Ancient viruses embedded in our DNA help switch genes on and off, study finds
A new study has revealed that “junk DNA” descended from ancient viruses could play a key role in controlling genes.
Category: Science
Researchers find some bird parents get ‘divorced’ after breeding
A new study from Oxford University finds that a common European songbird sometimes divorces its partner between breeding seasons.
SpaceX launches international crew to space station on 6-month NASA mission
NASA and SpaceX’s Crew-11 mission is made up of two U.S. astronauts, one from Japan and a Russian cosmonaut. They’ll be aboard the International Space
An FDA panel spread misinformation about SSRI use in pregnancy, alarming doctors
A panel organized by the FDA cast doubts on the safety of antidepressants during pregnancy — drawing ire from doctors who say SSRIs are a
Australia’s pink lakes: The remnants of ancient rivers now teeming with microbes that make rosy pigments
Pink lakes in Western Australia get their color from pigments produced by microbes, but climate change and other human threats are killing these tiny organisms.
First-of-its-kind footage captures bizarre sea creatures flourishing in extreme depths of the ocean
Scientists have filmed odd communities of life flourishing deeper in the ocean than ever before. The chemosynthesis-based life-forms get their energy from chemical reactions, powered
Warm and cool temperatures travel on completely different paths to the brain, study finds
Researchers have mapped out the neural pathway that humans use to perceive cool temperatures and found that it’s separate from the one for sensing heat.
Some U.S. newborns still get HIV despite efforts to screen for it. Here’s why
Routine tests in the third trimester may catch missed cases and flag the need for treatment that reduces a baby‘s risk of getting HIV to
Sunrise on Crew-11 Launch Attempt
A NASA photographer captured the sunrise on July 31, 2025, ahead of NASA’s SpaceX Crew-11 launch attempt. The Crew-11 mission will send NASA astronauts Zena
Coming Soon To An Atlas Near You: A Fifth Ocean
How many oceans are there? It’s National Geographic official now: There are five.; Credit: Alexander Gerst/ESA via Getty Images Karen Zamora, Justine Kenin, and Emma
After 54-year wait, Australia’s first attempt at an orbital rocket crashes 14 seconds after liftoff
Eris-1, the first rocket fully built by an Australian company, crashed back to Earth 14 seconds after taking off from a spaceport in Queensland. It
Shroud of Turin wasn’t laid on Jesus’ body, but rather a sculpture, modeling study suggests
A 3D analysis comparing the way fabric falls on a human body versus a low-relief sculpture shows that the Shroud of Turin was not based
‘This is not a new war’: How the battle between viruses and bacteria could help us beat superbugs
The viruses that kill bacteria may be our best bet against antibiotic resistance — if we can understand how they win.
A Midwest ‘megaflash’ is the longest lightning on record
A reanalysis of satellite data shows that a 2017 Texas-to-Missouri lightning megaflash stretched 829 kilometers and lasted 7.39 seconds.