https://phys.org/ en-us Phys.org internet news portal provides the latest news on science including: Physics, Nanotechnology, Life Sciences, Space Science, Earth Science, Environment, Health and Medicine. Cosmic rays are made primarily of protons with a few electrons sprinkled in, and they can reach energies even higher than what human-made accelerators can produce. Considering human-made accelerators, such as the Large Hadron Collider on the border of Switzerland and France, can move protons to near the speed of light, it's no wonder that these super-energetic particles can influence cosmic events across the galaxy. https://phys.org/news/2026-07-source-extremely-high-energy-particles.html Astronomy Fri, 17 Jul 2026 11:00:02 EDT news703496913 On July 2, 2025, the China-led Einstein Probe (EP) space telescope detected an exceptionally bright X-ray source whose brightness varied rapidly during a routine sky survey. Its unusual signal immediately set it apart from ordinary cosmic sources, triggering rapid follow-up observations by telescopes worldwide. https://phys.org/news/2026-02-einstein-probe-black-hole-white.html Astronomy Tue, 10 Feb 2026 10:27:44 EST news689941621 Using NASA's Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope, Chinese astronomers have observed a gamma-ray binary system known as PSR J2032+4127. Results of the new observations, published February 3 on the arXiv preprint server, shed more light on the orbital parameters of this binary, which could help us better understand its nature. https://phys.org/news/2026-02-fermi-refine-orbital-parameters-gamma.html Astronomy Tue, 10 Feb 2026 08:10:01 EST news689872777 A new framework for understanding the nonmonotonic temperature dependence and sign reversal of the chirality-related anomalous Hall effect in highly conductive metals has been developed by scientists at Science Tokyo. This framework provides a clear picture of the unusual temperature dependence of chirality-driven transport phenomena, forming a foundation for the rational design of next-generation spintronic devices and magnetic quantum materials. https://phys.org/news/2026-01-unusual-chirality-driven-anomalous-hall.html Condensed Matter Fri, 16 Jan 2026 07:49:43 EST news687772141 Gamma-ray bursts (GRBs) are among the most powerful explosions in the universe, second only to the Big Bang. The majority of these bursts are observed to flash and fade within a few seconds to minutes. But on 2 July 2025, astronomers were alerted to a GRB source that was exhibiting repeating bursts and would end up lasting over seven hours. This event, dubbed GRB 250702B, is the longest gamma-ray burst humans have ever witnessed. https://phys.org/news/2025-12-gemini-blanco-telescopes-clues-longest.html Astronomy Fri, 26 Dec 2025 10:30:01 EST news684423689 Prof. An Tao from the Shanghai Astronomical Observatory (SHAO) of the Chinese Academy of Sciences has proposed a novel "precessing magnetic jet engine" model to explain the peculiar gamma-ray burst (GRB) 250702B, a rare cosmic explosion discovered on July 2, 2025. https://phys.org/news/2025-12-precessing-magnetic-jet-reveals-power.html Astronomy Fri, 19 Dec 2025 11:51:27 EST news685367461 Using NASA's Swift and Fermi space telescopes, Indian astronomers have conducted a long-term multiwavelength study of a nearby blazar designated TXS 0518+211. Results of the study, published Nov. 26 on the arXiv pre-print server, reveal the complex nature of this object. https://phys.org/news/2025-12-term-nearby-blazar-reveals-complex.html Astronomy Fri, 05 Dec 2025 08:00:02 EST news684062609 When you think of telescopes in space, you probably think of the Hubble Space Telescope and its younger, larger sibling, the James Webb Space Telescope. https://phys.org/news/2025-09-tiny-satellite-tracks-star-collisions.html Astronomy Tue, 30 Sep 2025 10:30:06 EDT news678446925 A new kind of stellar explosion provides a novel way to probe the distant universe, according to new results published today in Nature Astronomy. https://phys.org/news/2025-08-fast-ray-transients-stars-distant.html Astronomy Tue, 19 Aug 2025 12:35:03 EDT news674825701 A team led by scientists at the Department of Energy's SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory have generated a highly exotic type of light beam, called a Poincaré beam, using the FERMI free-electron laser (FEL) facility in Italy, marking the first time such a beam has been produced with a FEL. https://phys.org/news/2025-08-laser-advance-stage-ray-science.html Optics & Photonics Thu, 14 Aug 2025 11:15:03 EDT news674388901 Researchers have developed a novel laser-assisted synthesis method to fabricate platinum (Pt) colloidosomes (Cs) with promising applications in near-infrared (NIR) photocatalytic and enzyme-mimicking cancer therapy. https://phys.org/news/2025-07-laser-platinum-colloidosomes-enable-efficient.html Bio & Medicine Wed, 30 Jul 2025 09:47:18 EDT news673087631 What happens when the universe's most magnetic object shines with the power of 1000 suns in a matter of seconds? Thanks to NASA's IXPE (Imaging X‑ray Polarimetry Explorer), a mission in collaboration with ASI (Italian Space Agency), scientists are one step closer to understanding this extreme event. https://phys.org/news/2025-06-ixpe-ray-polarization-magnetar-outburst.html Astronomy Thu, 05 Jun 2025 13:30:06 EDT news668348791 Vibrational sum-frequency generation (VSFG) is a nonlinear spectroscopic method widely used to investigate the molecular structure and dynamics of surface systems. However, in far-field observations, the spatial resolution of this method is constrained by the diffraction limit, which restricts its ability to resolve molecular details in inhomogeneous structures smaller than the wavelength of light. https://phys.org/news/2025-05-nanoscale-spectroscopy-vibrational-molecules-confined.html Nanophysics Mon, 12 May 2025 12:05:04 EDT news666270301 A research group led by Prof. Yang Liangbao from the Hefei Institutes of Physical Science of the Chinese Academy of Sciences has enhanced localized surface plasmon resonance (LSPR) by studying Cu₂O₁₋ₓ superlattices with oxygen vacancies, providing new insights into vacancy doping in semiconductors and LSPR induction in metal oxide nanoparticles. The findings are published in Nano Letters. https://phys.org/news/2025-02-scientists-localized-surface-plasmon-resonance.html Nanophysics Thu, 06 Feb 2025 12:44:03 EST news658068241 Our home planet is bombarded with particles from outer space all the time. And while we are mostly familiar with the rocky meteorites originating from within our solar system that create fascinating shooting stars in the night sky, it's the smallest particles that help scientists to understand the nature of the universe. https://phys.org/news/2025-01-hidden-power-smallest-microquasars-evidence.html Astronomy Wed, 29 Jan 2025 09:55:51 EST news657366947 Also known as Virgo A or NGC 4486, M87 is the brightest object in the Virgo cluster of galaxies, the largest gravitationally bound type of structure in the universe. It came to fame in April 2019 after scientists from EHT released the first image of a black hole in its center. https://phys.org/news/2024-12-m87-powerful-jet-unleashes-rare.html Astronomy Fri, 13 Dec 2024 09:58:05 EST news653306281 An international team of scientists led by Dr. Lukas Bruder, junior research group leader at the Institute of Physics, University of Freiburg, has succeeded in producing and directly controlling hybrid electron-photon quantum states in helium atoms. https://phys.org/news/2024-12-scientists-quantum-states-energy-range.html Optics & Photonics Thu, 12 Dec 2024 11:48:03 EST news653226481 Thus far, the search for extraterrestrial intelligence (SETI) has used strategies based on classical science—listening for radio waves, telescopes watching for optical signals, telescopes in orbit scouring light from the atmospheres of exoplanets, scanning for laser light that might come from aliens. Could a quantum mechanical approach do better? https://phys.org/news/2024-09-interstellar-quantum-communications-involve-earth.html Astrobiology Thu, 19 Sep 2024 09:15:54 EDT news645956146 Using Spektr-RG and Fermi space observatories, German astronomers have investigated the supernova remnant SNR G309.8+00.0 in X-rays and gamma rays. Results of the new study, presented June 25 on the preprint server arXiv, deliver important insights into the properties of this supernova remnant. https://phys.org/news/2024-07-german-scientists-supernova-remnant-snr.html Astronomy Tue, 02 Jul 2024 08:10:01 EDT news639112400 Magnetization can be switched with a single laser pulse. However, it is not known whether the underlying microscopic process is scalable to the nanometer length scale, a prerequisite for making this technology competitive for future data storage applications. https://phys.org/news/2024-06-fundamental-spatial-limits-optical-magnetization.html Nanophysics Thu, 27 Jun 2024 11:09:25 EDT news638705360 Transistors are the basis for microchips and the whole electronic industry. The invention of transistors, by Bardeen and Brattain in 1947, awarded with a Nobel prize, is regarded as one of the most important discoveries of the 20th century. https://phys.org/news/2024-05-unveiling-microscopic-mechanism-superconducting-metallic.html Condensed Matter Tue, 28 May 2024 09:28:40 EDT news636107308 The need for sustainable and environment-friendly solutions has accelerated the global demand for green and renewable technologies. In this regard, semiconductor photocatalysts have emerged as an attractive solution, owing to their potential in mitigating pollutants and harnessing solar energy efficiently. Photocatalysts are materials that initiate chemical reactions when exposed to light. https://phys.org/news/2024-04-nanostructures-efficient-sustainable-degradation-pollutants.html Nanomaterials Wed, 24 Apr 2024 12:01:04 EDT news633178862 A nearby supernova in 2023 offered astrophysicists an excellent opportunity to test ideas about how these types of explosions boost particles, called cosmic rays, to near light-speed. But surprisingly, NASA's Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope detected none of the high-energy gamma-ray light those particles should produce. https://phys.org/news/2024-04-nasa-fermi-mission-gamma-rays.html Astronomy Tue, 16 Apr 2024 12:51:04 EDT news632490661 Neutrinos and antineutrinos are nearly massless particles produced in many nuclear reactions, including the fission of uranium in nuclear power plants on Earth and the fusion reactions at the core of the sun. https://phys.org/news/2024-03-sensitive-neutrino-detector-nonproliferation-fundamental.html General Physics Tue, 26 Mar 2024 09:48:07 EDT news630665281 A research team led by the Paul Scherrer Institute has spectroscopically observed the fractionalization of electronic charge in an iron-based metallic ferromagnet. Experimental observation of the phenomenon is not only of fundamental importance. Since it appears in an alloy of common metals at accessible temperatures, it holds potential for future exploitation in electronic devices. The discovery is published in the journal Nature. https://phys.org/news/2024-03-weird-electron-behavior-weirder-fractionalization.html Condensed Matter Wed, 06 Mar 2024 12:29:06 EST news628950541 A pair of astrophysicists at Universidad Nacional Autonoma de Mexico has found, via study of data from the low-Earth orbiting Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope, regular gamma radiation pulses emanating from around the black hole (at the center of the Milky Way galaxy Sagittarius A*). Gustavo Magallanes-Guijón and Sergio Mendoza have written a paper describing their findings, published on the arXiv preprint server. https://phys.org/news/2023-11-fermi-gamma-ray-space-telescope-reveal.html Astronomy Fri, 24 Nov 2023 06:10:01 EST news619887787 The University of Alabama in Huntsville (UAH) has announced that three researchers associated with the UAH Center for Space Plasma and Aeronomic Research (CSPAR) have discovered a gamma-ray burst (GRB) approximately 2.4 billion light-years away in the constellation Sagitta that ranks as the brightest ever observed. Believed to have been triggered by collapse of a massive star, it is accompanied by a supernova explosion, giving birth to a black hole. https://phys.org/news/2023-07-gamma-ray-brightest.html Astronomy Tue, 18 Jul 2023 12:44:22 EDT news608903054 Our Milky Way galaxy is an awe-inspiring feature of the night sky, viewable with the naked eye as a horizon-to-horizon hazy band of stars. Now, for the first time, the IceCube Neutrino Observatory has produced an image of the Milky Way using neutrinos—tiny, ghostlike astronomical messengers. In an article to be published in the journal Science, the IceCube Collaboration, an international group of over 350 scientists, presents evidence of high-energy neutrino emission from the Milky Way. https://phys.org/news/2023-06-ghost-particle-image-milky-galaxy.html Astronomy Thu, 29 Jun 2023 14:00:03 EDT news607252291 While studying classical novae using the National Radio Astronomy Observatory's Very Long Baseline Array (VLBA), a graduate researcher uncovered evidence showing that the objects may have been erroneously typecast as simple. The new observations, which detected non-thermal emission from a classical nova with a dwarf companion, were presented at a press conference during the 242nd proceedings of the American Astronomical Society in Albuquerque, New Mexico. https://phys.org/news/2023-06-average-space-explosion-baseline-array.html Astronomy Tue, 06 Jun 2023 16:10:02 EDT news605175363 More than a hundred blazars—distant and active galaxies with a central supermassive black hole that drives powerful jets—have been newly characterized by Penn State researchers from a catalog of previously unclassified high-energy cosmic emissions. The new blazars, which are dim relative to more typical blazars, have allowed the researchers to test a controversial theory of blazar emissions, informing our understanding of black hole growth and even theories of general relativity and high-energy particle physics. https://phys.org/news/2023-05-theory-supermassive-black-holes-newly.html Astronomy Thu, 11 May 2023 09:19:03 EDT news603015541