Science

Geology, paleontology, physics, space and the natural world

In Science, ECOnews reports on new discoveries in geology, paleontology, physics, space, health and the natural world. We explain the latest studies from universities and labs worldwide in plain language.

Bright red dots glowing against the dark backdrop of deep space, captured by the James Webb Space Telescope.

The James Webb Space Telescope detected strange red spots in the early universe, and now a study suggests that they were not galaxies, but young black holes growing at a breakneck pace

By ECONEWS

—

April 10, 2026 at 3:00 PM

A close-up view of a person using a smartphone to scan a fossilized, three-toed dinosaur footprint embedded in rock using the DinoTracker AI app.

How they managed to transport a 13,000-pound stone from Scotland to Stonehenge 5,000 years ago

By Adrian Villellas

—

April 10, 2026 at 10:15 AM

James Webb Space Telescope image of PMR 1 “Exposed Skull” nebula showing glowing gas and dust from a dying star

James Webb images show the “Exposed Cranium” nebula PMR 1, a dying star 5,000 light-years away

By Adrian Villellas

—

April 9, 2026 at 6:30 PM

Satellite view of severe flooding in Córdoba Colombia after extreme February rains covering farmland and communities

How one of Colombia’s most important livestock-raising regions came to resemble a giant lake in just a few days following the rains of February 2026, which were so unusual that they could be seen from space

By ECONEWS

—

April 9, 2026 at 5:00 PM

Two researchers at the University of California, Santa Cruz look at a computer monitor displaying a colorful heatmap of neural activity from a brain organoid.

A “mini-brain” created in the lab faces the challenge of solving one of engineering’s most complex problems, and what happens in just 45 minutes raises a profound question about artificial intelligence

By ECONEWS

—

April 9, 2026 at 8:45 AM

Illustration of future Earth from space with a single giant supercontinent surrounded by vast oceans

Earth already did it 200 million years ago… and it’s going to do it again: the supercontinent that could wipe humans off the map

By Adrian Villellas

—

April 8, 2026 at 12:30 PM

An offshore drilling vessel operating in the Atlantic Ocean to extract core samples from the continental shelf.

An “underground sea” of fresh water has been discovered beneath the Atlantic Ocean, so large that it could supply New York City for 800 years

By ECONEWS

—

April 8, 2026 at 10:15 AM

Earth image with a scientific diagram showing deep mantle blobs linked to the planet's magnetic field stability

A study of the deep structures of the Earth’s mantle raises new questions about the future stability of the planet’s magnetic field

By Adrian Villellas

—

April 7, 2026 at 5:00 PM

Humanoid robot used for border control tasks in China near Vietnam crossing point

China tests humanoid robots for border control tasks with Vietnam

By Adrian Villellas

—

April 7, 2026 at 3:00 PM

Illustration of human and Neanderthal DNA comparison highlighting missing segments on the X chromosome

We carry Neanderthal DNA… except where it matters most

By ECONEWS

—

April 7, 2026 at 12:30 PM

Seismic imaging of tectonic plate breaking apart beneath Pacific Ocean near Cascadia subduction zone

For the first time, they “saw” a tectonic plate breaking apart under the Pacific, and what they found was not a crack, but an entire system

By ECONEWS

—

April 7, 2026 at 10:15 AM

A close-up photograph of a giant Theraphosa blondii tarantula on the rainforest floor with orange Cordyceps fungal stalks erupting from its joints.

An expedition discovers an infected giant tarantula, and the find is so rare that it has left scientists with a thousand questions

By Adrian Villellas

—

April 7, 2026 at 8:45 AM

An archaeological excavation of a medieval Golden Horde mausoleum in Kazakhstan where elite Mongol DNA was recently discovered.

Human DNA reopens the last great mystery of Genghis Khan, and what scientists have discovered could change everything we thought we knew about his descendants

By ECONEWS

—

April 7, 2026 at 6:30 AM

A long-exposure photograph of the Milky Way stretching over the domes of the Very Large Telescope at Paranal Observatory in the Atacama Desert.

The project that threatened one of Earth’s clearest skies has been canceled, and astronomers are celebrating because Paranal will no longer face its most feared invisible enemy

By Adrian Villellas

—

April 6, 2026 at 6:30 PM

A side-by-side comparison of a fossilized three-toed dinosaur footprint and a digital 3D mesh analysis generated by the DinoTracker AI.

An artificial intelligence application identifies dinosaur footprints with 90% accuracy… and may have found the footprints of the planet’s first birds, dating back 200 million years

By ECONEWS

—

April 6, 2026 at 5:00 PM

An artist's concept of the LHS 1903 planetary system showing a red dwarf star orbited by four planets in an unusual, non-sequential order of rocky and gaseous worlds.

Astronomers discover a solar system 120 light-years away with two “Earths” and an arrangement so strange that it doesn’t fit any known formation model

By Adrian Villellas

—

April 6, 2026 at 3:00 PM

A 3D scientific simulation showing Earth's magnetic field being stretched by solar wind into a long tail that envelops the Moon.

The Moon could harbor a gigantic chemical archive of the early Earth

By ECONEWS

—

April 6, 2026 at 12:30 PM

An artist's illustration of a towering Martian dust devil with faint, blue electrical spark discharges flickering within the swirling orange sand.

Perseverance detects tiny electrical sparks in Martian dust devils, the first evidence of lightning on Mars

By ECONEWS

—

April 6, 2026 at 10:15 AM

A cross-section diagram of Earth showing a hot mantle plume transporting metallic elements from the liquid outer core to the surface crust.

Geologists discover that the Earth’s core is leaking: it will release 1,000 tons of ancient gold

By Adrian Villellas

—

April 6, 2026 at 6:30 AM

A colorful scientific chart showing the overlapping thermal performance curves of various species, including insects, fish, and plants, all following a similar bell-shaped path.

Scientists claim to have discovered a universal rule that “links” evolution and works in the same way in bacteria, plants, reptiles, fish, and insects

By ECONEWS

—

April 5, 2026 at 6:30 PM

Previous Next

Science

The James Webb Space Telescope detected strange red spots in the early universe, and now a study suggests that they were not galaxies, but young black holes growing at a breakneck pace

How they managed to transport a 13,000-pound stone from Scotland to Stonehenge 5,000 years ago

James Webb images show the “Exposed Cranium” nebula PMR 1, a dying star 5,000 light-years away

How one of Colombia’s most important livestock-raising regions came to resemble a giant lake in just a few days following the rains of February 2026, which were so unusual that they could be seen from space

A “mini-brain” created in the lab faces the challenge of solving one of engineering’s most complex problems, and what happens in just 45 minutes raises a profound question about artificial intelligence

Earth already did it 200 million years ago… and it’s going to do it again: the supercontinent that could wipe humans off the map

An “underground sea” of fresh water has been discovered beneath the Atlantic Ocean, so large that it could supply New York City for 800 years

A study of the deep structures of the Earth’s mantle raises new questions about the future stability of the planet’s magnetic field

China tests humanoid robots for border control tasks with Vietnam

We carry Neanderthal DNA… except where it matters most

For the first time, they “saw” a tectonic plate breaking apart under the Pacific, and what they found was not a crack, but an entire system

An expedition discovers an infected giant tarantula, and the find is so rare that it has left scientists with a thousand questions

Human DNA reopens the last great mystery of Genghis Khan, and what scientists have discovered could change everything we thought we knew about his descendants

The project that threatened one of Earth’s clearest skies has been canceled, and astronomers are celebrating because Paranal will no longer face its most feared invisible enemy

An artificial intelligence application identifies dinosaur footprints with 90% accuracy… and may have found the footprints of the planet’s first birds, dating back 200 million years

Astronomers discover a solar system 120 light-years away with two “Earths” and an arrangement so strange that it doesn’t fit any known formation model

The Moon could harbor a gigantic chemical archive of the early Earth

Perseverance detects tiny electrical sparks in Martian dust devils, the first evidence of lightning on Mars

Geologists discover that the Earth’s core is leaking: it will release 1,000 tons of ancient gold

Scientists claim to have discovered a universal rule that “links” evolution and works in the same way in bacteria, plants, reptiles, fish, and insects

In Romania’s Brașov County, brown bears number about 1,329 by a national genetic estimate, the highest density of any county, and one bear relocated from Poiana Brașov was back within 3 days

More than 40 Magellanic penguins born in captivity arrived by court order from Mar del Plata at a river island in Argentina’s Río Negro province, and at first they had not explored even a third of their new home

In Japan, researchers led by Tohoku University used an inexpensive blue pigment to turn carbon dioxide into methane with 79.5% Faradaic efficiency, and methane selectivity stayed above 60% for about 80 hours

At 8.2 feet on Oct. 13, the Lake Constance water level in Konstanz, Germany, fell below a 1947 record for the date, and it now sits 10 inches under last winter’s low

A simulated AMOC collapse in an unreviewed preprint cut wheat, corn and rice harvests in Germany and Ukraine by roughly 16 to 19 percent, and cereal prices could climb up to 40 percent in the worst case

A landslide in Alaska’s Tracy Arm fjord sent a tsunami 1,578 feet up the opposite wall, and a Science study found small tremors striking every 30 to 60 seconds in the hours before the collapse

A company won a mining license for a magnesium deposit it estimates at more than 50 million metric tons near Rășinari, in Romania’s Sibiu County, and the EU gets 97 percent of its magnesium from China

Leap seconds will end on May 20, 2027, under a rule the General Conference on Weights and Measures adopted in Versailles, France, and a new study finds Earth’s solid surface turning slightly rounder as polar ground rises

Science

Latest Post

Get the most relevant environment stories as soon as we publish them

Sections

Our editions

Contact