Today's Science Pulse
UK-led study reveals hidden massive star clusters deep within nearby galaxies
Astronomers using the VLA and ALMA uncovered previously unseen giant star clusters embedded deep inside nearby galaxies. The findings show that young stellar activity drives the evolution of these galaxies, reshaping their interstellar environments. Multiple observations confirm the clusters act as hidden “ring factories” of star formation.
Also developing:
By the numbers: Foundation Alloy raises $22M Series A
NASA Changed an Asteroid’s Orbital Path Around the Sun, a First for Humankind
In September 2022 NASA’s DART spacecraft slammed into Dimorphos, the smaller member of the Didymos binary, deliberately altering its orbit. New analysis published in Science Advances shows the impact also slowed the entire binary system’s heliocentric speed by roughly 12 microns per second—about 370 metres per year—marking the first human‑induced change to an object’s solar orbit. The study quantified a momentum‑enhancement factor that doubled the spacecraft’s push and provided the first separate mass estimates for Didymos and Dimorphos. These findings lay groundwork for future planetary‑defense strategies and upcoming ESA Hera observations.
Heatwaves Driving Recent ‘Surge’ in Compound Drought and Heat Extremes
A new study in Science Advances shows compound drought‑heat events have surged globally since the early 2000s, driven mainly by heatwave‑led events that more than doubled in area. The increase outpaces what can be explained by global warming alone, reflecting...
Join Monday’s Live KS2 Science Lesson for British Science Week
I’ll be kick starting British Science Week with a Live Lesson this Monday 1100hrs on CBBC. Also available from Monday at 0900hrs on the @BBC_Teach website. Do you teach Key Stage 2 Science? Need help planning next week’s lessons? Have curious kids?...
PEP Slows Aging by Blocking Inflammation Pathway
PEP protects against age-related inflammation, puts the brake on the aging process in mice, high levels in humans correlate with low inflammation So what is PEP, you ask? phosphoenolpyruvate, from glucose metabolism, a, master regulator, blocks cGAS-STING https://t.co/glMvaHSjOq https://t.co/MSVMBJbHm4
Chris Masterjohn: COVID-19 to Mitochondrial Health, Communicating and Applying "the Science"
Chris Masterjohn, a nutritional scientist and mitochondrial biologist, launched Mitome, a consumer‑focused platform for mitochondrial health testing. In a conversation with Razib Khan, he critiqued the COVID‑19 response, alleging authorities overstated certainty and faced attempts at censorship. Masterjohn also argued...
El Nino Set to Push 2027 to Record Warmth
The El Nino cometh. This would push up our estimate for 2026 global temperatures (though its still unlikely to surpass 2024 as the warmest year), and make 2027 very likely to be the warmest year on record given the historical...
Simultaneously Decoding the Transcriptome, Epigenome and 3D Genome Within a Single Cell
The team led by Inkyung Jung and Yarui Diao introduced scHiCAR, a trimodal single‑cell technology that simultaneously captures transcriptome, epigenome, and 3D genome architecture. By integrating AI, the method achieves ultra‑high throughput at roughly $0.04 per cell and was used...
Caloric Restriction Extends Lifespan in Animals, Human Applicability Unclear
Dietary (caloric) restriction has so many salutary effects for slowing the aging process in animal models, but whether that can be simulated in some way in people remains unclear. This new comprehensive review @NatureAging is outstanding https://t.co/xw5bmK3NaW https://t.co/t8bBmS8HGB
Early Encouraging UC Davis Trial Data on Cell Therapy for Spina Bifida
A first‑in‑human phase 1 trial at UC Davis evaluated placental mesenchymal stem cells delivered intra‑uterinely to fetuses with myelomeningocele. Six pregnancies treated between June 2021 and December 2022 resulted in intact repair sites, no cerebrospinal fluid leaks, infections, or tumor formation, and MRI scans...
Mumps Infections Reveal that Vaccine-Preventable Illnesses Are Resurging in the U.S.
Mumps cases have resurfaced in the United States, with at least 34 infections confirmed across 11 states and Maryland alone reporting 26 cases. The outbreak follows a decline in childhood MMR vaccination rates that accelerated after the COVID‑19 pandemic. While...
DeBriefed 6 March 2026: Iran Energy Crisis | China Climate Plan | Bristol’s ‘Pioneering’ Wind Turbine
The recent US‑Israeli strikes on Iran and Iran’s retaliatory attacks have halted shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, cutting roughly 20% of global oil flow and sending diesel and gas prices sharply higher in Europe and the United States. The...
Methanol-Tolerant Microbial Strain Could Make Sustainable Biomanufacturing More Economically Viable
A UNIST research team engineered a methanol‑tolerant *Methylobacterium extorquens* strain that grows 1.7 times faster than conventional microbes at 2.5 % methanol. Using adaptive laboratory evolution, they identified recurring mutations in the metY and kefB genes that boost detoxification and energy...
Inflammation Might Cause Alzheimer's – Here's How to Reduce It
Recent studies suggest that persistent inflammation in the gut, lungs and skin may trigger Alzheimer’s disease. Vaccinations such as Shingrix have been shown to cut dementia risk by about 17 percent, likely by dampening inflammatory pathways. Lifestyle measures—including a Mediterranean...
UK Domestic Launch Milestone as RFA ONE Rocket Arrives in Scotland
Rocket Factory Augsburg (RFA) delivered the first and second stages of its RFA ONE launch vehicle to SaxaVord Spaceport in Scotland, marking a pivotal step toward the United Kingdom’s inaugural domestic orbital launch. The stages arrive after a 2024 static‑fire anomaly...
Final Laps at the LHC
CERN has launched the final four‑month run of the Large Hadron Collider, kicking off with proton collisions on 7 March. The schedule includes nine weeks of proton collisions, three weeks of lead‑ion runs, and a two‑week high‑intensity proton test featuring 40%...
New Sleep Regularity Index Reveals Hidden Rest Patterns
Interested in the latest sleep science and getting better quality sleep? New Ground Truths with Prof Yo-El Ju, @WashUNeurology https://t.co/2lV3Fw6cwg SRI-sleep regularity index https://t.co/zRWbVNmeap
New Strides Made on Deceptively Simple ‘Lonely Runner’ Problem
Mathematicians have finally proved the lonely runner conjecture for eight, nine, and ten runners, marking the first major advance in decades. The breakthroughs stem from Matthieu Rosenfeld’s computer‑assisted approach, which built on Terence Tao’s finite‑speed reduction, and an undergraduate, Paul...
Liquid Metal Composite Material Enables Recyclable, Flexible, and Reconfigurable Electronics
University of Washington researchers have developed a recyclable composite that embeds microscopic gallium‑based liquid‑metal droplets in a stretchable polymer. The material can be patterned into functional circuits by scoring its surface, self‑heals after cuts, and can be chemically dissolved to...
Astronomers Confirm Potentially Habitable Exoplanet in the Solar Neighborhood
Researchers have confirmed a super‑Earth, GJ 887 d, orbiting within the habitable zone of the nearby M‑dwarf GJ 887, only 10.7 light‑years from Earth. The planet, with a minimum mass about six times Earth’s and a 51‑day orbital period, is the second known...
New Method More Accurately Predicts Stronger, Lighter 3D Printed Parts
Engineers at the University of Maine have introduced a hybrid method that blends advanced nonlinear finite‑element modeling with physical testing to predict the strength of gyroid‑infilled 3D‑printed parts. The approach outperforms traditional linear analyses by capturing plastic deformation and anisotropic...
J&J Wins Third National Priority Approval for Multiple Myeloma Combo
Johnson & Johnson’s Tecvayli and Darzalex combination received FDA approval for second‑line multiple myeloma treatment, marking the third drug cleared under the Commissioner’s National Priority Voucher (CNPV) program. The decision was rendered in just 55 days after J&J’s filing, thanks...
March 6, 1953: The Birth of Carolyn Porco
Carolyn Porco, born March 6, 1953, rose from a doctoral candidate in earth and space sciences to become a leading planetary imaging scientist. She joined the Voyager team in the early 1980s and co‑planned the iconic 1990 “Pale Blue Dot” photograph with...
Artificial Feeding Platform Transforms Study of Ticks and Their Diseases
Researchers at the University of Melbourne have unveiled the world’s first laboratory‑based, host‑free feeding platform for the Asian longhorned tick (Haemaphysalis longicornis). The silicone‑membrane system, using defibrinated cattle blood, supports full feeding and reproduction without live animal hosts. This breakthrough...
FMO-2 Upregulation Is Common to Multiple Longevity Associated Mutations in Nematodes
Researchers have identified flavin‑containing monooxygenase‑2 (FMO‑2) as a shared downstream effector in several long‑lived mitochondrial mutants of Caenorhabditis elegans, including clk‑1, isp‑1 and nuo‑6. RNA interference or genetic loss of fmo‑2 shortens the extended lifespan of these mutants, confirming its...
Can White Skin Transplanted to a Black Person Change Colour?
In this episode of Kate Talk, Dr. Chris Smith, a virologist and science communicator, answers listener questions ranging from asteroid deflection (NASA's DART mission) to why we can't tickle ourselves, the impact of lung capacity on the heart, and the...
Sleep Apnea Often Goes Undetected in Women. That’s Starting to Change
Obstructive sleep apnea, long viewed as a male‑dominant disorder, is now recognized as a major, often hidden health issue for women, especially during perimenopause and menopause. A Lancet Respiratory Medicine projection estimates 30.4 million U.S. women could have OSA by 2050,...
Why Thinning a Forest Could Get You More Drinking Water
Researchers in Washington’s Cascade Mountains found that thinning forest stands can boost snowpack by up to 30%, translating to roughly 4 million gallons of extra water per 100 acres. By spacing trees 13 to 52 feet apart, canopy interception drops, allowing...
How the ‘Holy Grail’ Weight Loss Pill Became a Reality, and What Comes Next
The pharmaceutical industry has finally delivered an oral GLP‑1 weight‑loss pill, with Novo Nordisk launching an oral version of Wegovy earlier this year. Eli Lilly’s oral GLP‑1 candidate, orforglipron, is expected to receive approval imminently. Oral formulations overcome the injection barrier that...
The Sky Today on Friday, March 6: Io’s Turn to Transit
Io will transit Jupiter’s disk on the night of March 6‑7, 2026, beginning at midnight EST and lasting about twenty minutes, followed by its shadow crossing for an additional hour. The event is visible from the East Coast, where Jupiter sits...
New AI Hub to Empower Space-Enabled Connectivity
The European Space Agency announced a new AI Hub at its ECSAT campus in Oxfordshire, backed by the UK Space Agency. The facility will provide a testbed for AI‑driven satellite and converged communications, extending the capabilities of ESA’s existing 5G/6G...
Daresbury-Built Detector Components Arrive in US for the Flagship Neutrino Experiment
Four Anode Plane Assemblies (APAs) built at STFC’s Daresbury Laboratory have arrived at Fermilab, marking the first direct UK‑to‑US shipment for the Deep Underground Neutrino Experiment (DUNE). The UK is tasked with delivering 137 of the 150 APAs required, and...
CERN Tests Microwire Quantum Sensors for Particle Colliders and Dark Matter Detection
Researchers at Fermilab and CERN have demonstrated that superconducting microwire single‑photon detectors (SMSPDs) achieve markedly higher detection efficiency and timing resolution for charged particles by employing a thicker tungsten‑silicide film. The study recorded the first muon detection efficiency using SMSPDs,...
UK Detector Components Shipped to US for DUNE Experiment
The UK’s STFC Daresbury Laboratory has shipped the first four anode plane assemblies (APAs) directly to Fermilab, marking a key milestone for the Deep Underground Neutrino Experiment (DUNE). The shipment brings the UK’s total completed APAs to 50 of the...
New Webb Data Says Asteroid 2024 YR4 Will Miss the Moon in 2032
New James Webb Space Telescope observations collected on Feb. 18 and 26 refined the orbit of near‑Earth asteroid 2024 YR4, eliminating any chance of a lunar impact on Dec. 22, 2032. The asteroid is now projected to miss the Moon by about 13,200 miles (21,200 km)....
Gül Dölen – Psychedelic Science and Radical Healing
Gül Dölen, a leading neuroscientist at UC Berkeley and Johns Hopkins, discussed the transformative potential of psychedelic‑assisted therapy during the 2025 Aspen Ideas Festival. Her research demonstrates that compounds such as psilocybin and MDMA can rapidly alleviate treatment‑resistant depression, complex PTSD,...
Weyl Spinor Fields and Right-Handed Spacetime
The article explains why a single Weyl spinor field cannot be Wick‑rotated using the conventional Euclidean continuation, highlighting a fundamental mismatch between Minkowski and Euclidean spinor representations. It proposes a new framework that employs only right‑handed Weyl spinors to encode...
Analysis: UK Emissions Fall 2.4% in 2025 as Coal Hits 400-Year Low
UK greenhouse gas emissions fell 2.4% in 2025 to 364 MtCO2e, the lowest level since 1872 and 54% below 1990. The decline was driven by coal use dropping to a 400‑year low and gas use reaching its lowest since 1992, both...
Iran War Exposes Fossil Fuel’s Hidden Global Costs
On The Climate Brink, my latest post is on what the war in Iran tells us about the hidden costs of fossil fuels https://www.theclimatebrink.com/p/the-war-in-iran-shows-us-another
Self‑amplifying RNA Could Protect Future Heart‑attack Patients
Will we give a shot of protective, self-amplifying RNA in patients with a heart attack in the future? @ScienceMagazine an intriguing innovation https://t.co/FcJme1ElyU https://t.co/lABFRkR3qg
Pond-Dwelling Microalga Exposes a Parallel Track for RNA Processing
Researchers at RIKEN discovered that the pond microalga Euglena agilis processes the majority of its introns using a non‑canonical splicing code, bypassing the typical GT‑AG splice site signals. Over 70 % of its introns lack the standard motifs, instead following a...
Engineered Astrocytes Use CAR‑A to Remove Amyloid Plaques
New @ScienceMagazine Engineering the brain's astrocytes to clear amyloid plaque! "CAR-A," in mouse model https://t.co/u9zJGnCLUj https://t.co/eIrrFx7iTg https://t.co/x56FDtuVW2
Aging Cells Harbor Protective Mutations That Inspire New Drugs
We're chock full of somatic mutations in our cells and tissue as we age. Some even protect us from disease! And we can learn from them to discover new medications. @CellCellPress https://t.co/mnUsarpYoR https://t.co/4c5XOD7NuC
Heart Attacks Are Killing More Young People—And More Women
A recent study of nearly one million U.S. hospitalizations shows in‑hospital deaths from first‑time heart attacks are climbing among adults 54 and younger. The increase is evident for both STEMI and NSTEMI cases, with women experiencing slightly higher mortality than men....
AI Generalist Excels Across Diverse Medical Imaging Modalities
Can an AI model be a generalist to work and perform well for all types of medical images? Just published, our MedVersa paper @NEJM_AI Led by @pranavrajpurkar Free access https://t.co/5llNf94hAF https://t.co/Bf01zUZ1sk
Observable Space’s CDK 14 Can Capture Your Cosmos
Observable Space’s CDK 14 is a 14‑inch Corrected Dall‑Kirkham telescope that delivers observatory‑class imaging in a compact, 48‑lb package. It features a fused‑silica primary, carbon‑fiber tube, and a fast f/7.2 focal ratio with a 2,563 mm focal length, providing a flat, coma‑free...
Yamanaka Stem Cells Earn Conditional Approval for Heart and Parkinson's
20 years of Yamanaka stem cell factor research culminates in 2 conditional approvals for heart disease and Parkinson's disease in Japan https://t.co/8oxKxXYafu by Shinya Yamanaka @CellStemCell https://t.co/U878IxSfSi @ScienceMagazine https://t.co/HCCPaTEP7e
Mimicking Quantum Effects
Researchers have used vibrating pools of silicone oil to create macroscopic droplets that bounce and walk, reproducing quantum phenomena in a fluid medium. By introducing a standing Faraday wave, the team mimicked the Kapitza‑Dirac effect, causing droplets to diffract similarly...
China Eases Climate Target but Clean Energy Could Still Cut Emissions, Experts Say
China’s new five‑year plan lowers its carbon‑intensity goal to a 17% cut between 2026 and 2030, a step back from the 18% target for 2021‑2025 that it already missed. Analysts warn the weaker pledge could let national emissions rise 3‑6%...
Asteroid 2024 YR4 Will Not Impact the Moon
Asteroid 2024 YR4, a 60‑metre near‑Earth object, once carried a 4 % chance of striking the Moon in December 2032. New observations with JWST’s NIRCam in February 2026 precisely measured its orbit, eliminating the lunar‑impact risk. The asteroid will safely miss the Moon by...