Today's Science Pulse
Hidden Star Clusters Discovered Deep Inside Nearby Galaxies
A UK‑led study using VLA and ALMA data uncovered previously hidden giant star clusters deep within nearby galaxies, describing them as “ring factories.” The findings highlight how young stellar activity shapes galactic evolution across the universe.
Also developing:
By the numbers: Foundation Alloy raises $22M Series A
How Scientists Are Building the AI-Powered Laboratory
SLAC’s public lecture on June 4, 2026 features associate scientist Sean Gasiorowski discussing how artificial intelligence is transforming laboratory research. He explains that AI can not only analyze experimental data faster but also actively recommend the most informative next measurements, cutting costly trial‑and‑error cycles. The talk includes case studies from materials discovery to particle physics and outlines emerging trends in AI‑driven scientific workflows. Registration is open both in‑person at the Kavli Auditorium and online via YouTube.
Southwest Monsoon Likely over Bay of Bengal and Andaman and Nicobar by Week-End: IMD
India’s meteorological agency says the southwest monsoon will move over the south Bay of Bengal, the Andaman Sea and the Andaman and Nicobar Islands by the weekend. A low‑pressure system observed at 8:30 am on May 12 is deepening and is expected...
![A Tiny Water Droplet Became the Star of Artemis II [VIDEO]](/cdn-cgi/image/width=1200,quality=75,format=auto,fit=cover/https://orbitaltoday.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/05/nasa-video-bubble.jpg)
A Tiny Water Droplet Became the Star of Artemis II [VIDEO]
NASA released a captivating video from the Artemis II mission showing astronauts Reid Wiseman, Christina Koch, Victor Glover and Jeremy Hansen release a small water droplet inside the Orion capsule. In microgravity the droplet hangs, coalesces into a perfect sphere, and...
Climate Change, Natural Resource Conflicts and Insecurity in Nigeria: Implication for Food Security
A new study links climate change, natural‑resource conflicts and insecurity to deteriorating food security in Nigeria. Using the 2018/19 General Household Survey and the 2022 National Agricultural Sample Census, researchers applied OLS, ordered logit and probit models to quantify impacts....
Associations of Diabetes Mellitus With/Without Diabetic Retinopathy and Cognitive Outcomes in Older Adults: The Potential Role of the Dietary Inflammatory...
A multi‑dataset observational study spanning NHANES, the UK Biobank and a Chinese Wenzhou cohort found that older adults with diabetes mellitus (DM) have a higher prevalence of cognitive impairment, and that the presence of diabetic retinopathy (DR) further worsens cognitive...
The Long Non-Coding RNA CidecAS Regulates Hepatocyte Lipid Metabolism via the Alpha-1 Subunit of Na+/K+-ATPase
The study identifies a novel antisense long non‑coding RNA, lnc‑CidecAS, that modulates hepatic lipid metabolism. Overexpression of lnc‑CidecAS in cultured hepatocytes and mouse models lowers extracellular and serum triglycerides, reduces body‑fat accumulation, and ameliorates diet‑induced hepatic steatosis. Mechanistically, lnc‑CidecAS directly...
Association of the Sarcopenia Index with Incident Depressive Symptoms and Adverse Depressive Symptom Trajectories
A longitudinal analysis of 6,286 older adults in the Health and Retirement Study found that a higher baseline sarcopenia index (SI) is linked to a reduced risk of developing depressive symptoms over six years. Each standard‑deviation increase in SI lowered...
Hello Universe: NASA’s Next-Gen Space Processor Undergoes Testing
NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory has begun rigorous testing of its Next‑Gen Space Processor (NGSP), a radiation‑hardened computer designed for deep‑space missions. The prototype demonstrated a 30% reduction in power consumption and twice the processing speed of the agency’s legacy hardware....
Gravity Holds Up Over 7 Billion Light‑Years, Confirming Newton and Einstein
Patricio A. Gallardo and an international team used the Atacama Cosmology Telescope to analyze 686,000 galaxies across 7 billion light‑years, finding that gravity follows the inverse‑square law exactly as Newton and Einstein predicted. The result bolsters the standard cosmological model and...
Study Links Ultra‑Processed Foods to 65% Higher Risk of Cardiovascular Death
A consensus report published by the European Society of Cardiology links the highest consumption of ultra‑processed foods to a 65% higher risk of cardiovascular death, a 19% higher risk of heart disease, and a 13% higher risk of atrial fibrillation....
Teen Inventor Wins $175,000 for AI Tool Diagnosing Autism and ADHD via Retina
Seventeen‑year‑old Edward Kang captured second place and a $175,000 prize at the 2026 Regeneron Science Talent Search for RetinaMind, an AI system that reads retinal images to diagnose autism spectrum disorder and ADHD with 89% accuracy. The breakthrough highlights how...
Lancet Study Shows ENO Breathe Singing Program Cuts Long‑COVID Breathlessness by 61%
A Lancet Respiratory Medicine trial of the ENO Breathe program, created by Imperial College London and English National Opera, reported clinically important breathlessness improvements in 61% of more than 1,400 long‑COVID patients. The digital breathing‑and‑singing intervention is now being rolled...
Sydney Study Finds Low‑Fat or Plant‑Protein Diet Cuts Biological Age in Seniors
Researchers at the University of Sydney reported that older Australians who cut dietary fat or animal‑based protein lowered their biological age scores in just four weeks. The four‑arm, 104‑person trial found significant reductions in three diet groups, especially the omnivorous...
Study Predicts New Orleans Will Vanish by Century's End
While Hantavirus dominates the news, everyone missed that a new study found that New Orleans will cease to exist before the century concludes and the ocean there may move inland upwards of 62 miles. The study urges people to start relocating....
Midlife Vitamin D Linked to Reduced Tau Build‑up
Higher vitamin D levels in middle age are associated with less accumulation of tau, one of the pathological hallmarks of Alzheimer's disease. The strongest protection showed up among those with vitamin D levels at the higher end of the cohort (around...
Two Overnight Launches From SpaceX and China
SpaceX lifted off from Vandenberg with a classified batch of National Reconnaissance Office satellites on a Falcon 9, marking the booster’s ninth flight and a successful drone‑ship landing. China followed with a Long March 6A launch from Taiyuan, adding up to 18 Qianfan...
Renewables Alone Can End Energy Crises, No Miracles
The world is suffering from high and rising fuel prices, wars over fossil-fuels and nuclear weapons proliferation, millions of air pollution deaths per year, and global warming. These problems are all related to our current energy infrastructure, which relies primarily...
Bayer and Bp Team up to Scale Camelina Crop for Sustainable Aviation Fuel
Bayer and bp have signed a long‑term agreement to scale the camelina oilseed crop under Bayer’s newgold™ brand, creating a dedicated feedstock pipeline for biodiesel, renewable diesel and sustainable aviation fuel. The partnership aims to meet a projected near‑tripling of...
Harvard Engineers Create Shape‑Shifting 3D‑Printed Filaments for Soft Robotics
Researchers at Harvard's John A. Paulson School of Engineering have introduced a rotational multimaterial 3D‑printing process that produces soft filaments capable of bending, twisting and contracting when heated. The breakthrough blends an active liquid‑crystal elastomer with a passive elastomer, enabling...
China Launches Tianzhou-10 Cargo Craft to Resupply Tiangong Space Station
China sent the Tianzhou-10 cargo spacecraft aloft from Wenchang on May 11, 2026, using a Long March-7 rocket. The vehicle docked with the Tianhe core module of the Tiangong space station, delivering an extravehicular suit, consumables, propellant and scientific payloads....
Save This Species: Bull Kelp
Bull kelp (Nereocystis luetkeana) is a fast‑growing annual marine algae found along the Pacific Northwest coast. Though not yet IUCN‑listed, state agencies, NOAA and NGOs deem it highly vulnerable after recent ocean‑warming events and sea‑urchin overgrazing turned kelp forests into...
Can Cloud Seeding Save Us From Water Bankruptcy?
Cloud‑seeding firms are scaling up operations as drought pushes the U.S. West toward a so‑called water bankruptcy. In Utah, drone‑based company Rainmaker sprayed silver‑iodide to trigger rain and curb dust from the shrinking Great Salt Lake. Over 50 nations are...
ExoMars 2028 Structural Models Arrive in Cannes for Environmental Testing
On May 12, 2026 Thales Alenia Space completed integration of ExoMars 2028 structural models in Turin and shipped them to Cannes for vibration and acoustic testing. The models replicate the carrier and entry‑descent‑landing modules that will deliver the Rosalind Franklin...
Vitamin B12: The Essential Nutrient with a Complicated Cancer Link
Vitamin B12 is essential for red‑blood‑cell formation, nerve health and DNA repair, but recent research shows a nuanced relationship with cancer. A 2025 Vietnamese case‑control study identified a U‑shaped curve, where both low and high B12 intakes were linked to...
Are You Exercising at the Wrong Time? How Your Body Clock Can Affect Your Workouts
Recent research shows that timing exercise to match an individual’s chronotype—whether a morning or evening person—can amplify health benefits. A randomized controlled trial with cardiovascular‑risk participants found that chronotype‑aligned workouts produced greater improvements in blood pressure, aerobic fitness, glucose, cholesterol...
VO2 Max Peaks in 20s, Declines 5‑10% Each Decade
VO2 max timeline during aging (average levels in the general population): 13–19 - Near peak - VO2 max: ~38–48 (♂), ~30–40 (♀) mL/kg/min - Breaths/min: ~14–20 - Aerobic engine building 20–29 - Peak performance - VO2 max: ~42–52 (♂), ~33–43 (♀) mL/kg/min - Breaths/min: ~12–18 - Best lungs...
Metformin May Lower Glucose via Gut, Not Liver
New paper on a proposed mechanism for how metformin lowers glucose, in Nature Metabolism. For such a widely used drug, the picture has been surprisingly murky. We've thought metformin works in the liver by enhancing glucose metabolism/utilization. But biodistribution and new...
Effects of Standardized Near Activities on Retinal and Choroidal Structure, Microcirculation, and Visual Outcomes in Children with Anisometropic Amblyopia: Study...
A prospective, single‑center randomized trial will enroll 80 children with hyperopic anisometropic amblyopia to evaluate whether a standardized 15‑minute near‑activity task, added to conventional patching, produces measurable changes in retinal and choroidal structure and microcirculation. Optical coherence tomography and OCT‑angiography...
Multi-Scale Thermal Homeostasis: Plants Achieve Temperature Control Through Hierarchical Regulation
Researchers combined custom nanothermometric probes with time‑gated imaging to map internal temperatures of living plants. In Nicotiana benthamiana leaves, a 21 °C external swing (24 °C → 45 °C) produced only a 10 °C rise near the cell wall, less than 7 °C in the cytoplasm, and...
Impact of Maternal Thyroid Dysfunction on Neonatal Thyroid Profile and Blood Glucose Levels: A Comparative Study
A prospective study of 100 newborns compared infants of mothers with hypothyroidism to those of euthyroid mothers. Neonates of hypothyroid mothers exhibited significantly higher TSH (8.42 mIU/L vs 5.61 mIU/L) and lower FT4 (1.21 ng/dL vs 1.48 ng/dL). Their blood glucose at two hours...
Scientists Use AI to Interpret the Sun's Acoustic Heartbeat
Scientists led by Dr. Rekha Jain have applied a machine‑learning model to three decades of solar p‑mode data, enabling the AI to decode the Sun’s acoustic heartbeat. The approach predicts when the pitch of these pressure waves will enter a...
Engineered Exosomes Reverse Sleep Deprivation Brain Damage in Mice
Researchers at Quanzhou First Hospital engineered exosomes to carry HSP70 mRNA across the blood‑brain barrier, targeting mouse brains after chronic sleep deprivation. The RVG‑Lamp2b‑modified vesicles delivered the protective protein, restoring memory performance and lowering inflammatory cytokines such as TNF‑α, IL‑6...
GLP-1 Drugs’ Muscle Effects Similar to Ordinary Weight Loss
A recent study published in Cell Reports Medicine examined whether GLP-1 receptor agonists such as semaglutide and tirzepatide cause disproportionate muscle loss compared with ordinary calorie‑restricted weight loss. In both obese mice and a small human cohort, the drugs led...
Scaling Quantum Computers Requires Modular Cryogenic Architecture
Really liking Matthias Troyer's (Microsoft) posts on new engineering challenges in quantum computing architectures. The qubit isn't the only problem (we all know that). Why are we going to modular systems? Lecture 5 walks through why utility-scale quantum hits a...
16‑Hour Fast Enhances Cancer Immunotherapy via Metabolic Shift
A 16-hour fasting regimen may boost cancer immunotherapy. Transient nutrient stress reshapes tumor metabolism, increasing isoleucine in the TME and enhancing CD8+ T cell function. In mice & patients, short-term fasting improved immune response—offering a feasible way to strengthen treatment. #Fasting,...
Galaxy Cluster Relaxed Now, but Was Wild in the Past
Astronomers using NASA's Chandra X‑ray Observatory have found that the massive galaxy cluster Abell 2029 now appears thermally relaxed, but its outer regions retain signatures of violent mergers from billions of years ago. High‑resolution imaging reveals shock fronts and temperature irregularities...
First Wild Observation Shows AI Self‑Replication
‘No one has done this in the wild’: study observes #AI replicate itself by @AishaKDown @guardian Learn more: https://t.co/1wrpdP5e2X #CyberSecurity #ArtificialIntelligence #Infosec #RogueAI https://t.co/9B6058Pqcu
SpaceX Schedules Starship V3 Launch for May 19
"A fresh set of maritime warnings issued late Monday indicated SpaceX is now targeting a [Starship V3] launch attempt on Tuesday, May 19." https://t.co/6iDAiJDgpn
Katalyst Wraps Testing at NASA Goddard for Swift Boost Mission
Katalyst announced it has finished a series of environmental and performance tests at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center for its Swift Boost electric propulsion system. The testing campaign included thermal‑vacuum, vibration, and thrust‑stand evaluations, all of which met or exceeded...
Medium Scenario only 2°C Cooler than SSP5‑8.5
Roger does a bit of a clever trick comparing the upper bound of SSP5-8.5 to the central estimate of the CMIP7placeholder medium scenario. In reality the central estimate of the medium scenario is 2C lower than SSP5-8.5, not 3C.
Research Suggests that People Who Feel Time Slipping Away Faster Every Year Aren’t Losing Their Minds, They’ve Just Stopped Creating...
Recent neuroscience research shows that the feeling of time speeding up with age stems from a decline in “temporal landmarks”—distinct events that the brain uses to segment experience. Studies by Dai, Milkman, Riis and Jeffrey Zacks demonstrate that these landmarks...
Internet of Things and Artificial Intelligence for Carbon Emissions Monitoring and ForecastingA Systematic Review of Smart Environmental Accounting Systems
A systematic review of 100 peer‑reviewed studies finds that Internet of Things (IoT) sensor networks enable real‑time carbon emissions monitoring, while artificial intelligence (AI) models can reliably forecast emission trends. The analysis highlights strong performance in data collection and prediction...
Soil-Transmitted Helminth Contamination Around Sanitation Facilities in Ile-Ife, Nigeria: The Role of Latrine Type, Soil Characteristic, and Community Knowledge
A cross‑sectional study of 200 households in Ile‑Ife, Nigeria, found 78.5% of soil samples within 100 m of latrines contaminated with soil‑transmitted helminth eggs, chiefly Ascaris lumbricoides and hookworm. Pit latrines showed the highest mean egg count, while pour‑flush latrines had...
New Study Shows How a Single Star Can Reshape an Entire Galaxy
A Leiden University team has shown that a single, extremely massive star can dramatically alter the structure of its host galaxy. By combining high‑resolution simulations with observations of a nearby dwarf galaxy, the researchers demonstrated that the star’s powerful winds...
China Reveals AI-Powered Lunar Robot for 2029 Moon Mission
China’s Hong Kong University of Science and Technology team unveiled an AI‑powered lunar robot slated for the Chang’e‑8 mission in 2029. The 100‑kilogram, four‑wheeled rover combines a humanoid upper body with dual arms to transport payloads, install instruments and collect...
New Quantum Protocol Breaks Distance and Speed Barriers in Fiber Networks
Scientists at the University of Science and Technology of China have unveiled Xinghan‑2, a multi‑mode quantum relay network that establishes matter‑matter entanglement over 14.5 kilometers. The system combines a time‑measurement protocol with multi‑mode quantum memory, delivering entanglement fidelity of 78.6 % and...
Non-Rotating Early Galaxy Is a Surprise to Astronomers
Astronomers using the James Webb Space Telescope have identified a galaxy formed just 800 million years after the Big Bang that shows virtually no rotation. The object, observed at a redshift of roughly 7, possesses a massive stellar component yet lacks...
New Method Sharpens the Search for Alien Biology
Researchers at the University of California, Riverside have unveiled an AI‑enhanced spectral analysis technique that dramatically improves the detection of potential biosignatures in exoplanet atmospheres. By integrating high‑resolution spectroscopy with machine‑learning classifiers, the method can spot complex organic molecules at...
Astronomers Produce Most Detailed Map of the Cosmic Web
Astronomers have released the most detailed three‑dimensional map of the cosmic web, charting the vast network of filaments, clusters, and voids that thread the universe. The map, constructed from spectroscopic data of over 1.5 million galaxies collected by the Dark Energy...
Brightseed Expands Bioactive Dataset to 21M Compounds
Brightseed announced that its bioactive compound dataset has surged to roughly 21 million entries, almost twice the size of its 2023 collection. The expansion is driven by new microbial and fungal coverage and advances in profiling and AI analysis. The larger...