461: Measuring the Weather with Satellites Astronomy Cast 461: Measuring the Weather with Satellites by Fraser Cain & Dr. Pamela Gay

Donald Trump has his sights set on Iran’s Kharg Island. Composite: ESA/AFP via Getty Images, UPI/Shutterstock View image in fullscreen Donald Trump has his sights set on Iran’s Kharg Island. Composite: ESA/AFP via Getty Images, UPI/Shutterstock Analysis ‘Fossil-fuel imperialism’: Trump’s hankering f…

Staying connected online helps us keep up with the world, but the constant hum of social media can quickly turn from a tool into a source of anxiety. If you find yourself mindlessly scrolling at the expense of your sleep or focus, you've likely crossed the line from being informed to being overwhelm…

AstronomyCast 345: Launch Complex 39 by Fraser Cain & Dr. Pamela Gay

‘Nigel Farage’s obsession with drilling in the North Sea would only keep us locked into volatile energy markets.’ Photograph: Temilade Adelaja/Reuters View image in fullscreen ‘Nigel Farage’s obsession with drilling in the North Sea would only keep us locked into volatile energy markets.’ Photograph…

531: Australian Indigenous Astronomy Astronomy Cast 531: Australian Indigenous Astronomy by Fraser Cain & Dr. Pamela Gay South America, especially the Atacama Desert in Chile has become one of the best places in the world to put a telescope. It's dry, high, and the nights are clear. Today we'll talk…

Astronomy Cast Ep. 787: Evolved Stars (They're not dead yet!) By Fraser Cain & Dr. Pamela Gay Streamed live on Mar 16, 2026. Main sequence stars spend most of their time being… normal. Fusing hydrogen into helium in their cores. Producing radiation. But as their stockpiles of hydrogen run out they s…

AstronomyCast 290: Failed Stars, by Fraser Cain & Dr. Pamela Gay

AstronomyCast 402: Gravity Eyes - See the Invisible with the Force by Fraser Cain & Dr. Pamela Gay

In about 5 to 8 billion years, our sun is expected to evolve into a white dwarf—an extremely dense, Earth-sized stellar remnant that has exhausted its fuel and shed its outer layer. But while our sun is a solitary star, research over the past 15 years has demonstrated that binary or multi-star syste…

AstronomyCast 409: Spin in the Solar System by Fraser Cain & Dr. Pamela Gay

Strategic recruitment of international talent is helping Denmark establish itself as a research powerhouse in quantum science and technology Shared purpose Maria Cerdà Sevilla and her colleagues at Quantum DTU in Lyngby are shaping the trajectory of technology translation and commercial innovation i…

Pointers on how to boost the impact of your work
The post Top-cited authors from India and North America share their tips for early-career researchers appeared first on Physics World.

Astronomy Cast Ep. 625: End of the Year Review by Fraser Cain & Dr. Pamela Gay We've reached the end of 2021 and this is the last episode of the year. Let's look back at the big space events of the last year and talk about what we're looking forward to in 2022.

Astronomy Cast Ep. 785: Magnetars By Fraser Cain & Dr. Pamela Gay Streamed live March 6, 2026. Magnetars are a special type of neutron star with physics that defy comprehension. Magnetic fields so powerful they could strip you apart at an atomic level. But, where do they come from? So many mysteries…

These are only a few of the more than 600 artifacts used as dice tools by Indigenous hunter-gatherer communities. Credit: American Antiquity Get the Popular Science daily newsletter💡 Breakthroughs, discoveries, and DIY tips sent six days a week. Terms of Service and Privacy Policy. Humans have gambl…

AstronomyCast 349: Mercury 7 Astronauts by Fraser Cain & Dr. Pamela Gay

Exposing the Wi-Fi chip to gamma radiation. (Credit: Yasuto Narukiyo et al, 2026) From outer space to down here on Earth, there are many places where ionizing radiation levels are high enough that they effectively bar access for humans, but also make life miserable for anything containing semiconduc…

AstronomyCast 277: Orbit, by Fraser Cain & Dr. Pamela Gay

Science News from research organizations Crops irrigated with wastewater store drugs in their leaves Scientists discovered that crops irrigated with wastewater mostly stash trace pharmaceuticals in their leaves rather than the parts we eat. Date: March 15, 2026 Source: Johns Hopkins University Summa…

In submissions to the NSW datacentre inquiry, several councils have raised concerns about health, environmental and amenity impacts on their communities as the industry rapidly expands. Photograph: Steven Markham/AAP View image in fullscreen In submissions to the NSW datacentre inquiry, several coun…

AstronomyCast 372: The Millikan Oil Drop Experiment by Fraser Cain & Dr. Pamela Gay

A Disturbing Pattern Emerges in Zoo Penguins With Unlimited Food Nature 05 April 2026 By Ivan Farkas King penguins at Zoo Zürich, Switzerland. (Zoo Zürich, Albert Schmidmeister) Pampered penguins in zoos escape the elements and feast on fish to their hearts' content, but care-free living comes at a …

Early interaction with humans could help improve the lives of laying hens. by Elena Botta via Getty Images Get the Popular Science daily newsletter💡 Breakthroughs, discoveries, and DIY tips sent six days a week. Terms of Service and Privacy Policy. Around this time of the year, your social media doo…

A coal-fired power plant constructed last year in in Bijie, China. Tao Liang/Xinhua/Zuma Get your news from a source that’s not owned and controlled by oligarchs. Sign up for the free Mother Jones Daily . This story was originally published by Yale e360 and is reproduced here as part of the Climate …

(Image credit: Intel) Copy link Facebook X Whatsapp Reddit Pinterest Flipboard Email Share this article 0 Join the conversation Follow us Add us as a preferred source on Google Newsletter Stay On the Cutting Edge: Get the Tom's Hardware Newsletter Get Tom's Hardware's best news and in-depth reviews,…

AstronomyCast 411: The Science of Sunset Colors by Fraser Cain & Dr. Pamela Gay

The early universe is absolutely so far outside our understanding of how the world works it's hard to describe in words. Back then, the cosmos wasn't filled with stars and galaxies but with a boiling soup of quarks and gluons, with a few microscopic black holes thrown in, occasionally detonating lik…

By analysing the Liouville gap in imaginary time, scientists reveal universal phase‑transition behaviour in both ground and finite‑temperature states
The post A breakthrough in modelling open quantum matter appeared first on Physics World.

AstronomyCast 308: Climate Change by Fraser Cain & Dr. Pamela Gay

When you're finished with work and you need something to do, where do you turn your attention? Some folks build models, others do some coloring. Some relax and watch TV. But if you're looking for something to pour your free time and attention into, it can be difficult to settle on one thing, or even…

AstronomyCast 242: The Turino Scale, by Fraser Cain & Dr. Pamela Gay

Knossos is a city built by the Minoans. It has a palace the size of two football fields. (Image credit: SCStock via Shutterstock) Copy link Facebook X Whatsapp Reddit Pinterest Flipboard Email Share this article 0 Join the conversation Follow us Add us as a preferred source on Google Newsletter Sign…

Astronomy Cast Ep. 599: Zodiacal Light by Fraser Cain & Dr. Pamela Gay Pamela has told us in the most flowery terms about the diffuse dust across the inner solar system left over from the formation of the inner planets. well, it turns out she was wrong. Super wrong. Time to update!

Martian lightning Artist’s impression of an electrical discharge on Mars. (Courtesy: Milan Machatý, Faculty of Mathematics and Physics, Charles University and Institute of Atmospheric Physics, Czech Academy of Sciences) Researchers in the Czech Republic say they may have observed the signature of a …

A bilby at Mallee Cliffs national park. Numbers in the breeding trial have climbed from 50 to almost 2,000. Photograph: Brad Leue/Australian Wildlife Conservancy View image in fullscreen A bilby at Mallee Cliffs national park. Numbers in the breeding trial have climbed from 50 to almost 2,000. Photo…

Astronomy Cast Ep. 662 - Looking Ahead at New and Recycled Missions by Fraser Cain & Dr. Pamela Gay Last week we talked about the missions we're saying goodbye to. This week, we're going to talk about some upcoming missions to say hello to. Some are brand new ideas, others are, uh, recycled. This vi…

476: The Overview Effect Astronomy Cast 476: The Overview Effect by Fraser Cain & Dr. Pamela Gay

AstronomyCast 302: Planetary Motion in the Sky by Fraser Cain & Dr. Pamela Gay

Astronomy Cast Ep. 610: What is Required to Confirm Alien Life: Non-Sentient Edition by Fraser Cain & Dr. Pamela Gay Are we alone in the Universe? It's one of the biggest scientific questions we can possibly ask. And yet, with rovers on Mars, missions planned to visit Europa and Ganymede. Powerful t…

AstronomyCast 284: Optics, by Fraser Cain & Dr. Pamela Gay

Share: Share on X (Opens in new window) X Share on Facebook (Opens in new window) Facebook Share using Native tools Share Copied to clipboard There’s no denying that Madonna is one of the biggest pop stars in the world. But, did you know that she got her “big” despite not even having a desire to be …

Astronomy Cast Ep. 772: 2025 Gift Guide By Fraser Cain & Dr. Pamela Gay Streamed live on Nov 9, 2025. It's time once again for our annual gift-giving guide. We've got recommendations for books, movies, TV shows, games, and of course astronomy gear to satisfy the space nerds in your family. The Chris…

A lot of people and documents online say that positive-sum games are "win-wins", where all of the participants are better off. But this isn't true! If A gets $5 and B gets -$2 that's positive sum (the sum is $3) but it's not a win-win (B lost). Positive sum games can be win-wins, but they aren't nec…

How “Fire Fungi” Help Put Burnt Landscapes Back Together 03.12.2026 | Discoveries , News , Wild Life Discoveries 03.12.2026 How “Fire Fungi” Help Put Burnt Landscapes Back Together Before plants and animals recolonize after a wildfire, fungi get to work. Story by Hannah Thomasy Share Ecologists have…

So as I haven’t been able to speak the past short while, one thing I have noticed is that it is harder to communicate with others. I know what you are thinking: “Wow, who could have possibly guessed? It’s harder to converse when you can’t speak?”. Indeed, I didn’t expect it either.But how much harde…

AstronomyCast 313: Precession by Fraser Cain & Dr. Pamela Gay

Looking for the most recent Strands answer? Click here for our daily Strands hints , as well as our daily answers and hints for The New York Times Mini Crossword, Wordle, Connections and Connections: Sports Edition puzzles. Today's NYT Strands puzzle could be tough. Hope you know your animals! One o…

Astronomy Cast Ep. 640: Survey Science: Newest Projects & Results by Fraser Cain & Dr. Pamela Gay There are general-purpose telescopes and missions that astronomers can use to study specific objects. And there are the survey missions that look at the entire sky, which astronomers can use to answer q…

The history of North America’s Indigenous peoples is fraught with stereotypes – and often seen through a European lens. In Native Nations , historian Kathleen DuVal, at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, sets the record straight, as she weaves together centuries of development to show …

Under cover The new transfer-learning system could be used to identify shipments of illicit nuclear materials. (Courtesy: Shutterstock/Gualtiero Boffi) Machine-learning could help us use cosmic muons to peer inside large objects such as nuclear reactors. Developed by researchers in China, the techni…

Raising Cane’s CEO Todd Graves could go without veggies in his to-go box. More specifically, his go-to Cane’s order includes the box combo, extra toast and extra sauce—and no slaw, he said in a TikTok last month.



The fast food executive admitted he’s not a fan of coleslaw, adding “that’s why you…

AstronomyCast 328: Telescope Making, Pt. 2 by Fraser Cain & Dr. Pamela Gay

Astronomy Cast Ep. 771: Comet Tails By Fraser Cain & Dr. Pamela Gay Streamed live on Nov 8, 2025. With the arrival of the comet 3I/Atlas (Asteroid Terrestrial-impact Last Alert System), the world is getting a crash course in comets, their behavior, and of course their tails. Today we're going to tal…

Flooding in Senegal Thunderstorms bring flash-flooding in tropical regions of Africa including Senegal. (Courtesy: Steven Cole) The amount of moisture in soil – and the way this moisture is distributed – combined with wind patterns in the lowest few kilometres of the atmosphere can influence where t…

RIVERSIDE, Calif. (AP) — Crews made progress Saturday battling a smoky wildfire in southern California that broke out a day earlier and prompted mandatory evacuations. Encompassing roughly 6.3 square miles (about 16 square kilometers) in Riverside County, about 64 miles (103 kilometers) east of Los …

Gen. Randy George, the U.S. Army’s chief of staff ousted by Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, on Friday sent a farewell letter saying the Army deserves “leaders of character.” George thanked Army officials for their support in an email posted on Reddit’s Army page. An Army official confirmed the email…

(NEXSTAR) — Do you get dizzy while looking at your phone while riding as a passenger in a car? That could be a sign of motion sickness, a common, yet complex, condition that can have varying severities of symptoms to go along with it. Managing the symptoms can involve sitting in certain seats in mov…

Sens. Roger Wicker (R-Miss.) and Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.) on Friday called on Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent to answer questions about sanctioned Russian lawmakers who visited the U.S. Capitol Building. Rep. Anna Paulina Luna (R-Fla.) organized the delegation of R…

AstronomyCast 394: Bosons by Fraser Cain & Dr. Pamela Gay

A federal court fight over President Trump’s plan to build a massive ballroom on the site of the former East Wing of the White House has recently pulled a long-quiet project into public view: the overhaul of a military bunker buried deep underground.   “The military is building a big complex under t…

The Birds Who Call Us Home 03.24.2026 | Featured , Wild Life Wild Life 03.24.2026 The Birds Who Call Us Home In springtime in North America, purple martins spread joy as they return to their nest boxes—is that enough motivation for us to ward off an avian housing crisis? Story by Brian Payton Share …

Astronomy Cast Ep. 636: Blowing Bubbles by Fraser Cain & Dr. Pamela Gay We think of space as a vacuum, but there are regions of different density. There are winds blowing from stars and other objects that clear out vast bubbles in space, and look absolutely fantastic in pictures. And they might have…

by Fraser Cain & Dr. Pamela Gay So have you heard the news? Of course you have. Evidence of phosphene on Venus. Which could be a biosignature of life on our evil twin planet. There have been a lot of surprising stories about Venus, so let's get you all caught up!

458: The Science of Cassini Astronomy Cast 458: The Science of Cassini by Fraser Cain & Dr. Pamela Gay

Astronomy Cast Ep. 686: Ice In The Shadows by Fraser Cain & Dr. Pamela Ga Streamed live on Jun 12, 2023. The permanently shadowed craters on the Moon are the focus of so much research. That's because they seem to contain vast reserves of water ice. Water we could use for oxygen, propellant and so mu…

548: Stellar nucleosynthesis revisited: In stellar cores & atmospheres Astronomy Cast 548: Stellar nucleosynthesis revisited: In stellar cores & atmospheres by Fraser Cain & Dr. Pamela Gay The Universe started out with hydrogen and helium and a few other elements, but all around us, there are other,…

537: Reusable Rocket Revolution Astronomy Cast 537: Reusable Rocket Revolution by Fraser Cain & Dr. Pamela Gay We took a hiatus this summer, but SpaceX sure didn't, with the tests of the Starhopper prototype. Today we're going to talk about the revolution in reusable rocketry and quest to build a fu…

Conservation Enters a New Era 02.26.2026 | Featured , Story Packages Conservation Enters a New Era One year after the Trump administration slashed biodiversity protections at home and abroad, people and organizations are figuring out where to go from here. A four-part exploration published February …

Wild Life 03.05.2026 The Bard and the Birds The frilled collars of ruffs—and the birds’ elaborate mating rituals—are straight out of a Shakespearean drama. Photograph by Espen Bergersen Story by Sarah Milligan Share In the golden glow of the midnight sun, a ruff snaps at a mosquito. Ruffs, a type of…

This week we talk about: Lakes on Titan, Mars Curiosity landing, Earth-type worlds more common, NuSTAR Mission launch. We are joined by Amy Shira Teitel, Emily Lakdawalla, and Nicole Gugliucci

Astronomy Cast Ep. 592: Gamma-Ray Bursts - Updated by Fraser Cain & Dr. Pamela Gay Some of the most powerful explosions in the Universe are gamma-ray bursts, capable of blasting a beam of death half way across the galaxy. In just the last few years astronomers have discovered a tremendous amount abo…

A hidden effect of statins on muscle cells may explain why some patients cannot tolerate them. For millions of people, statins are a daily safeguard against heart attacks and strokes. But for about 1 in 10 users, these widely prescribed drugs come with an unexpected tradeoff—persistent muscle pain, …

Astronomy Cast - Hiatus Message by Fraser Cain & Dr. Pamela Gay Once again, we've reached the end of a season here on Astronomy Cast, and it's time for the summer hiatus. See you in September!

(Image credit: Tom's Hardware) Copy link Facebook X Whatsapp Reddit Pinterest Flipboard Email Share this article 0 Join the conversation Follow us Add us as a preferred source on Google Newsletter Stay On the Cutting Edge: Get the Tom's Hardware Newsletter Get Tom's Hardware's best news and in-depth…

448: Prepping for the Eclipse Astronomy Cast 448: Prepping for the Eclipse by Fraser Cain & Dr. Pamela Gay

The Artemis astronauts have taken in sights of the moon never before seen by human eyes, crew members reported on Sunday as their spacecraft crossed the two-thirds mark on their journey to a long-anticipated lunar flyby.

Astronomy Cast Ep. 716 - The God**** Particle - Remembering Peter Higgs by Fraser Cain & Dr. Pamela Gay Streamed live on Apr 15, 2024. Last week, we learned about the death of Peter Higgs, a physicist and discoverer of the particle that bears his name. The Large Hadron Collider was built to find and…

Astronomy Cast Ep. 740: Drones! By Fraser Cain & Dr. Pamela Gay Streamed live January 9, 2025. From little Ingenuity to the future Firefly and all our Earth Science fliers, let's look at the buzzy scientists. NASA's Mars Ingenuity helicopter showed us how wonderful a flying science platform can be o…

April 4, 2026 AI makes rewilding look tame—and misses its messy reality by Mike Jeffries, The Conversation edited by Gaby Clark , reviewed by Andrew Zinin Gaby Clark scientific editor Meet our editorial team Behind our editorial process Andrew Zinin lead editor Meet our editorial team Behind our edi…

459: Arecibo Observatory Astronomy Cast 459: Arecibo Observatory by Fraser Cain & Dr. Pamela Gay

Astronomy Cast Ep. 605: Sounding Rockets by Fraser Cain & Dr. Pamela Gay Last week we talked about balloon-based astronomy. This week we're gonna talk about putting telescopes on rockets and making observations mid flight. Welcome to the wild world of sounding rockets.

Astronomy Cast Ep. 596: The Universe's Background Noise by Fraser Cain & Dr. Pamela Gay You might be familiar with the cosmic microwave background, but that's just one of the background radiations that astronomers look at. Some are well known and cataloged. While others are just starting to be possi…

Astronomy Cast Ep. 699: Holiday Gift Giving Ideas for Astronomy and Space Fans by Fraser Cain & Dr. Pamela Gay Streamed live on Nov 20, 2023. Just a warning, the holidays are rapidly approaching. It's time, once again, to think about what to buy all the space nerds on your lists. Here's what we like…

Robert P Crease talks to Mulugeta Bekele, who almost single-handedly kept Ethiopian physics going
The post Mulugeta Bekele: the jailed and tortured scientist who kept Ethiopian physics alive appeared first on Physics World.

A new framework shows how lost information in quantum systems gives rise to macroscopic entropy and the arrow of time
The post How reversibility becomes irreversible appeared first on Physics World.

Astronomy Cast Ep. 783: Cataclysmic Variable Stars By Fraser Cain & Dr. Pamela Gay Streamed live on Feb 16, 2026. There are many types of variable stars. Today we're gonna talk about cataclysmic variable stars, which are the result of a white dwarf stealing material from a companion star. And this w…

AstronomyCast 377: Thomson Finds the Electron by Fraser Cain & Dr. Pamela Gay

558: Supernova SN 2006gy Astronomy Cast 558: Supernova SN 2006gy by Fraser Cain & Dr. Pamela Gay We've been following this story for more than a decade, so it's great to finally have an answer to the question, why was supernova 2006gy so insanely bright? Astronomers originally thought it was an exam…

Humor plays a vital role in helping older adults cope with the challenges of aging and staying socially connected, according to new research.

Astronomy Cast Ep. 751: Vacuum Energy By Fraser Cain & Dr. Pamela Gay Streamed live on Apr 7, 2025. Hosted by: Fraser Cain and Dr. Pamela L. Gay. Even empty space isn't empty. It's filled with the quantum fluctuations of spacetime itself. Which can be measured with famous experiments like the Casimi…

AstronomyCast: Live from DragonCon 2012, by Fraser Cain & Dr. Pamela Gay

Astronomy Cast Ep. 681: Kilonovae by Fraser Cain & Dr. Pamela Gay Streamed live on May 7, 2023. In 2017, astronomers detected the gravitational waves and electromagnetic radiation from colliding neutron stars. This had been long theorized as one of the causes of a certain type of gamma-ray burst. By…

Robert P Crease reports from a conference at CERN on particle physics in the 1980s and 1990s
The post The future of particle physics: what can the past teach us? appeared first on Physics World.

AstronomyCast 353: Seasons and Saturn by Fraser Cain & Dr. Pamela Gay

468: Simulations for Science and Fun Astronomy Cast 468: Simulations for Science and Fun by Fraser Cain & Dr. Pamela Gay

Astronomy Cast Ep. 694: Mission Roll Call Part 3: Sun, Mercury, and Venus by Fraser Cain & Dr. Pamela Gay Streamed live on Oct 16, 2023. Our journey through space missions continues. Now we move away from the Earth to the rest of the solar system. What's out there orbiting, roving and flying on othe…

502: No Touching: Determining Composition of Worlds Remotely Astronomy Cast 502: No Touching: Determining Composition of Worlds Remotely by Fraser Cain & Dr. Pamela Gay