Space & Physics
‘Like Froth on a Cappuccino’: Spacecraft’s Chaotic Landing Reveals Comet’s Softness
Detective work reconstructs the final movements of the European Space Agency’s Philae probe
Stories by Elizabeth Gibney
Space & Physics
Last Chance for WIMPs: Physicists Launch All-Out Hunt for Dark Matter Candidate
Researchers have spent decades searching for the elusive particles. A final generation of detectors should leave them no place to hide
Space & Physics
Arab World’s First Mars Probe Takes to the Skies
Celebration is tinged with relief as $200-million orbiter embarks on 7-month odyssey to the Red Planet
Space & Physics
This Photo of the Sun Is the Closest Ever Taken
Close-up reveals a surface dancing with ‘campfires’
Space & Physics
How a Small Arab Nation Built a Mars Mission from Scratch in Six Years
The United Arab Emirates’ Hope orbiter is the Arab world’s first interplanetary spacecraft — and has jump-started science in the country. Will the momentum last?
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
Universe’s Coolest Lab Creates Bizarre Quantum Matter in Space
Physicists have made a Bose–Einstein condensate on the International Space Station—allowing them to probe the mysteries of quantum physics in detail
EARTH
Coronavirus Lockdowns Have Changed the Way Earth Moves
A reduction in seismic noise because of changes in human activity is a boon for geoscientists
Space & Physics
Destination Neptune! Rare Chance to Reach Ice Giants Excites Scientists
A planetary alignment provides a window to visit Uranus and Neptune—but time is tight
Space & Physics
European Space Windfall Will Fast-Track Science Missions
Europe’s space agency is set to receive 45% more money than in the previous three-year budget
Quantum Computing
The Quantum Gold Rush
The science is immature, and a multipurpose quantum computer doesn’t yet exist. But that isn’t stopping investors from pouring cash into quantum start-ups
Quantum Computing
Google Publishes Landmark Quantum Supremacy Claim
The company says that its quantum computer is the first to perform a calculation that would be practically impossible for a classical machine
Space & Physics
Astronomers Are Closer to Cracking the Mystery of Fast Radio Bursts
Canadian telescope finds eight more repeating blasts—energetic events from deep in the cosmos
Policy
Discrimination Drives LGBT+ Scientists to Think About Quitting
Despite progress, many physical scientists from sexual and gender minorities experience exclusion or harassment at work, finds UK survey
Space & Physics
China Reveals Scientific Experiments for Next Space Station
Projects will probe topics including DNA mutation, fire behavior and the birth of stars
Space & Physics
China Plans Mission to Earth’s Pet Asteroid
Spacecraft will return samples to Earth and be open to researchers around the world
Space & Physics
First Private Moon Lander Heralds New Lunar Space Race
An Israeli firm is sending a privately built craft to the moon—and leading a fresh era of exploration
Space & Physics
Inside the Plans for Chinese Mega-Collider That Will Dwarf the LHC
Physicist Wang Yifang, the mastermind behind the project, gives Nature an update on the ambitious project
Policy
What the Nobels Are—and Aren’t—Doing to Encourage Diversity
The prize-awarding academies are making changes to their secretive nomination processes to tackle bias, but some say the measures don’t go far enough
Space & Physics
Japanese Mission Becomes First to Land Rovers on Asteroid
Twin probes from Hayabusa2 mission have sent back their first pictures from Ryugu’s surface
