Alien-like cookiecutter sharks terrorize animals of all sizes By Patrick Pester Cookiecutter sharks rip small, cookie-shaped chunks out of sharks and whales much larger than themselves, but a new study finds these big animals make up only a small part of their diet.
Got a cool pet? Enter to win this book on their prehistoric counterparts. By Laura Geggel Here's how to enter to win a free copy of the "Prehistoric Pets" pop-up book.
8-foot-tall pagan idol unearthed in Irish bog By Tom Metcalfe A wooden pole made from an oak tree trunk and carved into the shape of a pagan idol 1,600 years ago has been unearthed in a bog in Ireland.
Health officials quietly moved the date of the 1st US COVID-19 death to January 2020 By Rachael Rettner The first death occurred a month earlier than previously thought.
World's largest rodents are taking over a fancy gated community in Argentina By Harry Baker Capybaras have overrun a gated community in Argentina which was controversially built over their original habitat.
'Perfect' Mars rock sample drilled from the Red Planet in historic mission By Brandon Specktor Following a botched first attempt, NASA's Mars Perseverance rover successfully collected a pencil-thin Martian rock core sample.
Mysterious object called 'The Accident' has been careening through the Milky Way for 10 billion years By Brandon Specktor Scientists analyzed a rare brown dwarf named 'The Accident' and found that it is an exceptionally old, ultra-cold failed star unlike any other.
'What the heck is that?' Florida angler catches 'tortilla fish.' By Laura Geggel An angler fishing in Tampa Bay was surprised to reel in an unusual fish that looked just like a flour tortilla.
World's largest Martian meteorite goes on display By Harry Baker The largest piece of Martian rock on Earth, weighing around 32 pounds, has gone on display for the first time, at a museum in Maine.
China wants to build a mega spaceship that’s nearly a mile long By Edd Gent A Chinese science proposal plans to study how to get a giant spacecraft into space.
A quarter of sunlike stars eat their own planets, according to new research By Lorenzo Spina How rare is our solar system? In the 30 years or so since planets were first discovered orbiting stars other than our sun, we have found that planetary systems are common in the galaxy.
California's Caldor Fire seen from space in harrowing satellite images (gallery) By Christine Lunsford The Caldor Fire, one of the largest in California's history, has been blazing since Aug. 14, 2021.
Scientists discover on-off switch for bacteria that breathe electricity By Nicoletta Lanese The discovery could have applications in electronics and medicine.
Do wolves wag their tails? By Patrick Pester Dogs regularly wag their tails to greet humans and other dogs, but what about their wild counterparts? Do wolves wag their tails?
New 'mu' coronavirus variant could escape vaccine-induced immunity, WHO says By Rachael Rettner The variant was first detected in Colombia in January 2021.
Huge, gold-standard study shows unequivocally that surgical masks work to reduce coronavirus spread By Yasemin Saplakoglu Results from a massive study in Bangladesh unequivocally show that surgical masks reduce the spread of SARS-CoV-2, scientists say.
Is a 'fetal heartbeat' really a heartbeat at 6 weeks? By Rachael Rettner What exactly do we mean when we talk about a "fetal heartbeat" at six weeks of pregnancy?
Why tiny tardigrades walk like insects 500,000 times their size By Mindy Weisberger Microscopic and near-indestructible tardigrades walk as insects do, scientists recently discovered.
Amazing Hubble telescope photo shows space 'sword' piercing huge celestial 'heart' By Mike Wall A flaming blue sword seems to pierce a giant cosmic heart in a gorgeous new photo captured by the Hubble Space Telescope.
