Jul 12 Hair Washing in Zero Gravity: A Magnificient Mohawk and the Water Goes Rogue International Space Station crew member, U.S. astronaut Karen Nyberg demonstrates how she washes her hair in space onboard the International Space Station. If you thought brushing your teeth in zero gravity looked hard, try washing your hair. Continue reading
Jul 09 The day ‘dog vomit’ slime mold invaded my front yard By Jenny Marder Slime mold thrives in the presence of water, shade and dead, decaying leaves. Photo by Emily Johnson. About a week ago, we noticed an intruder in our front yard -- a vivid yellow, blob-like substance that appeared to be… Continue reading
Jul 05 Nobel Laureates Doodle Their Discoveries You can view Nobel Award-winning scientists sketching their research in the video above. What do you get when you ask 56 Nobel Laureate scientists to cartoon their greatest discoveries? Photographer Volker Steger fearlessly tackled the challenge during… Continue reading
Jul 02 Russian Rocket Crashes and Explodes, Spilling Fuel EmbedVideo(6689, 482, 304); A Russian Proton-M rocket crashes seconds after launch on Tuesday. Video by Rossiya 24. A Russian rocket carrying three navigation satellites careened off its flight path, burst into flames and crashed just seconds after liftoff… Continue reading
Jun 28 NIH to Retire Most Research Chimps Chimpanzees snack on fruit and vegetables at Louisiana's Chimp Haven retirement facility. Image by Cameron Hickey. In another move toward ending invasive research on our chimpanzee cousins, the National Institute of Health announced on Wednesday that it… Continue reading
Jun 25 Obama on Climate Change: Don’t Fear the Future, Seize It EmbedVideo(6783, 482, 304); Watch President Barack Obama's announcement of his new climate plan. Update: 2:30 p.m. ET | With sweat glistening on his forehead in the balmy Washington, D.C., heat, President Obama outlined a sweeping new climate plan… Continue reading
Jun 21 Sunday’s Supermoon: Overhyped? The nearside of the moon. Photo by the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter Camera. A message to the skywatchers: tilt your head back after nightfall on Sunday, and you'll see the closest full moon of the year -- a phenomenon… Continue reading
Jun 18 How to Woo a Cicada A periodical cicada basks in the sun at a cemetery in Lorton, Virginia. Photo by Jenny Marder. On a hot spring day in late May, I went hunting for periodical cicadas with John Cooley, a veteran expert… Continue reading
May 24 Wheels Stopped for Kepler, but Still More to Study This artist's concept depicts Kepler-62e, a super-Earth-size planet in the habitable zone of a star smaller and cooler than the sun, located about 1,200 light-years from Earth in the constellation Lyra. It was discovered by the Kepler spacecraft. Image… Continue reading
May 17 Cicada Sighting! Bug-Eyed Critters Emerging in Northern Virginia By Ray Suarez A cicada perches on a leaf of grass at Virginia's Bull Run Regional Park. The full brood of cicadas is expected to emerge en masse in late May or June. Photos by Jenny Marder. After an afternoon hunting for cicadas… Continue reading