Latest science news: Ariane 6 rocket launch | Dinosaur footprints | MAVEN signal loss
LIVE Wednesday, Dec. 17, 2025: Your daily feed of the biggest discoveries and breakthroughs making headlines.
Space
30 models of the universe proved wrong by final data from groundbreaking telescope
The Atacama Cosmology Telescope (ACT) in Chile has released its final batch of data after 15 years — and it proves that the Hubble tension, a rift in our understanding of the universe, is very real.
24 Comments
The UN's International Asteroid Warning Network is closely watching comet 3I/ATLAS. Here's why.
Tracking comets accurately is hard. A new effort with the U.N. and NASA aims to better chart these visitors using 3I/ATLAS.
4 Comments
Strange, 7-hour explosion from deep space is unlike anything scientists have seen — Space photo of the week
Astronomers used major telescopes across the world to probe a cosmic explosion 8 billion light-years from the solar system.
Planet Earth
Deep snow blanket transforms Yellowstone Lake into a giant white void
Earth from space A 2022 astronaut photo shows a thick blanket of snow covering Yellowstone Lake, transforming the frozen body of water into a featureless white void. But below the ice lie some of Earth's hottest hydrothermal vents.
Giant structure discovered deep beneath Bermuda is unlike anything else on Earth
A thick layer of more than 12 miles of rock may explain why Bermuda seems to float above the surrounding ocean.
23 Comments
China's Great Green Wall: The giant artificial forest designed to slow the expansion of 2 deserts
Since 1978, China has planted more than 66 billion trees along its 2,800-mile-long northern border, and it wants to plant 34 billion more over the next 25 years to complete its "Great Green Wall."
8 Comments
archaeology
5,000-year-old dog skeleton and dagger buried together in Swedish bog hint at mysterious Stone Age ritual
Five millennia ago, ancient fishers buried a dog alongside a dagger in a lake bed. Archaeologists are trying to figure out why.
2,400-year-old fingerprint from mysterious sea raider found preserved on Scandinavia's oldest plank boat
An ancient fingerprint and several chemical clues from a 2,400-year-old sea raiders' boat are revealing secrets about where some mysterious attackers came from during the Iron Age.
8 Comments
Magdala stone: 2,000-year-old carving from Jerusalem is world's oldest known depiction of a menorah
A pilgrim who visited the Second Temple in Jerusalem may have carved their memories into a limestone block for another synagogue.
LATEST ARTICLES
Animals
Scientists finally sequence the vampire squid's huge genome, revealing secrets of the 'living fossil'
The genetic link between squids and octopuses may just be found in the vampire squid genome.
2 Comments
Can a turtle tuck its head all the way inside its shell?
Turtle shells evolved over the course of 300 million years, but self-defense wasn't the initial driver, researchers think.
Cassius the giant crocodile died from sepsis after 40-year-old dormant infection burst from 'abscess,' necropsy reveals
Cassius was an 18-foot-long saltwater crocodile living in captivity in Marineland Crocodile Park in Australia. He died last year at the age of about 120, and we finally know why.
'Very novel and very puzzling': Unknown species of squid spotted burying itself upside down, pretending to be a plant
A new study reveals an unknown species of whiplash squid burying itself upside down in the deep sea — a first-of-its-kind behavior for cephalopods.
Killer whales are teaming up with dolphins on salmon hunts, study finds — but not everyone agrees
There are eye-opening claims that orcas and dolphins are working together on salmon hunts and sharing food — but not everyone is convinced.
3 Comments
18,000 dinosaur tracks discovered along ancient Bolivian coastline — and they set a new record
Researchers have counted 16,600 fossilized dinosaur footprints and 1,378 swim tracks at a site in Bolivia that showcase a variety of behaviors and different theropods from the Cretaceous period.
7 Comments
Health & Human Behavior
Heart attacks are less harmful at night. And that might be key to treating them.
Controlling immune cells' internal clocks helped reduce inflammatory damage in conditions like heart attack and sickle cell disease, a mouse study found.
5 genetic 'signatures' underpin a range of psychiatric conditions
A study suggests psychiatric disorders can share the same genetic signatures and that they may stem from shared biological mechanisms.
5 Comments
Science history: Norwegian explorer wins the treacherous race to the South Pole, while British rival perishes along with his crew — Dec. 14, 1911
In December 1911, Roald Amundsen and his crew reached the South Pole, beating his rival, Robert Falcon Scott, by 35 days. Scott and his crew didn't survive the return trip.
How are 'traumatic tattoos' made, and do you have one?
Traumatic tattoos aren't like regular ones, and they often involve pencils.
-
-
Life's Little Mysteries
Science questions, answered
-
Space photo of the week
Extraordinary images of our sublime universe
-
Diagnostic dilemma
Unusual case reports from the medical literature
-
Incredible places
A window onto extraordinary landscapes on Earth
-
Astonishing artifacts
A glimpse into how people lived in the past
-
Earth from space
Incredible images of our planet from above
-
Technology
New 'DNA cassette tape' can store up to 1.5 million times more data than a smartphone — and the data can last 20,000 years if frozen
Scientists have discovered that over half a mile of DNA could hold over 360,000 terabytes of data.
6 Comments
Physics, Math & Chemistry
Glue strong enough to tow a car made from used cooking oil
Chemists used waste cooking oil to create a sustainable, super-sticky adhesive that's strong enough to hold up hundreds of pounds of weight.
6 Comments
Quizzes & Games
Live Science crossword puzzle #24: Elemental particle associated with light — 11 down
Science crossword Test your knowledge on all things science with our weekly, free crossword puzzle!
Live Science Recommends
Best fitness trackers 2025: From smart rings to multisport GPS watches
Buying Guide These are the best fitness trackers you can buy in every category, from Amazfit Balance and Garmin Fenix 8 to Whoop MG.
