Hundreds of millions of miles away, on the frigid surface of Mars, NASA’s Perseverance rover is hard at work, diligently gathering fresh samples of Martian rock, sealing them in pristine tubes, and leaving them on the surface ready for collection. If they can be brought back to Earth, these would be an invaluable scientific resource: … Read more
Early Tuesday morning, the sun fired another powerful stream of energetic particles toward Earth, causing blackouts across the United States. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) indicated disruption across North America at 12:51 a.m. ET. The solar flare, classified as X8.8, was the strongest of this cycle, which began in 2017; NOAA says it … Read more
Scientists have squeezed two layers of supercold magnetic atoms 50 nanometers apart, 10 times closer than in previous experiments, revealing strange quantum effects never seen before. The extreme proximity of these atoms will allow researchers to study quantum interactions at this length scale for the first time and could lead to important advances in the … Read more
The magnetic fields of the Milky Way’s halo have a circular structure that extends from 6,000 light-years in radius to 50,000 light-years from the galactic center. The Sun is about 30,000 light years away. Credit: NAOC Astrophysicists have discovered large magnetic toroids Milky Way, which affect the propagation of cosmic rays and the physics of … Read more