Space & Physics
Why the Supergiant Star Betelgeuse Went Mysteriously Dim Last Year
High-resolution images suggest the star spewed out so much dust that its brightness dropped by two thirds in 2020
Stories by Davide Castelvecchi
Space & Physics
Mysterious Fast Radio Bursts Come in Two Distinct Flavors
A trove of new detections suggests that the bursts could be the result of at least two separate astrophysical phenomena
Space & Physics
First Nuclear Detonation Created ‘Impossible’ Quasicrystals
Their structures were once controversial. Now researchers have discovered quasicrystals in the aftermath of a 1945 bomb test
Space & Physics
Muon Results Throw Physicists’ Best Theories into Confusion
Experimental anomalies have sent researchers scrambling to concoct new explanations
Space & Physics
Long-Awaited Muon Physics Experiment Nears Moment of Truth
A result that has been 20 years in the making could reveal the existence of new particles and upend fundamental physics
Space & Physics
Quantum Network Is Step Toward Ultrasecure Internet
The experiment connects three devices with entangled photons, demonstrating a key technique that could enable a future quantum Internet
Technology
This Is the Fastest Random-Number Generator Ever Built
A laser generates quantum randomness at a rate of 250 trillion bits per second and could lead to devices small enough to fit on a single chip
Space & Physics
Hints of Twisted Light Offer Clues to Dark Energy’s Nature
Cosmologists suggest that an exotic substance called quintessence could be accelerating the Universe’s expansion—but the evidence is still tentative
Astrophysics
What 50 Gravitational-Wave Events Reveal about the Universe
Astrophysicists now have enough black-hole mergers to map their frequency over the cosmos’s history
Evolution
This Beetle's Stab-Proof Exoskeleton Makes It Almost Indestructible
Jigsaw-puzzle-shaped seams that hold a notoriously tough insect’s wing cases together could inspire engineers
Space & Physics
First Room-Temperature Superconductor Excites and Baffles Scientists
A compound of hydrogen, carbon and sulfur has broken a symbolic barrier—but its high-pressure conditions make it difficult to analyze
Black Holes
The First Ever Image of a Black Hole Is Now a Movie
Pictures created from old observations show the void’s stormy evolution over the past decade
Space & Physics
Mystery over Universe’s Expansion Deepens with Fresh Data
A long-awaited map of the big bang’s afterglow fails to settle a debate over how fast the universe is expanding
Space & Physics
Welcome Anyons! Physicists Find Best Evidence Yet for Long-Sought 2D Structures
The ‘quasiparticles’ defy the categories of ordinary particles and herald a potential way to build quantum computers
Space & Physics
Neutrinos Reveal Final Secret of Sun’s Nuclear Fusion
The detection of particles produced in the sun’s core supports long-held theory about how our star is powered
Space & Physics
CERN Makes Bold Push to Build $23-Billion Super Collider
European particle-physics lab will pursue a 100-kilometer machine to uncover the Higgs boson’s secrets — but it doesn’t yet have the funds
Space & Physics
Pluto Probe Offers Eye-Popping View of Neighboring Star Proxima Centauri
NASA’s New Horizons mission measures the distances of two stars from the outer reaches of the Solar System
Black Holes
This Black-Hole Collision Just Made Gravitational Waves Even More Interesting
An unprecedented signal from unevenly sized objects gives astronomers rare insight into how black holes spin
The Sciences
Mathematical Proof That Rocked Number Theory Will Be Published
But some experts say author Shinichi Mochizuki failed to fix a fatal flaw in the solution of a major arithmetic problem
Space & Physics
Coronavirus Fears Cancel World’s Biggest Physics Meeting
Physicists who were set to attend the American Physical Society’s Denver conference are using virtual platforms to share their talks
