Lightning formation and the conditions triggering it have long been shrouded in a cloud of mystery, but new research led by Penn State scientists is lifting the fog. Using mathematical calculations, the researchers have discovered ...
Condensed Matter
Mar 5, 2026
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56
Most space missions rely on chemical rockets for propulsion. Rockets must carry fuel, which increases spacecraft mass and limits their speed and travel distance. For decades, researchers have explored light sails as an alternative. ...
Nanophysics
Mar 5, 2026
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109
An international team of scientists from IBM, The University of Manchester, Oxford University, ETH Zurich, EPFL and the University of Regensburg have created and characterized a molecule unlike any previously known—one whose ...
Condensed Matter
Mar 5, 2026
0
167
When NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman announced the revamped approach to the Artemis moon program, it was unclear whether the new mobile launcher that has been constructed over the last two years at Kennedy Space Center ...
Space Exploration
Mar 5, 2026
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253
When most people hear "polymer," they think of plastics. In our group, polymerization is a way to line up identical molecules like beads on a string and let quantum mechanics take over. Put magnetic building blocks in a one-dimensional ...
Estimating things that exist is generally easy, but when it comes to estimating things that do not exist, it's more difficult. This is something physicists from Poland and the UK are well aware of. To improve current simulations ...
General Physics
Mar 5, 2026
0
74
The growth form of giant kelp (Macrocystis pyrifera) is composed of shoots known as stipes instead of branches. From one parent holding fast to the hard bottom might come as many as 150 stipes. Typically, the tips of the ...
Plants & Animals
Mar 5, 2026
0
32
A new study reveals that habitat fragmentation can lead to sudden "tipping points" where a species' genetic health unexpectedly collapses after appearing stable for long periods. By merging network theory with population ...
Ecology
Mar 5, 2026
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73
Researchers have found a way to use solar energy to power a key chemical reaction that drives many manufacturing industries. This new method can significantly reduce the energy required to run these operations, eliminate ...
Materials Science
Mar 5, 2026
0
34
Why does a Caribbean angelfish sometimes resemble its Indo-Pacific cousin, even though they have never lived in the same ocean? Why do coral reefs harbor such a wide range of stripes, spots and patterns? A study conducted ...
Evolution
Mar 5, 2026
0
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