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. Methane is a powerful greenhouse gas with strong heat-trapping capabilities. Although there is less methane in the atmosphere than carbon dioxide, the foremost greenhouse gas, researchers attribute 30% of modern global warming to methane. Observations show that methane levels have increased over time, but the factors driving changes in the rate of accumulation remain unclear. https://phys.org/news/2026-02-satellite-stratospheric-methane-loss-higher.html Earth Sciences Mon, 09 Feb 2026 15:07:43 EST news689872021 Utrecht University researchers Rodolfo Subert and Marjolein Dijkstra show in their latest study that complex three-dimensional networks in materials can emerge from nothing more than particle shape. In Nature Communications they describe how simple geometries, aided by entropy, can give rise to layers, networks and even spontaneous left- and right-handed twisting, which is a phenomenon previously linked mainly to highly complex molecules. https://phys.org/news/2026-02-chemistry-isnt-essential-simple-geometry.html Analytical Chemistry Sun, 08 Feb 2026 10:00:03 EST news689508594 Earth's surface is covered by more than a dozen tectonic plates, and in subduction zones around the world—including the Japanese Islands—plates converge and dense oceanic plates sink into Earth's interior. These regions, especially plate boundaries, are known for frequent seismic activity. https://phys.org/news/2026-02-revealing-deformation-mechanisms-mineral-antigorite.html Earth Sciences Fri, 06 Feb 2026 12:56:19 EST news689604961 A research team led by Dr. Dandan Gao from the Department of Chemistry at Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz (JGU) has developed a new method for the sustainable production of ammonia and formic acid. Ammonia is indispensable in modern agriculture and, like formic acid, an important industrial feedstock. Conventionally, ammonia is produced using the Haber-Bosch process, which is extremely energy-intensive and causes significant CO₂ emissions. It is also possible to produce ammonia via electrolysis, i.e., using electrical current, but this remains a relatively young field of research. Electrolysis offers a sustainable alternative for production because it can be powered by renewable electricity. https://phys.org/news/2026-02-component-catalyst-boosts-ammonia-nitrate.html Analytical Chemistry Fri, 06 Feb 2026 12:11:21 EST news689602201 Watching proteins move as they drive the chemical reactions that sustain life is one of the grand challenges of modern biology. In recent years, X-ray free-electron lasers, or XFELs, have begun to meet that challenge, capturing ultrafast snapshots of molecules as they shift shape during a reaction—effectively creating molecular slow-motion movies. https://phys.org/news/2026-02-smarter-biology-microfluidic-droplet-injector.html Biotechnology Thu, 05 Feb 2026 16:59:39 EST news689533141 Parents often tell their children to sound out the words as they are learning to read. It makes sense: Since they already know how to speak, the sound of a word might serve as a clue to its meaning. https://phys.org/news/2026-02-numbing-mouth-silent.html Education Thu, 05 Feb 2026 13:40:07 EST news689518480 A study from FAU has shown that lipid nanoparticles restructure their membrane significantly after being absorbed into a cell and ending up in an acidic environment. Vaccines and other medicines are often packed in little fat droplets, or lipids. In this form, they are absorbed by cells and release their "cargo" once they are there. The trigger is a change in the pH value in the droplet's surroundings. Researchers at Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg (FAU) have now created a computer simulation of what exactly happens. Their findings may help to optimize the release of the active substances. The results have been published in the journal Small. https://phys.org/news/2026-02-lipid-nanoparticles-vaccines-cargo.html Bio & Medicine Wed, 04 Feb 2026 16:16:49 EST news689444161 A major step toward simpler drug development has been taken at the University of Gothenburg. In a new study, researchers have developed stable boron-fluorine compounds that make it possible to increase the effect or reduce side effects without breaking down the medicine. The findings are published in the journal Angewandte Chemie International Edition. https://phys.org/news/2026-02-stable-boron-compounds-pave-easier.html Analytical Chemistry Tue, 03 Feb 2026 07:56:19 EST news689327761 Current electrochemical theory does not adequately describe realistic platinum electrodes. Scientists at Leiden University have now, for the first time, mapped the influence of imperfect platinum surfaces. This provides a more accurate picture of these electrodes, with applications in hydrogen production and sensors. https://phys.org/news/2026-02-realistic-picture-platinum-electrodes.html Analytical Chemistry Mon, 02 Feb 2026 15:53:24 EST news689269981 The oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) is a key process in fuel cells and metal-air batteries, technologies expected to play a central role in a low-carbon energy future. However, ORR proceeds slowly on most materials, limiting efficiency and increasing costs. Finding catalysts that can speed up this reaction is therefore a major challenge in reducing our energy footprint. https://phys.org/news/2026-01-topological-surfaces-boost-energy-catalysts.html Analytical Chemistry Sun, 01 Feb 2026 14:30:01 EST news688918884 Researchers are continually looking for new ways to hack the cellular machinery of microbes like yeast and bacteria to make products that are useful for humans and society. In a new proof-of-concept study, a team from the Carl R. Woese Institute for Genomic Biology showed they can expand the biosynthetic capabilities of these microbes by using light to help access new types of chemical transformations. https://phys.org/news/2026-01-scientists-microorganisms-molecules.html Analytical Chemistry Fri, 30 Jan 2026 14:00:36 EST news689003946 The origin of life from Earth's primordial chemistry has long fascinated and perplexed us. Generations of scientists have endeavored to understand how complex biochemistry developed from organic compounds. Researchers at UC Santa Barbara have recently found that the conditions inside certain, naturally forming droplets promote reduction and oxidation (redox) reactions, which are crucial for life. The results support the idea that these droplets could have acted as proto-enzymes, enabling the formation of more complicated organic molecules. https://phys.org/news/2026-01-rna-droplets-prebiotic-earth-complex.html Biochemistry Thu, 29 Jan 2026 17:10:27 EST news688929001 A new study published in the Journal of Consumer Psychology reveals a hidden tension in ethical consumerism: While consumers morally support companies that hire individuals experiencing homelessness, deep-seated social stigmas can inadvertently drive down sales. https://phys.org/news/2026-01-checkout-line-consumer-stigma-undermines.html Social Sciences Thu, 29 Jan 2026 04:58:16 EST news688885081 In our galaxy, a supernova explodes about once or twice each century. But historical astronomical records show that the last Milky Way core-collapse supernova seen by humans was about 1,000 years ago. That means we've missed a few. But with the Vera Rubin Observatory poised to begin its decade-long Legacy Survey of Space and Time, no supernova is safe from our prying astronomical eyes. https://phys.org/news/2026-01-rubin-observatory-rapidly-supernovae.html Astronomy Wed, 28 Jan 2026 09:57:43 EST news688816621 A research team has proposed a new design principle for QM/MM (quantum mechanics/molecular mechanics) simulations. The approach enables objective and automatic determination of the quantum-mechanical region based on electronic-state changes, addressing a long-standing challenge in multiscale molecular simulations. https://phys.org/news/2026-01-qmmm-principle-based-electronic-state.html Quantum Physics Mon, 26 Jan 2026 17:07:22 EST news688669621 Researchers at Washington University in St. Louis have a unique resource in the form of the Center for Biomolecular Condensates at the McKelvey School of Engineering, which draws scientists from around the world to study the biochemical reactions of condensates, constantly shifting, membrane-less organelles that govern how a cell functions. Center Director Rohit Pappu, the Gene K. Beare Distinguished Professor, has spent his career defining and outlining the rules governing these "intrinsically disordered proteins" to develop medical treatments for cancers or dementias. But new medicine is not the only treasure to uncover in condensate research. https://phys.org/news/2026-01-cellular-electrochemistry-evolution.html Biotechnology Mon, 26 Jan 2026 14:33:25 EST news688660367 In inertial confinement fusion, a capsule of fuel begins at temperatures near zero and pressures close to vacuum. When lasers compress that fuel to trigger fusion, the material heats up to millions of degrees and reaches pressures similar to the core of the sun. That process happens within a miniscule amount of space and time. https://phys.org/news/2026-01-code-microscopic-insights-macroscopic-world.html General Physics Thu, 22 Jan 2026 16:38:26 EST news688322282 Florida State University researchers have discovered a pathway within a certain type of molecule that limits chemical reactions by redirecting light energy. The study could enable development of more efficient reactions for pharmaceuticals and other products. https://phys.org/news/2026-01-reveals-driven-chemical-reactions-energy.html Materials Science Thu, 22 Jan 2026 16:00:27 EST news688319966 Enzymes with specific functions are becoming increasingly important in industry, medicine and environmental protection. For example, they make it possible to synthesize chemicals in a more environmentally friendly way, produce active ingredients in a targeted manner or break down environmentally harmful substances. https://phys.org/news/2026-01-ai-method-advances-customized-enzyme.html Biochemistry Thu, 22 Jan 2026 15:05:44 EST news688316702 A single enzyme that can generate all four nucleoside triphosphates, the building blocks of ribonucleic acid (RNA), has been identified by researchers at the Institute of Science Tokyo. The study was published online in the journal Nature Communications. https://phys.org/news/2026-01-enzyme-production-rna-blocks.html Biotechnology Thu, 22 Jan 2026 15:02:16 EST news688316521 Here's a novel pathway to a more sustainable planet: carbo-loading for the public good. In a new study published in Nature Synthesis, chemists at Yale and the University of California-Berkeley have developed a two-step process that removes carbon dioxide (CO2) from the air and converts it into carbohydrates, aka sugars. https://phys.org/news/2026-01-sweetening-sustainability-carbon-dioxide.html Analytical Chemistry Wed, 21 Jan 2026 15:57:43 EST news688233422 An atmospheric scientist at The University of Alabama in Huntsville (UAH), a part of The University of Alabama System, has helped uncover a previously unknown chemical pathway that plays a major role in the formation of air pollution particles in environments influenced by both natural and human-made emissions—an advance that could reshape how scientists understand air quality and climate impacts. https://phys.org/news/2026-01-previously-unknown-chemical-pathway-air.html Earth Sciences Tue, 20 Jan 2026 15:00:06 EST news688143004 At the Department of Ion Physics and Applied Physics at the University of Innsbruck, a research team has succeeded for the first time in storing electrically charged helium nanodroplets in an ion trap for up to one minute. https://phys.org/news/2026-01-ion-enables-minute-nanocosmos.html Nanophysics Tue, 20 Jan 2026 08:55:19 EST news688121701 Researchers from Skoltech have uncovered physical principles governing the remote "tuning" of nanocatalysts, where the ultra-thin platinum layer's properties can be controlled exclusively by modifying its metallic core's composition and structure. https://phys.org/news/2026-01-ultra-thin-platinum-shells-efficient.html Nanomaterials Mon, 19 Jan 2026 15:05:41 EST news688057501 More efficient and sustainable energy conversion technologies, among other applications, hinge on lowering the amount of energy needed to trigger specific reactions on the surface of electrodes. Called electrocatalysis, the process conserves energy by transferring electrons and speeding up the reaction time, but the molecules involved typically cannot shuttle other particles or directly activate components of the system. https://phys.org/news/2026-01-molecular-strategy-efficiency-electrocatalytic-reactions.html Analytical Chemistry Sun, 18 Jan 2026 11:30:01 EST news687626570 During chemical reactions, atoms in the reacting substances break their bonds and re-arrange, forming different chemical products. This process entails the movement of both electrons (i.e., negatively charged particles) and nuclei (i.e., the positively charged central parts of atoms). Valence electrons are shared and re-arranged between different atoms, creating new bonds. https://phys.org/news/2026-01-imaging-technique-captures-ultrafast-electron.html General Physics Fri, 16 Jan 2026 13:20:02 EST news687788879 Gold nanorods are promising photocatalysts that can use light energy to drive chemical reactions—such as converting CO₂ into usable fuels or producing hydrogen from water. In this process, the nanorods act like tiny antennas that capture light and convert it into collective oscillations of their electrons. During the reaction, the particles can become electrically charged. https://phys.org/news/2026-01-gold-nanorods-energy.html Nanophysics Thu, 15 Jan 2026 12:56:32 EST news687704161 Light-emitting semiconductors are used throughout everyday life in TVs, smartphones, and lighting. However, many technical barriers remain in developing environmentally friendly semiconductor materials. https://phys.org/news/2026-01-atomic-surface-boosts-brightness-eco.html Nanophysics Wed, 14 Jan 2026 14:14:20 EST news687622441 Spectacular clouds swirl across the surface of Jupiter. These clouds contain water, just like Earth's, but are much denser on the gas giant—so thick that no spacecraft has been able to measure exactly what lies beneath. https://phys.org/news/2026-01-jupiter-hidden-depths-simulation-planet.html Planetary Sciences Wed, 14 Jan 2026 11:26:28 EST news687612361 Ozone that protects us from the sun's harmful UV rays, when in an indoor space, reacts with oils present on skin, wall paint, or even cooking oil to produce chemicals that negatively impact cardiovascular health. https://phys.org/news/2026-01-indoor-ozone-reaction-products-blood.html Environment Wed, 14 Jan 2026 10:20:02 EST news687606428