Sign up for CNN’s Wonder Theory science newsletter. Explore the universe with news on fascinating discoveries, scientific advancements and more. Were dinosaurs warm-blooded like birds and mammals or cold-blooded like reptiles? It’s one of paleontology’s oldest questions, and gleaning the answer matters because it illuminates how the prehistoric creatures may have lived and behaved. Challenging the […]
By Will Dunham (Reuters) – The baobab tree is a distinctive sight on the landscape. When its contorted branches are leafless during the dry season, they resemble jumbled roots emanating from a thick trunk, making it appear as if someone had yanked the tree from the ground, flipped it on its head and jammed it […]
Hundreds of people died across Asia in recent weeks as the region sweltered under blistering temperatures. And a new study determined a leading factor in how it all happened. Last month, many areas in India saw temperatures well above triple digits. The country’s meteorological service says that heat waves are not uncommon between March and […]
DALLAS (AP) — Scientists once thought of dinosaurs as sluggish, cold-blooded creatures. Then research suggested that some could control their body temperature, but when and how that shift came about remained a mystery. Now, a new study estimates that the first warm-blooded dinosaurs may have roamed the Earth about 180 million years ago, about halfway […]
DANVILLE, Illinois (AP) — On the south side of Chicago, students learn to work on Rivian electric pickup trucks and SUVs through a new technician program at Olive-Harvey College. About 150 miles (240 kilometers) south, students at Danville Area Community College in Illinois are taught to troubleshoot massive wind turbines dozens of meters tall, along […]
Physicists consider black holes one of the most mysterious objects that exist. Ironically, they’re also considered one of the simplest. For years, physicists like me have been looking to prove that black holes are more complex than they seem. And a newly approved European space mission called LISA will help us with this hunt. Research […]
Viruses are a mysterious and poorly understood force in microbial ecosystems. Researchers know they can infect, kill and manipulate human and bacterial cells in nearly every environment, from the oceans to your gut. But scientists don’t yet have a full picture of how viruses affect their surrounding environments in large part because of their extraordinary […]
A massive sunspot on the sun’s surface just left us another parting gift just as it rotates out of sight from our perspective here on Earth. The sunspot, designated, AR3664, has been crackling with solar flares for days. On May 10, it erupted with an X5.8-class flare, and within the past 12 hours, a trio […]
A small asteroid flew very close to Earth Tuesday morning (May 14), just two days after it was discovered by astronomers. The asteroid 2024 JN16 is less than 15 feet (4 meters) wide — about the size of a car. It did not hit Earth but came within a mere 11,500 miles (18,500 kilometers) of […]
Blue Origin’s human-spaceflight drought will end this weekend, if all goes according to plan. Jeff Bezos‘ spaceflight company announced today (May 14) that it’s targeting Sunday (May 19) for its latest suborbital space tourism effort. The mission, known as NS-25, will lift off from Blue Origin’s West Texas site during a window that opens at […]
For the past month, NASA’s Curiosity rover has been shadowing Gediz Vallis, a channel that scientists think may be the fossil of an ancient Martian river. Last week, Curiosity reached the north side of Pinnacle Ridge, part of a rock wall that looms over Gediz Vallis. In fact, after Curiosity navigated bumpy ground to do […]
By Rachael Levy (Reuters) – Neuralink’s disclosure last week that tiny wires inside the brain of its first patient had pulled out of position is an issue the Elon Musk company has known about for years, according to five people familiar with the matter. The company knew from animal testing it had conducted ahead of […]