Physics

Science & Society

A science-themed escape room gives the brain a workout

Quantum physicist Paul Kwiat reveals what it takes do well in LabEscape, his science-themed escape room.

Chemistry

50 years ago, scientists fought over element 104’s discovery

A conflict known as the Transfermium Wars marked a contentious struggle over the search for new elements beginning in the 1960s.

Particle Physics

This is the slowest radioactive decay ever spotted

Scientists have made the first direct observations of an exotic type of radioactive decay called two-neutrino double electron capture.

Astronomy

Seeing very far away and hitting closer to home

Editor in Chief Nancy Shute discusses the first-ever image of a black hole and what can be done to help young children with anxiety.

Physics

The M87 black hole image showed the best way to measure black hole masses

The first image of M87’s black hole suggests it is 6.5 billion times the mass of the sun — close to what was expected based on how stars move around it.

Materials Science

A new graphene foam stays squishy at the coldest temperatures

Researchers have now made a material that is superelastic even at extremely cold temperatures, which could be helpful in space.

Astronomy

Meet one of the first scientists to see the historic black hole image

Kazunori Akiyama was one of the first scientists to see the black hole snapshot.

Astronomy

How scientists took the first picture of a black hole

Here’s how scientists connected eight observatories across the world to create one Earth-sized telescope in order to create an image of a black hole.

Astronomy

All you need to know about the history of black holes

From dreaming up black holes to snapping the first picture of one, the history of black holes has had many twists.

Astronomy

The first picture of a black hole opens a new era of astrophysics

Astronomers used a network of telescopes around the world to take a picture of the supermassive black hole in the galaxy M87.

Earth

How deadly, fast-moving flows of volcanic rock and gas cheat friction

Mixtures of hot volcanic rock and gas called pyroclastic flows travel so far by gliding on air, a new study suggests.

Materials Science

Bacteria can be coaxed into making the toughest kind of spider silk

Lab-altered bacteria have made a copy of a spider’s strongest silk strands, which could one day be used to make more sturdy materials.