Everything in the forest is the forest Clare Hewitt An average mature oak tree grows hundreds of thousands of leaves each year. When those leaves fall, their nutrients return to the soil to nourish the tree that grew them, as well as other living things in the forest. “They essentially eat themselves every year,” says…
Within the animal kingdom, a naturally produced molecule known as itaconate serves a prominent role in the immune system as a defensive agent against viruses and inflammation. Itaconate is classified as a metabolite, a natural compound that arises when organisms convert food into energy. While itaconate is well known in animals, its presence and functions…
Lunar craters could be a rich source of platinum NASA’s Scientific Visualization Studio Craters on the moon could hold over a trillion dollars’ worth of platinum and other precious metals deposited there by asteroids. That means lunar prospecting may be more economically viable than travelling to asteroids individually to mine them – but the legality…
With its cold climate, short growing season, and dense forests, Michigan’s Upper Peninsula is known as a challenging place for farming. But a new Dartmouth-led study provides evidence of intensive farming by ancestral Native Americans at the Sixty Islands archaeological site along the Menominee River, making it the most complete ancient agricultural site in the…
Artist’s impression of the Resilience lunar lander ispace A private spacecraft will attempt to land on the moon this week, in what would be the second successful private landing this year and only the third ever. If Japanese space company ispace pulls off the landing, it will also be the first non-US firm to touch…
Pallab Ghosh Science correspondent NASA/Johns Hopkins The heart-shape on Pluto was captured by a spacecraft that will be turned off mid-mission if Nasa cuts are approved The row between US President Donald Trump and billionaire Elon Musk over a major spending bill has exacerbated uncertainty over the future of Nasa’s budget, which was already facing…
Daniela Relph Senior royal correspondent Watch: Prince William speaks French during address ahead of Oceans summit The Prince of Wales has described the challenge of protecting the world’s oceans as “like none that we have ever faced before.” In a speech delivered to the Blue Economy and Finance Forum in Monaco, Prince William said life…
This Hubble Space Telescope image is cluttered with myriad galaxies NASA, ESA, B. Sunnquist, J. Mack, J. Lotz (STScI), HFF Team The following is an extract from our Lost in Space-Time newsletter. Each month, we hand over the keyboard to a physicist or mathematician to tell you about fascinating ideas from their corner of the…
Could you run for 100 hours this year? How about just doing a little more than 15 minutes each day? In fact, these goals are essentially equivalent, but one certainly sounds more ambitious than the other. The correct framing, then, is important when setting a goal. Take averting a sixth mass extinction. It definitely sounds…
A team of scientists from the SETI Institute and the University of California at Davis documented, for the first time, humpback whales producing large bubble rings, like a human smoker blowing smoke rings, during friendly interactions with humans. This previously little studied behavior may represent play or communication. Humpback whales are already known for using…
