VLT GRAVITY: First Direct Observation of Exoplanet β Pictoris C
Astronomers using the GRAVITY instrument at the VLT telescopes in Chile have now obtained the first direct confirmation of an exoplanet discovered by radial-velocity. As…
Max Planck Institute
Galactic “Mystery Source” of Gamma Rays Identified: Record-Setting “Black Widow” Pulsar
Super Heavyweight and Flyweight in a Cosmic Dance Volunteer distributed computing project [email protected] discovers neutron star in unusual binary system. After more than two decades,…
New Biochemical Research Shows Past Tropical Forest Changes Drove Megafauna and Hominin Extinctions
New biochemical research shows significant turnovers in Southeast Asian environments and animals during the Pleistocene. In a paper published today in the journal Nature, scientists from…
Neanderthal and Denisovan Y Chromosomes Sequenced – Surprise When Compared to Modern Human DNA
Neanderthals have adopted male sex chromosome from modern humans. In 1997, the very first Neanderthal DNA sequence — just a small part of the mitochondrial…
Like Humans, Chimpanzees Can Suffer for Life if They Lose Their Mother Before Adulthood
Male chimpanzees who lose their mother early in life are less competitive and have fewer offspring than sons who continue to live with their mothers….
The Web of Death: New Method to Fight Cancer With Molecular Fibers
According to the Federal Statistical Office of Germany, cancer is one of the most frequent causes of death, accounting for almost 25% of all deaths…
Structures for Large and Small Dark Matter Halos Revealed
Most of the matter in the Universe is dark and thus not directly observable. In results just published in the journal Nature, an international research…
Metabolic Rewiring: Nerve Cells With Energy Saving Program
Thanks to a metabolic adjustment, the cells can remain functional despite damage to the mitochondria. Mitochondria are the power plants of our cells and play…
Vast Stone Monuments Discovered in Saudi Arabia Were Constructed in 7,000 Years Ago
New archaeological research in Saudi Arabia documents hundreds of stone structures interpreted as monumental sites where early pastoralists carried out rituals. The last decade has…
Sexual Parasitism: Deep-Sea Anglerfish Evolved a New Type of Immune System to Physically Fuse With Their Mates
Deep-sea anglerfishes have evolved a curious reproductive strategy. Tiny males attach themselves to gigantic females so tightly that the tissues of the two animals eventually…
Raw Genetic Basis of Bats’ Unique Adaptations and Remarkable Superpowers Revealed
First six reference-quality bat genomes released and analyzed. For the first time, the raw genetic material that codes for bats’ unique adaptations and superpowers such…
The World’s Lightest Mirror: Physicists Engineer Optical Mirror Made of Only a Few Hundred Atoms
Physicists succeed at engineering an optical mirror made of only a few hundred atoms. It is the lightest one in the world and even imaginable….
Neanderthals Had a Lower Threshold for Pain – And You May Have Inherited It
People who inherited a special ion channel from Neanderthals experience more pain. As several Neanderthal genomes of high quality are now available researchers can identify…
Cosmic Cataclysm Allows Precise Test of Einstein’s Theory of General Relativity
In 2019, the MAGIC telescopes detected the first Gamma Ray Burst at very high energies. This was the most intense gamma-radiation ever obtained from such…
Motions in the Sun, 125,000 Miles Deep, Reveal Inner Workings of Sunspot Cycle
The meridional flow in the Sun’s convection zone forms one gigantic cell in each hemisphere. At a depth of 200 thousand kilometers (the bottom of…
Human Impact on Wildlife Revealed by COVID-19 Lockdown
An international team of scientists is investigating how animals are responding to reduced levels of human activity during the Covid-19 pandemic. In an article published…
Astronomers Stunned by Black Hole With a Puzzling Companion: “An Unexpected and Really Exciting Discovery!”
LIGO and Virgo Find Another Surprising Binary System The harvest of exceptional gravitational-wave events from LIGO’s and Virgo’s third observing run (O3) grows. A new…
Physics Problem Deepens: Astrophysicists Puzzled for Decades Rule Out All Proposed Explanations
Two prominent X-ray emission lines of highly charged iron have puzzled astrophysicists for decades: their measured and calculated brightness ratios always disagree. This hinders good…