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. Astronauts on long space missions may one day use plants to produce fresh stocks of medicines on demand, thanks to new research by engineers at the University of California San Diego. The team developed a simple method to grow and repeatedly harvest pharmaceuticals from plants under space-like conditions, without destroying the plants or generating large amounts of waste. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-medicines-space.html Space Exploration Mon, 08 Jun 2026 16:20:01 EDT news700143676 A research team led by Davoud Jafari at the University of Twente, in collaboration with the University of Pisa, has completed a series of parabolic flight experiments to investigate advanced smart surfaces under rapidly changing gravity conditions. Conducted aboard the Air Zero G aircraft operated by Novespace, the campaign integrated additive manufacturing, boiling heat transfer and electric field control into a single experimental platform as part of the #SmartSkin project. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-smart-surfaces-gravity.html Space Exploration Sat, 06 Jun 2026 12:30:01 EDT news699873176 The CIC biomaGUNE Center for Cooperative Research in Biomaterials has developed pulmonary surfactant nanoparticles (the blend of lipids and proteins that line the alveoli and enables breathing), which are encapsulated in a drug used to treat pulmonary fibrosis. The researchers show that these nanoparticles are highly capable of remaining trapped in the diseased tissue after being administered via the pulmonary pathway. This allows the doses of antifibrotic medication to be cut, and thus reduces the potential side effects associated with conventional therapies. Tests carried out on mice displayed a therapeutic effect on pulmonary fibrosis. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-nanoparticles-lung-fluid-therapies-respiratory.html Bio & Medicine Thu, 04 Jun 2026 19:20:04 EDT news699805562 Electrons around Jupiter have been caught in the process of being accelerated, revealing a potentially unified mechanism for particle acceleration. The findings, published in Nature, may help constrain how energetic particles are produced throughout the universe. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-jupiter-reveals-electrons-relativistic.html Astronomy Thu, 04 Jun 2026 12:00:07 EDT news699786541 When a person coughs or sneezes, they expel a cloud of microscopic particles capable of carrying viruses and bacteria that act as vectors for respiratory diseases such as flu, COVID-19 or tuberculosis. Understanding how these aerosols disperse in the air is crucial for minimizing the transmission of pathogens in indoor spaces, but their dynamics are complex and depend on many factors: the force of the exhalation, the morphology of the respiratory system, the characteristics of the space, etc. Now, a new study led by researchers from the Universitat Rovira i Virgili has shown that temperature also plays an important role. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-temperature-gaps-clouds-stay-denser.html Soft Matter Wed, 03 Jun 2026 17:30:02 EDT news699722042 Black holes, regions in space where gravity is so strong that nothing can escape, have been widely studied over the past decades, due to their unique and intriguing properties. Einstein's theory of general relativity predicts that black holes obey a set of rules, known as the laws of black hole mechanics. These rules somewhat resemble the laws of thermodynamics, which delineate how energy, heat, and entropy behave in our universe. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-violating-3rd-law-black-hole.html General Physics Wed, 03 Jun 2026 07:00:04 EDT news699524996 When rockets fire into space, the insides of their engines become an extreme environment where temperatures soar and tiny particles are thrown around at hypersonic speeds. These particles behave in ways that break long-held assumptions, according to new research that could help improve the durability, safety and performance of future space and defense technologies. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-violent-rocket-particles-reshape-future.html General Physics Tue, 02 Jun 2026 20:40:02 EDT news699634741 Embryonic development is one of the most dynamic biological processes in nature. Cells and tissues organize and reorganize themselves following incredibly precise patterns, while remaining flexible and robust. Scientists are increasingly probing the role the physical properties of embryonic tissues—such as rigidity or stiffness—play in this process. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-embryonic-tissues-fluids-solids-reshape.html Cell & Microbiology Tue, 02 Jun 2026 16:40:02 EDT news699622081 Across much of the northern hemisphere, extreme weather events like heat waves and heavy precipitation have increased in frequency and severity over the last several decades. A new study from the Harvard John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences (SEAS) shows that one proposed partial explanation, so-called "quasiresonant amplification of quasistationary Rossby waves," may not be capable of explaining any of this increase in severe weather events. https://phys.org/news/2026-06-atmospheric-theory-falls-short-extreme.html Earth Sciences Mon, 01 Jun 2026 10:40:01 EDT news699528542 There's a conundrum that has perplexed biologists since Charles Darwin himself. Why do some exotic species take off as invasive pests while others don't? https://phys.org/news/2026-05-vast-botanical-darwin-puzzle-exotic.html Evolution Fri, 29 May 2026 13:40:04 EDT news699273241 After traveling hundreds of miles above Earth and spending months aboard the International Space Station, a University of Delaware experiment has returned to campus, bringing new data on how turbulence behaves in microgravity. https://phys.org/news/2026-05-gravity-iss-reveals-particles-turbulent.html General Physics Thu, 28 May 2026 16:20:01 EDT news699202321 Living cells cool much slower than our current understanding of heat conduction can explain, according to new research from the University of Tokyo. Researchers have used two techniques—high-speed temperature mapping and artificial heating—to observe how heat dissipates from living cells and similar-sized artificial, fluid-filled sacs (liposomes). While heat dispersed quickly from the artificial liposomes as expected, cells cooled significantly more slowly due to other biomolecules within the cell. https://phys.org/news/2026-05-cells-ways-standard-fluid-physics.html Cell & Microbiology Thu, 28 May 2026 05:00:03 EDT news699117362 For more than half a century, materials scientists have struggled with how to simulate the complexity of polymer materials. An individual chain can comprise tens of thousands of atoms, a melt or composite contains billions, and the properties engineers actually care about, such as how an adhesive grips a surface, how a self-assembling block copolymer locks into a nanostructure, or how a biopolymer film stretches without tearing, emerge only over length and time scales that forcible atomistic simulation cannot reach. https://phys.org/news/2026-05-thermodynamic-laws-ai-polymer.html Polymers Tue, 26 May 2026 19:20:07 EDT news699029450 When it comes to technology and innovation, we have a lot to thank Mother Nature for. Learning from the natural world has led to a range of useful products, including Velcro, self-cleaning paint, and ultra-strong body armor. And now, a study published in the journal Nature Communications reports that scientists have developed a way to turn a corn protein into a plastic-like material using a method inspired by spider silk. The breakthrough could one day lead to biodegradable food packaging wraps to help reduce environmental waste. https://phys.org/news/2026-05-spider-silk-corn-protein-tougher.html Biochemistry Tue, 26 May 2026 12:40:02 EDT news699014410 A new Physical Review Letters study places constraints on the ER = EPR conjecture, showing that under the authors' assumptions, the conjecture would imply possible alterations to the hyperfine structure and effective charge of the hydrogen atom—effects that have never been observed. https://phys.org/news/2026-05-hydrogen-quantum-wormhole-conjecture.html General Physics Mon, 25 May 2026 16:00:01 EDT news698933854 Researchers at University of Tsukuba used advanced techniques to visualize the water flow generated by flutter kicking during front-crawl swimming. They analyzed how this kicking motion generates propulsive force and contributes to body stabilization, demonstrating that the vertical vortices resulting from the alternating left and right leg movements not only impart forward propulsion but also suppress body sway. These results provide a fluid-dynamical explanation of the functional value of the flutter kick. https://phys.org/news/2026-05-visualizing-flutter-vertical-vortices-generate.html Soft Matter Mon, 25 May 2026 13:40:02 EDT news698932622 When we think about highly sensitive medical testing, we often imagine a hospital laboratory filled with large instruments, trained technicians, and carefully controlled conditions. This is especially true for optical biosensing, where scientists try to detect extremely small changes caused by biomolecules binding to a sensor surface. https://phys.org/news/2026-05-based-sensor-ultrasensitive-disease-portable.html Optics & Photonics Thu, 21 May 2026 17:40:01 EDT news698499656 When people eventually head to the moon for long-term exploration and habitation, they'll need equipment and spacesuits made of well-tested materials. That's where NASA's Lunar Environment Test Rig (LESTR) comes in handy. It simulates extreme cold lunar night conditions right here on Earth in a NASA Glenn lab, testing lunar-bound materials in temperatures ranging from 40 K to 125 K (-233 C to -148 C) in a vacuum. https://phys.org/news/2026-05-extreme-lunar-conditions-rig.html Space Exploration Thu, 21 May 2026 17:00:04 EDT news698582938 Controlling heat flow is a major challenge for many technologies. In electronic and photonic devices, for example, heat dissipation can limit the performance and efficiency, as well as their potential for further miniaturization. At the same time, two-dimensional (2D) materials, which are made of layers just a few atoms thick, have emerged as a promising platform in these fields. For example, 2D semiconductors are expected to be used in conduction channels of future transistors. However, their thermal behavior remains difficult to predict and control. https://phys.org/news/2026-05-honey-regime-ultrathin-semiconductors.html Nanophysics Fri, 15 May 2026 09:20:01 EDT news698054064 Can "snow" fall in the ocean and influence the climate of the entire planet? It turns out that it can. Research conducted by scientists from the Faculty of Physics at University of Warsaw, published in the Journal of Fluid Mechanics, helps us understand how microscopic flakes of dead organic matter collide and sink into the deep ocean, transporting vast amounts of carbon and affecting the pace of global warming. https://phys.org/news/2026-05-physics-uncharted-mysteries-marine.html Earth Sciences Thu, 14 May 2026 16:30:48 EDT news697995001 An international team of scientists has discovered that methane hydrates beneath the northwest Greenland continental shelf became rapidly destabilized by meltwater, releasing large stores of methane during ice-sheet retreat across the continental shelf. https://phys.org/news/2026-05-meltwater-flushed-methane-greenland-seabed.html Earth Sciences Thu, 14 May 2026 05:00:03 EDT news697886881 Sitting in a restaurant, you reach for the ketchup bottle, eyeing the basket of fries in front of you. You give the bottle a shake, then a tap. For a moment, nothing happens—the ketchup clings stubbornly to the glass. Then, all at once, it lets go and rushes out, sometimes in a steady stream, sometimes in a messy surge that threatens to flood the basket. https://phys.org/news/2026-05-tiny-big-effects-particle-interactions.html General Physics Wed, 13 May 2026 13:03:41 EDT news697896181 Until now, it has been technically nearly impossible to rotate highly sensitive samples in all directions under a microscope without making contact. Researchers at the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT) have developed a new laser-based technique that allows microscopic samples such as cells to be rotated contact-free in all three spatial directions. The laser creates tiny temperature differences in the liquid, which trigger gentle fluid flows that move the sample. This protects delicate samples and enables more accurate three-dimensional images—an important step for basic medical research. https://phys.org/news/2026-05-gentle-laser-driven-enable-precise.html Cell & Microbiology Tue, 12 May 2026 14:40:04 EDT news697807441 Researchers from the National University of Singapore (NUS) have discovered that cancer cells do not simply push through surrounding tissues to spread, but instead actively grip onto protective tissue barriers and pull them apart, revealing a fundamentally new mechanism of cancer invasion that could open fresh avenues for therapeutic intervention. https://phys.org/news/2026-05-invading-cancer-cells-rip-tissues.html Cell & Microbiology Tue, 12 May 2026 14:00:02 EDT news697803601 Wildfires battered Iwate Prefecture in northeastern Japan for 11 days, starting on April 22. The fires burned about 1,600 hectares and forced 3,200 residents to evacuate. With warmer climates, continued expansion of urban areas into forested regions, and the increasing frequency of extreme weather events, disasters like these are becoming more common around the world, underscoring the urgent need for advances in fire safety science and predictive modeling. https://phys.org/news/2026-05-fuels-global-large-outdoor.html Environment Tue, 12 May 2026 11:00:01 EDT news697797805 Researchers at Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI) have developed a solid polymer coated with harmless viruses to detect the bacteria Salmonella enterica (S. enterica), an advance that could lead to new ways of finding contamination in the food supply. The work is published in the journal ACS Applied Bio Materials. https://phys.org/news/2026-05-harmless-viruses-salmonella-flexible-polymer.html Biochemistry Thu, 07 May 2026 18:20:01 EDT news697389961 The new focus on manned missions to the moon and Mars presents countless pressing challenges, including keeping humans alive in hostile environments. What happens when an astronaut or space tourist has a cardiac emergency millions of miles from the nearest hospital? https://phys.org/news/2026-05-cpr-simulator-space-tracks-differences.html Space Exploration Tue, 05 May 2026 19:40:01 EDT news697204081 Not all earthquake faults behave the same. Some stick and snap, causing earthquakes. Others move slowly over time. https://phys.org/news/2026-05-quiet-alaska-fault-fluids-scientists.html Earth Sciences Mon, 04 May 2026 15:00:02 EDT news697118281 Recent research published in Communications Biology marks an advance in structural biology by enhancing understanding of protein regulation mechanisms in Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb), a global health threat. The team led by the University of Melbourne combined several advanced techniques at the Australian Synchrotron and the National Deuteration Facility to reveal the hidden allosteric mechanism that activates a key enzyme, ICL2. https://phys.org/news/2026-05-stealth-tuberculosis-enzyme-route-drug.html Cell & Microbiology Fri, 01 May 2026 15:00:04 EDT news696856801 Water droplets might seem simple at first. But when nearing evaporation, a desperate power struggle of competing physical forces can emerge, with explosive effects. In a Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences publication, researchers have taken a closer look at the physics of charged water droplets on frictionless surfaces, observing spontaneous jets of microdroplet emissions. Their insights may open new opportunities in nanoscale fabrication and electrospray ionization. https://phys.org/news/2026-05-explosive-evaporation-possibilities-3d-chemical.html General Physics Fri, 01 May 2026 11:40:06 EDT news696849556