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. Picture sea ice in your mind. You probably imagine brilliant white, snow-covered floes floating on the surface of the ocean, home to penguins in the south of the globe or polar bears in the north. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-ponds-green-algae-sea-ice.html Environment Tue, 09 Jun 2026 11:40:03 EDT news700222982 Europe, which is in the throes of a record-smashing heat wave this week, is the world's fastest-warming continent and stretches into an even more rapidly heating Arctic. https://phys.org/news/2026-05-europe-world-fastest-continent.html Environment Tue, 26 May 2026 14:45:24 EDT news699025457 Seismic waves traveling through Earth's interior often propagate at different speeds depending on their direction, a phenomenon known as seismic anisotropy. Such anisotropy is commonly detected beneath subduction zones, particularly near stagnant slabs in the mantle transition zone and uppermost lower mantle. However, the physical origin of these signals has remained uncertain. https://phys.org/news/2026-05-hydrous-mantle-minerals-reveal-source.html Earth Sciences Sun, 24 May 2026 10:30:01 EDT news698413763 Ringed seals are among the most common marine mammals in the Canadian Arctic. They strongly rely on sea ice as a habitat, breathing through holes they maintain in the frozen surface, giving birth in snow lairs and diving beneath the ice to hunt Arctic cod and small crustaceans. https://phys.org/news/2026-05-humanmade-chemicals-molecular.html Ecology Fri, 22 May 2026 08:20:02 EDT news698651462 Norwegian authorities on Tuesday announced that avian influenza has been documented in a polar bear for the first time in Europe, in the Svalbard region in the Arctic. https://phys.org/news/2026-05-norway-europe-case-bird-flu.html Ecology Wed, 20 May 2026 05:19:08 EDT news698473012 It was the hardest field trip they had ever been on, but the result was both surprising and exciting. After hiking 9 kilometers with a 400-meter elevation gain and carrying heavy backpacks through very rocky terrain, the researchers spent more than 24 hours in the field and returned with sediment samples from the lake Stuptjørna. https://phys.org/news/2026-05-brutal-field-insights-arctic-winter.html Earth Sciences Tue, 19 May 2026 12:00:04 EDT news698408102 Polar bears are intensely curious animals. That curiosity often brings them into contact with people and can put both species at risk from one another. https://phys.org/news/2026-05-polar-approach-human-infrastructure-complex.html Plants & Animals Fri, 01 May 2026 08:20:01 EDT news696837722 Understanding how to explore hidden glaciers on Mars begins not in a laboratory, but in remote field camps across Alaska and Wyoming. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-drone-radar-reveals-glaciers-earth.html Planetary Sciences Wed, 29 Apr 2026 18:50:01 EDT news696700801 Every day, millions of people watch their pet reptiles run, dig, swim or climb up against the walls of their enclosure. Reptile keepers call this "glass surfing," but among scientists, this conduct is typically considered to be a type of repetitive behavior, akin to pacing in polar bears. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-pet-reptile-surfs-glass-barriers.html Plants & Animals Wed, 29 Apr 2026 17:00:04 EDT news696685082 Arctic fossil fuel development shows significant overlaps with Indigenous communities and ecologically sensitive areas, which might support calls from some scientists to keep Arctic fossil fuels in the ground, according to a study published in PLOS One by Daniele Codato of the University of Padova, Italy, and colleagues. The Arctic is a frontline for fossil fuel development and climate change impact, long portrayed as a region with abundant undiscovered oil and gas resources, while warming at a rate nearly four times higher than the global average. Reducing these impacts requires a thorough assessment of these factors and their relationship to local human and wildlife communities, as well as ecosystems. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-beneath-arctic-ice-vast-fossil.html Environment Wed, 22 Apr 2026 14:00:12 EDT news696069841 Svalbard reindeer live in a place so remote they have actually evolved to become a subspecies. But that remoteness isn't enough to protect them from contaminants from the industrial world. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-high-chemicals-svalbard-reindeer.html Environment Thu, 09 Apr 2026 11:20:07 EDT news694949881 When the environment changes dramatically, animals from mollusks to crows can make big changes in their behavior that enable them to survive. For example, marmots and ground squirrels in California are spending more time in wet vegetation and on steep slopes to counteract warmer temperatures. Polar bears, losing their floating ice habitats, are spending more time on land and adding birds' eggs and reindeer to their diets. And lake trout in Ontario, which rely on external water temperatures to maintain a healthy internal temperature, shift to cooler, deeper waters and eat smaller prey when the water becomes hotter than usual. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-behavioral-flexibility-affects-animal-evolution.html Evolution Wed, 01 Apr 2026 18:10:08 EDT news694277401 Scientific expeditions require months of planning before scientists can acquire the first data. A bark cuts through the Arctic silence, waking Anna up. She slept only three hours after collecting the last sample. Anna reaches for her rifle, exits the tent, and steps onto the midnight ice. She pets the guard dog she rented a few days earlier. It might be a false alarm, but she scans the darkness for polar bears, hoping her training pays off. She cannot afford to lose the samples. Nor her life. https://phys.org/news/2026-03-scientists-remote-environments.html Earth Sciences Mon, 30 Mar 2026 21:10:01 EDT news694089894 As bubbles rippled across the frigid Finnish lake, diver Daan Jacobs emerged from a hole carved out of the thick, crackling ice. https://phys.org/news/2026-03-sea-beneath-arctic-antarctic-ice.html Environment Fri, 27 Mar 2026 12:10:01 EDT news693827378 Arctic sea ice reached its lowest level ever recorded, statistically tying last year's record, a leading US climate observatory for this geopolitically significant region said on Thursday. https://phys.org/news/2026-03-arctic-sea-ice-lowest-winter.html Environment Thu, 26 Mar 2026 16:30:02 EDT news693760939 To protect the vulnerable biodiversity of the Arctic, researchers from the University of Alberta and San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance (SDZWA) have identified a new conservation strategy in western Hudson Bay: using polar bears as an "umbrella species" to guide where protection is needed most. https://phys.org/news/2026-03-polar-umbrella-species.html Ecology Wed, 25 Mar 2026 07:00:31 EDT news693640777 In a new study, Northwestern University scientists explored how snow flies—small, wingless insects that crawl across snow to find mates and lay eggs—survive in freezing cold temperatures. They discovered this snow-dwelling fly uses a surprising combination of strategies: it generates its own body heat like a mammal and produces antifreeze proteins like an Arctic fish. https://phys.org/news/2026-03-flies-proteins.html Plants & Animals Tue, 24 Mar 2026 11:00:03 EDT news693478621 As climate change reshapes Arctic food webs, ringed seals will swim into risky polar bear territory if the menu is varied enough. This is the central finding of a new study published in Ecology Letters. UBC researchers tracked 26 ringed seals and 39 polar bears in eastern Hudson Bay, using GPS and dive information to analyze how the animals found, and avoided becoming, food. https://phys.org/news/2026-03-death-polar-varied-meal.html Plants & Animals Wed, 18 Mar 2026 18:20:04 EDT news693065462 Researchers from Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München, the University of Hamburg, Freie Universität Berlin and the Fraunhofer Institute for Digital Media Technology IDMT show in a recent publication in the journal Nature Climate Change that television in Germany remains one of the most important media for engaging with the issue of climate change. Moreover, television can contribute to societal consensus-building. The study finds that climate-related television content primarily reaches news-oriented audiences, while disengaged and skeptical groups rarely encounter the topic due to their preferred TV formats. https://phys.org/news/2026-03-germany-climate-television-content-engaged.html Environment Wed, 18 Mar 2026 18:20:01 EDT news693058429 Polar bear encounters with humans are a regular concern for scientists and communities near polar bear habitats, but new research is showing the bears' reasons for coming in contact with humans might not be what was initially expected. https://phys.org/news/2026-03-polar-insight-human-animal-encounters.html Ecology Tue, 10 Mar 2026 16:40:02 EDT news692354316 Their icy hunting grounds are rapidly shrinking, but polar bears in Norway's remote Svalbard archipelago have defied the odds by bulking up instead of wasting away, a study said Thursday. https://phys.org/news/2026-01-svalbard-polar-gained-fat-rapid.html Plants & Animals Sat, 28 Feb 2026 14:30:01 EST news688919443 Arctic sea ice has large effects on the global climate. By cooling the planet, Arctic ice impacts ocean circulation, atmospheric patterns, and extreme weather conditions, even outside the Arctic region. However, climate change has led to its rapid decline, and being able to make real-time predictions of sea ice extent (SIE)—the area of water with a minimum concentration of sea ice—has become crucial for monitoring sea ice health. https://phys.org/news/2026-02-accurately-arctic-sea-ice-real.html Earth Sciences Tue, 03 Feb 2026 11:00:01 EST news689243401 The body conditions of polar bear (Ursus maritimus) populations around the Norwegian island of Svalbard have improved despite sea ice losses, according to new findings. The findings differ from previously published observations of polar bear population declines coinciding with sea ice loss across the Arctic. https://phys.org/news/2026-01-svalbard-polar-fat-reserves-sea.html Plants & Animals Thu, 29 Jan 2026 11:00:01 EST news688813442 Shortly after her arrival last fall, Amelia Gray met Hudson, and the pair hit it off immediately. They touched their noses together in greeting and chuffed—a soft, breathy, snorting sound that signals affection or reassurance. Amelia Gray rolled on her back, gently pawing at her counterpart. Later that same day, they played in the pool together. https://phys.org/news/2026-01-chicago-brookfield-zoo-effort-polar.html Plants & Animals Tue, 27 Jan 2026 19:30:01 EST news688721393 The Arctic has experienced its hottest year since records began, a US science agency announced Tuesday, as climate change triggers cascading impacts from melting glaciers and sea ice to greening landscapes and disruptions to global weather. https://phys.org/news/2025-12-arctic-unprecedented-climate-impacts-cascade.html Environment Tue, 16 Dec 2025 14:01:02 EST news685115997 New research reveals a link between rising temperatures and changes in polar bear DNA, which may be helping them adapt and survive in increasingly challenging environments. https://phys.org/news/2025-12-polar-survive-warmer-climates.html Plants & Animals Thu, 11 Dec 2025 20:00:06 EST news684664381 If I asked you to imagine your dream snog, chances are it wouldn't be with a Neanderthal; burly and hirsute as they may be. However, my team's new research suggests that these squat beefcakes might have been right up your ancestors' street. https://phys.org/news/2025-11-evolve-humans-neanderthals-smooch.html Evolution Sat, 22 Nov 2025 10:50:01 EST news682771679 An international team of marine scientists has identified and assessed major threats to marine megafauna, which are needed to inform conservation strategies. https://phys.org/news/2025-11-main-threats-marine-life-boost.html Ecology Tue, 18 Nov 2025 10:21:03 EST news682683661 A research team has found that summer rainfall in the Arctic would increase by about 17% under 2°C global warming, approximately 16% of which is attributed to sea ice retreat. Their findings were published in Geophysical Research Letters. https://phys.org/news/2025-11-sea-ice-humidification-high-arctic.html Earth Sciences Mon, 17 Nov 2025 10:42:42 EST news682598558 A new international study led by researchers from Aarhus University and the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute (STRI) reveals that small bats can be just as efficient predators as lions—and often more successful. https://phys.org/news/2025-10-tiny-lion-strategy-energy-capture.html Plants & Animals Fri, 31 Oct 2025 11:00:08 EDT news681032701