Read the latest articles from Popular Science (Page 546)

natural gas stove
Military

What a key natural-gas pipeline has to do with the Russia-Ukraine crisis

Here's why Germany rescinded its certification of the Nord Stream 2 pipeline as tensions continue to get even hotter.

Our brains may remain active before, and in the moments after, death.
Health

What the recording of a dying human brain could tell us

First-of-its-kind data may hint at life flashing before a man's eyes.

a white ghostly outline of the international space station floating in the ocean
International Space Station

There’s a lot we don’t know about the International Space Station’s ocean grave

The 450-ton station will follow a long line of retired spacecraft that have been laid to rest in the marine 'space cemetery.'

composite illustration worms dust bugs amber
Science

PopSci’s spring issue has all the dirt

Just in time for spring cleaning, we’re digging deep into the secrets hidden in our filthiest messes.

a toilet floating in space
Space

The inside scoop on Apollo 10’s infamous floating turd

Plus other fun facts from The Weirdest Thing I Learned This Week.

Three galaxies forming a gassy swirl in a Hubble Space Telescope image
Space Telescope

See Hubble’s captures of real-life star wars

When galaxies rip each other apart, they leave an explosion of bright baby stars.

SARS-CoV-2 virus, the origin of the Omicron, BA.2, and Delta variants, under a microscope
COVID-19

‘Stealth Omicron’ is spreading slowly in the US

Mutations are normal in common viruses, but that doesn't mean they're all harmless.

Climate change protest poster with COVID mask
Climate Change

How public opinion can help shape climate policies

Fighting climate change on a personal level works in a surprising way.

the Mars Ascent Vehicle
Mars

This miniature rocket could be the first NASA craft launched from Mars

Lockheed Martin will build the vehicle, which should only be about 10 feet tall. Eventually, NASA wants to literally throw it into the Martian atmosphere.

phone on desk charging wirelessly
Tech Hacks

Is a wireless charger better? Here’s how to decide.

Charge your gadgets up the right way.

A black bear in the woods.
Bears

A 500-pound black bear keeps breaking into California homes. What’s next?

The large bear associates neighborhoods with easy access to food.

Orange Jelly Belly beans arranged in rows for molding at the factory in Fairfield, California
Technology

Inside the technicolor factory where Jelly Belly makes its beans

Jelly Belly has mastered making flavors so real they can confound the senses.

US vaccine card with Johnson & Johnson dose written in
Vaccines

Will the world run out of COVID vaccines?

A Johnson & Johnson plant has temporarily halted vaccine production, but alternatives are piling up.

Department of Energy employee with long brown hair, green sweater, and lab goggles holding a pipette over a white basin full of algae
Climate Change

The cost of algae-based biofuel is still too high

How far can a few drops of algae oil go?

duolingo haitian course promo ad miami
Technology

How Duolingo added Haitian Creole to its language library

Peek inside how the app designs new language experiences.

E.O. Wilson in his Harvard evolutionary biology office in a black and white photo
Evolution

A closer look at E.O. Wilson’s archives reveals support for racist research

Wilson’s papers at the Library of Congress include correspondence with a psychologist who exalted racial stereotypes.

Man in blue shirt writing math onto a black chalk board.
Science

Your brain uses different neurons to add and subtract

Researchers in Germany used electrodes to observe peoples' brain activity while solving math problems.

Merging white dwarf stars can create a new kind of star.
Physics

Rare ‘upside-down stars’ are shrouded in the remains of cannibalized suns

A rare type of star probably forms when two stars spiral around each other and smash together.

A park with tree canopy and benches in the fall.
Sustainability

Urban green spaces can’t beat climate change on their own

It takes more than a patch of green to make a city sustainable.

Why Volvo will start ‘mega-casting’ its new electric vehicles
Electric Vehicles

Why Volvo will start ‘mega-casting’ its new electric vehicles

It could be an important way to simplify the process of building future EVs in Sweden.