negroni sitting on the arm of an Adirondack chair with the Cascade Mountains in the background.
Agriculture

Inside the first non-alcoholic distillery in the United States 

By Amanda Reed

a large bird with blue plummage and orange eyes called a cassowary
Animals

The world’s most dangerous bird is at risk of extinction

By Laura Baisas

OceanXplorers sub
Animals

Watch the exclusive trailer premiere for James Cameron’s new ‘OceanXplorers’ series

By Andrew Paul

Boeing Starliner launch
International Space Station

Boeing Starliner launches first crewed mission for NASA

By Andrew Paul

Zebrafish
Animals

Why do we send so many fish to space?

By Briley Lewis

Bornean Orangutan
Animals

These orangutans indulge in a spa-like skincare routine

By Popular Science Team

The Sonoran Desert toad.
Health

From toad toxin to medicine: The promise of 5-MeO-DMT

By Lourdes Medrano/Undark

Newborn stars peek out from beneath their natal blanket of dust in this dynamic image of the Rho Ophiuchi dark cloud from NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope.
Physics

How scientific wonder brings comfort to life and death

By Keith Wagstaff

yaks and sheep grazing on grassland with mountains in the distance
Agriculture

Bronze Age nomads used cauldrons for blood sausage and yak milk

By Laura Baisas

First metal 3D printer on space station dribbles molten steel
Science

First metal 3D printer on space station dribbles molten steel

By Harri Weber

Drinking alcohol on airplanes is bad for your body
Health

Drinking alcohol on airplanes is bad for your body

By Tom Hawking

Image of June 3, 2024, solar flare
NASA

Watch a wild ‘failed eruption’ solar flare

By Andrew Paul

A huge thermokarst crater showing the damage to the permafrost and our climate, Batagay, Russia.
Climate Change

Earth’s ‘Gateway to Hell’ is growing

By Lauren Leffer

an american flamingo. the bird has pink and white plumage with a black beak
Animals

A ‘pink wave’ of flamingoes settles into the Sunshine State

By Laura Baisas

a snake spits venom out of its mouth
Animals

Snake venom’s deadly secrets decoded with fake blood vessels

By Laura Baisas

Common cuttlefish
Animals

Cuttlefish tentacles and origami inspired a new robotic claw

By Andrew Paul

a close up of a cicada with blue eyes
Animals

A ‘one-in-a-million’ blue-eyed cicada spotted by 4-year-old child

By Laura Baisas

While scientists have seen colossal squid before—like this specimen examined by New Zealander researchers in 2014—their interactions have always been with animals that were either pulled from the depths, washed up on shore, or otherwise removed from their natural habitat.
Animals

Visiting the kraken at home

By Evert Lindquist / Hakai Magazine

Visualisation of the central grave/main burial of the Grafenbühl mound
Archaeology

DNA suggests ancient Celtic royalty was matrilineal

By Andrew Paul

An artistic life reconstruction of Genyornis newtoni, the last of the dromornithids, at the water’s edge
Animals

Giant 500-pound geese once honked around the Australian outback

By Laura Baisas

elderly person
Health

There is new help for dealing with aggression in people with dementia

By Judith Graham / KFF Health News

'nope' on space background
Popular Science Videos

In 1967, Walter Cronkite tried to predict the year 2000. Here’s what he got right (and very wrong).

By Popular Science Team

How do animals get their spots and stripes? A Turing mechanism holds clues to patterns
Animals

How do animals get their spots and stripes? A Turing mechanism holds clues to patterns

By Amber Dance/Knowable Magazine

JWST discovers earliest galaxy ever observed
Deep Space

JWST discovers earliest galaxy ever observed

By Tom Hawking

steam rising over blue water in a pool built by ancient romans
Archaeology

What Britain’s famed Roman Baths could teach us about microbes

By Laura Baisas

Illustration of atomic Fresnel lens
Engineering

This lens is just three atoms thick and works like a quantum lighthouse

By Andrew Paul

a black and white photograph of swimmer gertrude ederle. she is standing on a beach in a one piece swimsuit holding an oar.
Fitness & Exercise

Gertrude Ederle and the grueling science of marathon swimming

By Laura Baisas

a full moon rises with blurred red flowers
Space

June skygazing: Nevermind the viral ‘planet parade,’ check out the Strawberry/Solstice moon

By Laura Baisas

fossilized leg bones in reddish-brown sediment
Dinosaurs

New horse-sized dinosaur species discovered in Zimbabwe

By Laura Baisas

a brown snail sits on a green lettuce leaf
Animals

Slimy slugs and snails surprisingly thriving in LA

By Laura Baisas

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