Water

Water is everywhere, seriously, making up more than 70 percent of the planet's surface. And you can't survive without it. To keep up with all things H2O, check out the most interesting discoveries related to water, from the stuff you drink, to the droplets that make up the planet's oceans, to water itself in all its glorious strangeness.
Related Topics: Ocean, Global Warming, Amphibians, Fish
Latest about water

Why is the Pacific Ocean so big?
By Charles Q. Choi published
Look at any world map and you'll see that the Pacific is the largest ocean. But how did it get so big?

Long, dark 'streaks' spotted on Mars aren't what scientists thought
By Ben Turner published
A set of dark streaks that regularly wind across the Martian surface are more likely to be formed by dust and wind than by water, a new artificial intelligence analysis has revealed.

James Webb telescope discovers frozen water around alien star
By Sharmila Kuthunur published
The discovery of water ice around a distant star is allowing scientists to study how the key ingredient for life is delivered to young planets beyond our solar system.

Your fingers 'prune' the exact same way each time, study suggests
By Jess Thomson published
The wrinkled, raisin-like patterns you get on your fingers after a long bath form the same patterns every time, new research suggests.

Ancient meteorite discovered in Antarctica could reveal the true origins of Earth’s water, new study claims
By Skyler Ware published
A meteorite found in Antarctica in 2012 suggests Earth may have formed with the materials needed to make water, a new study hints.

Microplastics have been in 'pristine streams' for half a century — what could that mean for human health?
By Miriam Bergeret published
New research shows that microplastics have been contaminating some freshwater streams decades earlier than previously recorded. What could that mean for human health?

Student accidentally creates 'shape-recovering liquid' that's an exception to the laws of thermodynamics
By Elana Spivack published
A graduate student accidentally created a blend of oil, water and nickel particles that formed an unexpected shape.

What's the oldest lake on Earth?
By Elana Spivack published
The oldest lake in the world dates back about 25 million years and is also the world's deepest and most biologically diverse lake.

The universe's water is billions of years older than scientists thought — and may be nearly as old as the Big Bang itself
By Joanna Thompson published
A new study suggests that water first appeared in the universe just a couple hundred million years after the Big Bang — meaning life could have evolved billions of years earlier than previously thought.
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