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. An international study led by the Institute of Evolutionary Biology (IBE, CSIC-UPF) in Barcelona, the Natural Sciences Museum of Barcelona, Harvard University and the University of the Basque Country (EHU) has reconstructed the genetic history of the Iberian Peninsula between the first and eighth centuries A.D. using 243 ancient genomes from 31 archaeological sites. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-suebi-alans-visigoths-erase-deep.html Archaeology Wed, 21 Oct 2026 11:00:46 EDT news711719289 The oxygen in about every other breath we take comes from microscopic cells—phytoplankton—drifting in the surface of the ocean. Among them is Prochlorococcus, the smallest and most abundant photosynthetic organism in the seas. It single-handedly accounts for roughly 10% of all the carbon that the land and the oceans pull from the atmosphere each year. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-ocean-abundant-loner-microbe-sticky.html Ecology Wed, 21 Oct 2026 09:00:06 EDT news711791161 Scientists at Columbia University and Imperial College London have found that the largest canyon system in the solar system is still active and shaping Mars today, billions of years after it first formed. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-giant-canyon-mars-tectonically-today.html Planetary Sciences Tue, 20 Oct 2026 09:20:36 EDT news711705481 Black-necked swans, spot-flanked gallinules, southern lapwings, austral thrushes and dozens of other bird species fly across the Río Cruces Wetland, carrying the biocultural memory of the territory. Both resident birds and species that migrate throughout the year bear witness to the many changes this landscape has undergone over time. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-explore-valuable-birds-memory-territory.html Ecology Tue, 20 Oct 2026 09:20:04 EDT news711700407 During Oct. 2026, the research vessel SONNE set sail from San Diego into the Pacific Ocean for expedition SO322. Its destination: the Clarion-Clipperton Zone north of the equator—the area that harbors the largest known deposits of polymetallic nodules on the seafloor. Germany, among others, holds an exploration license in this region. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-deep-sea-revisit-pacific-site.html Earth Sciences Tue, 20 Oct 2026 05:40:02 EDT news711692570 In a deep, dark part of the Gulf of Mexico, the number of marine animals plummeted by about 60% in the years following the 2010 Deepwater Horizon explosion, a new study found. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-marine-life-declined-gulf-mexico.html Ecology Tue, 20 Oct 2026 05:39:07 EDT news711693484 Mercury remains one of our solar system's most elusive and difficult planets to study. It's easier to send probes to the icy moons of Saturn or Jupiter, or even to Pluto, than to land on our innermost planet, Mercury. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-enigmatic-mercury-puzzle-lander.html Planetary Sciences Mon, 19 Oct 2026 09:20:02 EDT news711610218 Japanese scientists are readying a mission to Mars' moons to retrieve samples that could help unlock the origins of the solar system and life on Earth, in what aims to be the first round trip to the Martian region. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-japan-historic-mission-mars-moon.html Space Exploration Sun, 18 Oct 2026 16:20:01 EDT news711555681 A phenomenon rarer than a solar eclipse and more powerful than any single storm system is unfolding this fall, and NASA is tracking it closely. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-nasa-satellites-historic-el-nio.html Earth Sciences Fri, 16 Oct 2026 12:44:08 EDT news711373385 When astronauts first travel to Mars or anywhere else in deep space, they will have to contend with two problems that our planet protects us from on its surface—radiation and weightlessness. Scientists already know both can have a profound impact on the human body, but the extent of that impact and how long it can last remain a mystery. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-mars-heartbreaking.html Space Exploration Wed, 14 Oct 2026 19:00:01 EDT news711190418 A new ice sheet model developed by glaciologists at the University of California, Irvine and NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory projects that the melting of Thwaites Glacier in West Antarctica will contribute up to 30 millimeters (1.2 inches) of sea level rise by 2100—twice previous estimates—even without additional climate warming. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-thwaites-glacier-contribute-sea-previously.html Earth Sciences Tue, 13 Oct 2026 17:50:01 EDT news711130141 A Southwest Research Institute (SwRI)-led team has developed an improved model for predicting solar events that incorporates activity on the far side of the sun. The team studied near-simultaneous maps of the whole solar surface from 2010 to 2014, combining Earth observations with data from space-based assets showing the opposite side. The resulting framework constructs surface flux transport (SFT) models that are more complete and accurate than any previous model. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-solar-sun-accurately-side.html Planetary Sciences Tue, 13 Oct 2026 13:20:20 EDT news711112322 Recent research shows that gravity and quantum information are deeply connected and that the shape of spacetime can be traced back to the way information is stored in quantum fields. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-gravity-quantum-linked-derivation-einstein.html General Physics Mon, 12 Oct 2026 19:20:01 EDT news711039286 Elephants shape the African savanna. They consume huge amounts of forage, dig for water, topple trees and affect all the animals around them. So, what happens to their outsized presence after these iconic animals pass away? https://phys.org/news/2026-10-elephants-savanna-death.html Plants & Animals Mon, 12 Oct 2026 15:00:11 EDT news711014041 Hurricanes can produce enormous amounts of rain, adding up to trillions of gallons of water. But the big risk isn't the total amount—it's how much rain falls on each location. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-hurricane-storm-size.html Environment Mon, 12 Oct 2026 13:40:01 EDT news711019141 On April 1, 2026, the crew of the Artemis II mission launched into space atop NASA's Space Launch System (SLS). Roughly 3 1/2 hours after launch, the rocket's upper stage separated from the Orion spacecraft (Integrity), and astronauts Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, Christina Koch and Jeremy Hansen began their nearly 10-day journey around the moon. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-preliminary-lunar-science-artemis-ii.html Space Exploration Mon, 12 Oct 2026 10:20:26 EDT news711015842 In the deep sea, it never stops snowing. The type of snow that falls in the ocean, known as marine snow, is very different from the flaky geometric wonders that fall on land. Marine snow describes tiny clumps of organic and inorganic detritus—think mucus, poop, silt, dead plankton, etc.—that rain from the shallows into the deep. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-gooier-marine-carbon.html Earth Sciences Mon, 12 Oct 2026 10:00:01 EDT news711015241 Just two weeks after it was launched, the Copernicus Sentinel-3C satellite returned its first images and measurements from two of its key instruments—a major milestone that confirms the satellite is working well and on track to monitor the health of Earth's oceans, land, cryosphere and atmosphere. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-sentinel-3c-views-earth.html Earth Sciences Thu, 08 Oct 2026 18:40:14 EDT news710690581 Walk through almost any city or town in a low-income or middle-income country and you'll pass them: the woman selling deep-fried fish from a cart, the mobile vendor with a bicycle full of vegetables, the kiosk operator who's the only source of a hot meal within walking distance. Food systems employ an estimated 1.23 billion people globally, and a majority of those jobs are informal—unlicensed, unregistered or otherwise outside the reach of formal regulation. In low-income and middle-income countries (LMICs) especially, informal vendors are not a marginal feature of how people eat; they are a linchpin of food security and livelihoods for over a billion people. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-food-vendors-invisible-backbone-world.html Social Sciences Thu, 08 Oct 2026 18:40:01 EDT news710696281 A new study of sperm whales highlights the need for ocean conservation that covers large areas—with boundaries redrawn as our climate changes. The research team, led by the University of Exeter, combined sperm whale surveys in the southwest Indian Ocean with predictions of how climate change will shift where the whales are found in the future. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-sperm-whale-highlights-extensive-dynamic.html Plants & Animals Thu, 08 Oct 2026 11:00:38 EDT news710673962 Using data from the DESI Legacy Imaging Surveys, with help from artificial intelligence, an international team of scientists has discovered 70 new gravitational lenses—rare cosmic alignments that act as natural magnifying glasses. The new lenses further expand one of the largest collections of confirmed lenses to date and will allow scientists to study dark matter, galaxy evolution and the structure of the universe. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-largest-2d-universe-scientists-gravitational.html Astronomy Thu, 08 Oct 2026 09:40:12 EDT news710669701 Residents of Te Whanganui-a-Tara Wellington know it is always wise to prepare for any weather—to pack sunglasses, a raincoat and at least one extra layer. This "be prepared for anything" approach can equally be applied to Aotearoa's ocean weather during this year's "super" El Niño. Forecasts are fickle, unexpected outcomes are likely and preparation is needed. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-unexpected-super-el-nio-nz.html Earth Sciences Thu, 08 Oct 2026 09:40:01 EDT news710669942 Tiny photosynthetic organisms in the Baltic Sea can contribute substantially to the transport of carbon from surface waters to deeper parts of the sea. A new study from the Department of Ecology, Environment and Plant Sciences at Stockholm University shows that their ability to form colonies and aggregates is an important factor determining how much of their biomass sinks. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-tiny-photosynthetic-carbon-depths-baltic.html Earth Sciences Wed, 07 Oct 2026 19:40:01 EDT news710605201 As waves of humans left Africa tens of thousands of years ago, eventually populating the entire planet, they were joined on their world-conquering ride by the trillions of microorganisms that compose the gut microbiome. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-gut-bacteria-reveal-ancient-human.html Evolution Wed, 07 Oct 2026 11:01:10 EDT news710523661 For more than a decade, U.S. embassies and consulates provided independent, publicly available air-quality readings in cities around the world. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-embassies-air-quality-pollution-rose.html Environment Wed, 07 Oct 2026 08:40:01 EDT news710576102 Creating a quantum device often begins by intentionally damaging a crystal. Scientists fire an ultrafast laser pulse into a material, knocking atoms out of place and leaving behind tiny imperfections called vacancies. Far from being flaws, these vacancies can behave as qubits—the fundamental building blocks of quantum information. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-ray-technique-reveals-quantum-materials.html Optics & Photonics Tue, 06 Oct 2026 17:20:08 EDT news710508661 The University of York's Cost of Living Research Group has examined modern living standards across the city and revealed the extent of hidden pockets of poverty and inequality in one of the North's most affluent cities. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-exposes-modern-poverty-inequality-britain.html Social Sciences Tue, 06 Oct 2026 08:40:04 EDT news710489582 Kauri are among Aotearoa New Zealand's tallest and longest-lived trees—and their place in our cultural landscape looms equally large. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-kauri-dieback-threatens-trees-carbon.html Earth Sciences Mon, 05 Oct 2026 10:20:01 EDT news710407142 Extreme heat is putting pregnant mothers and their newborns at increasing risk, United Nations climate chief Simon Stiell will warn on Monday. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-extreme-pregnant-women-newborns-climate.html Environment Mon, 05 Oct 2026 03:30:01 EDT news710386759 A core assumption in any democracy is that citizens with access to information will make reasoned decisions on political candidates and policy issues. But a new study by UC Berkeley social scientists finds that Americans usually don't consider the full scope of difficult issues, instead basing their opinions on mental shortcuts that sidestep complexity. https://phys.org/news/2026-10-complex-political-issues-americans-shortcuts.html Political science Fri, 02 Oct 2026 16:40:02 EDT news710160246