Physics

From the forces that keep athletes twirling and sliding, to the weird laws governing the world of the very small, to the far-out concepts of time travel and alternate universes, physics covers a lot of interesting territory. Here, Live Science keeps you abreast of all the fascinating physics discoveries.Physics

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This artist's impression shows the decay of a lutetium-149 nucleus into a ytterbium-148 nucleus and a proton.

Scientists create weird pumpkin-shaped nucleus that vanishes in nanoseconds

By Stephanie Pappas published

A newly created isotope of the silvery metal lutetium has a strange squashed nucleus and a half-life of just a few hundred nanoseconds.

An illustration of a clock spiraling into space-time.

What is time?

By Paul Sutter published

Reference From the beginning of the universe to the present day, it's one of the few things we regard as regular and unchanging. But is it really so constant? We take a look at the physics of time.

In this illustrative concept image, a black hole is sucking in all the nearby matter in space.

Black holes may grow quantum 'hair'

By Stephanie Pappas published

The quantum state of a black hole's gravitational field may hold clues as to what is beyond the event horizon.

Abstract image of quantum probability_agsandrew via Shutterstock

What is quantum mechanics?

By Adam Mann published

Reference Quantum mechanics is the body of scientific laws that describe the wacky behavior of photons, electrons and the other particles that make up the universe.

researchers discovered how to create and manipulate a quantum phenomenon known as a "domain wall" - shown in this image as the lighter line between two groups of atoms. (Image adapted and color added from experiment data.)

Physicists create bizarre quantum 'domain walls' in new experiment

By Ashley Hamer published

Strange 'domain walls' act like independent quantum object in the new experiment.

The particle was produced inside the Large Hadron Collider at CERN.

'X particle' from the dawn of time detected inside the Large Hadron Collider

By Ben Turner published

The particle was found by smashing billions of lead atoms into each other at extreme speeds.

In this illustration, a neutrino interacts with Antarctic ice, shedding a muon in the process. As that muon moves at ultrafast speed, it leaves a telltale trail of blue light, known as Cherenkov radiation.

Astronomers propose building a neutrino detector out of the Pacific Ocean

By Paul Sutter published

The Pacific Ocean Neutrino Experiment would turn a massive swath of the Pacific Ocean into nature's own neutrino detector.

Abstract chess board to represent a mathematical problem called Euler's office problem.

Centuries-old 'impossible' math problem cracked using the strange physics of Schrödinger's cat

By Stephanie Pappas published

The mathematics problem is a bit like Sudoku on steroids.

The 2-foot vacuum chamber will use magnets to recreate lunar gravity here on Earth.

China builds 'artificial moon' for gravity experiment

By Ben Turner published

The test chamber will enable scientists to test technologies and structures on Earth before sending them to the moon.

China's 'artificial sun' tokamak

China's $1 trillion 'artificial sun' fusion reactor just got five times hotter than the sun

By Ben Turner published

The experimental fusion reactor sustained the temperatures for a record-breaking 17 minutes.

Abstract physics image showing glowing blobs orbiting a central blob.

Physicists crack unsolvable three-body problem using drunkard's walk

By Ashley Hamer published

The three-body problem, which has plagued science since the days of Isaac Newton, is closer to being solved, scientists say.

To test how important imaginary numbers were in describing reality, the researchers used an updated version of the Bell test, an experiment which relies on quantum entanglement.

Imaginary numbers could be needed to describe reality, new studies find

By Ben Turner published

Theories based only on real numbers are incapable of explaining the results of this new experiment.

This conceptual image shows the Big Bang and the beginning of the universe, with galaxies and other stellar clusters exploding from a central point on a cosmic background.

Weird quantum objects known as Q balls could explain why we exist

By Ashley Hamer published

Bizarre quantum objects called Q balls could explain why the universe if filled with matter and ultimately why we exist.

The new material works by forming triangles out of an atom's spin states.

Physicists create new state of matter from quantum soup of magnetically weird particles

By Ben Turner published

The messy quantum soup of spin states allows for quantum entanglement across an entire material.

water droplets

Water's ultimate freezing point just got lower

By Ashley Hamer published

Scientists just broke the record for water's freezing point.

The FASERu experiment at CERN's Large Hadron Collider.

'Ghost particles' detected inside the Large Hadron Collider for the first time

By Ben Turner published

The breakthrough will allow scientists to research long sought-after high energy neutrinos.

Dark matter is as mysterious as it is ubiquitous.

Dark matter may spawn more of itself from ordinary matter, like a cosmic ice-9

By Joanna Thompson published

A new mechanism for dark matter creation could explain the current six-to-one ratio of dark matter to matter.

A picture taken on November 22, 2021 shows pages of one of the preparatory manuscript to the theory of general relativity of Albert Einstein, during their presention a day before being auctionned at Christie's auction house in Paris.

Rare Einstein manuscript sells for record-smashing $13 million at auction

By Brandon Specktor published

A 54-page document co-written with engineer Michele Besso sold for a record-breaking $13 million at auction on Tuesday, Nov 23.

The 54-page document shows Einstein setting the foundation for his legendary theory of relativity.

Rare Einstein manuscript is 'most valuable' ever to come to auction

By Brandon Specktor published

A rare 54-page manuscript written by Albert Einstein and Michele Besso could earn a record sum at auction on Tuesday, Nov. 23

Blue laser light used by one of the experiments to detect the increased transparency of the gas.

Weird quantum effect that can turn matter invisible finally demonstrated

By Ben Turner published

The effect, called Pauli blocking, has been predicted for 30 years. Scientists just proved it for the first time.