The San Diego Zoo's 11-week-old giant panda cub has arrived at his "awkward toddler stage," taking his first clumsy baby steps, veterinarians at the zoo said.
During a checkup Thursday (Oct. 18), zookeepers took the cub off the exam table and let him test out his wobbly crawling skills on a mat on the floor.
[Full Story:
Panda Cub Steps into 'Awkward Toddler Stage'
]
The steaming lava lake in a vent near the summit of Hawaii's Mount Kilauea recently hit its highest level since the vent opened in 2008, according to the U.S. Geological Survey's Hawaiian Volcano Observatory.
The record was reached Oct. 14, when the lava rose to within 150 to 165 feet (45 to 50 meters) of the top of the nearly vertical vent, the USGS said. The lava continues to fluctuate but has remained high over the past few days, said Jim Kauahikaua, scientist-in-charge of the HVO.
[Full Story: Kilauea Lava Lake Hits Record Height]
Warm ocean currents off the coast of Southern California delivered a surprise to a couple of squid fishermen this past weekend.
A female argonaut ― an octopus also called a paper nautilus ― turned up in their bait box, The Daily Breeze reported Oct. 16. The men recognized the rare find and turned it over to the Cabrillo Marine Aquarium, said Kiersten Darrow, the aquarium's research curator.
[Full Story: Rare Discovery: Tropical Octopus Caught in Los Angeles]
Jupiter, the largest planet in our solar system, has made some dramatic transformations in recent years, a new study reveals.
Huge belts in the giant planet's atmosphere have changed color, radiation hotspots have faded and flared up again, and cloud levels have thickened and dissolved, all while space rocks have been hurtling into it the gas giant, astronomers said.
[Full Story:
Jupiter Photos Reveal Big Changes on Giant Planet]
At this time of the year, with the major league baseball playoffs in full swing and the World Series right around the corner, I occasionally find myself thinking about the legendary sports cartoonist, Bill Gallo.
It might seem strange to start off a column on stargazing in this way, but let me explain:
Gallo, who passed away last year at the age of 88, wrote for many years in the "New York Daily News" and his daily cartoons were one of the highlights of the paper. But it was during the World Series that Gallo's cartoons would get a lot of attention.
[Full Story:
How to See a Space Goat: Capricornus Constellation Explained]
Dolphins can stay constantly alert for more than two weeks by sleeping with only half of their brains, researchers say.
These findings suggest how dolphins can keep on the constant lookout for sharks, investigators added.
[Full Story: How Dolphins Stay Awake For Two Weeks Straight]
It's official: A giant, marine reptile that roamed the seas roughly 150 million years ago is a new species, researchers say. The animal, now named Pliosaurus funkei, spanned about 40 feet (12 meters) and had a massive 6.5-foot-long (2 m) skull with a bite four times as powerful as Tyrannosaurus rex.
"They were the top predators of the sea," said study co-author Patrick Druckenmiller, a paleontologist at the University of Alaska Museum. "They had teeth that would have made a T. rex whimper."
[Full Story: Ancient 'Predator X' Sea Monster Gets Official Name]
There's a new arrival at the Edinburgh Zoo, a baby L'Hoest's monkey.
At three weeks old, the baby is still clinging to mom Tumbili, who has been a natural at rearing her young, according to a zoo statement. The newborn is the second baby of Tumbili and her mate, Kizizi, who were introduced in 2010.
[Full Story: Bouncing Baby L'Hoest's Monkey Born at Edinburgh Zoo]
A tiny tarsier with a face like a Furby and a lemur that stands like a boxer when threatened are among the 25 most endangered primates in the world, the United Nations announced today (Oct. 15).
Indonesia's pygmy tarsier and Madagascar's northern sportive lemur are barely clinging on in the wild, according to the UN's new report, titled Primates in Peril: The World's 25 Most Endangered Primates, 2012-1014. The list includes nine Asian primate species, six from Madagascar, five from Africa and five from South and Central America.
[Full Story: Top 25 Most Endangered Primate Species Revealed]
It turns out, 'C' is for crater, and not just cookie.
An impact basin spotted on Mercury with two smaller craters above it looks remarkably like the sweet treat-loving Cookie Monster muppet of "Sesame Street" fame — at least to the eyes of scientists working on NASA's Messenger mission to the small planet.
[Full Story: Mercury Craters Look Like Cookie Monster in NASA Photo]
