Today Was the Day Galileo Caved
On this day almost four centuries ago, the father of modern science was forced to bow to political and religious pressure to save his life
See the Southern Lights from Space in New ISS Video
A NASA astronaut Meir captured a stunning video of aurora australis
Qatari Sand Cats Caught on Camera for the First Time
The elusive creatures were thought to have vanished
The Nautilus Reading List of Books on Evolution
Life sure has been some crazy journey
How to Protect Earth Against Violent Space Weather
A conversation with a scientist who invented a new storm wall for space
Latest Stories
In the Midst of Tornado Season, a Surprisingly Short History of Predicting Twisters
A United States Army Lieutenant was the first to forecast the deadly storms in the late 1800s. Then he was told to stop.
Can “Dante’s Inferno” Tell Us Something About Space Rocks?
A conversation with an expert in geomythology about a wild idea
How to Dodge a Mountain Lion
A new look at puma-human encounters in the mountains of California
Read Stories from Our Newest Print Issue: Precarious
See moreThe Cephalopods Are Coming
Fossil records reveal Earth’s mass extinctions are followed by a rise of ocean cephalopods. They’re rising again.
Schrödinger’s Kittens Are All Grown Up
Offspring of the most famous thought experiment in physics are now testing the very fabric of the universe
The Most Precarious Day in the Universe
On the same day the world descended into war, physicists saw reality itself unraveling
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Cutting-edge science, unraveled by the brightest living thinkers.
Astronomy
See more AstronomyTake a Gander at an Ancient Supernova in the Heart of the Milky Way
The remnants of a star that exploded 1,700 years ago
How to Stop a Killer Asteroid
From high-speed battering rams to gravity tractors, the technology exists to protect the planet. The question is whether humanity will act in time—and in concert.
Who Was Nancy Grace Roman?
The trailblazing astronomer lends her name to the newest space telescope slated to deliver unprecedented insight into the universe
History
See more HistoryThe Model for Botticelli’s Venus Died at 23
And researchers have a new theory for her untimely demise
This Cosmonaut Was the First Woman in Space
The Soviet Union beat the United States to the punch by 20 years
The Ancient Roots of Modern Winemaking
Two-thousand-year-old grape seeds yield viticultural insight in the Chianti wine region
Psychology
See more Psychology
Bad Third-Grade Behavior Could be a Preview of Educational Failure
Kids who can hold it together until the final bell may be primed for more academic success in life
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Environment
See more EnvironmentHidden Fungal Networks Could Stretch from the Earth to the Sun a Billion Times Over
A new map of global mycorrhizal fungi details the massive scope of the vital systems
These Overlooked Pollutants Cause About 15 Percent of Global Warming
And scientists are sounding the alarm
Listen to the Sound of the Most Massive Organism on Earth
Pando’s voice comes from the wind
Zoology
See more Zoology
Saving a Tiny Endangered Porpoise One Pixel at a Time
Only a handful of vaquitas exist in the wild, but now one is preserved in unprecedented digital detail
Goblin Sharks Caught on Camera in Their Natural Habitat for the First Time
Two of these mysterious sharks were recorded by deep-sea submersibles
Philosophy
See more PhilosophyThe Inventor of the Thinking Machine Didn’t Worry. Neither Should You
In this age of AI anxiety, listen to your heart
Science Is Political—and Spiritual
Author and physicist Chanda Prescod-Weinstein on the crisis in American science
Aliens Probably Have Consciousness
A conversation with a philosopher about extraterrestrial and machine minds
If You’re Counting on Calcium and Vitamin D Supplements to Prevent Fractures, Think Again
A new in-depth analysis casts doubt on the popular supplements
Read more
See all postsDoes This Protein Hold the Key to Differences in Aging Between Males and Females?
It maintains the balance of the X chromosome
Is This the King of GLP-1s?
A new meta-analysis stacks three leading GLP-1 medications against each other
These Ancient Millipedes Paved the Way for Terrestrial Life
They preceded vertebrates on land by about 80 million years
ISS Astronaut Shares Incredible Photos of Volcanoes Taken From Space
And one of them was putting on a show
How to Feel at Home in the Modern World
A conversation with Harvard philosopher Ian Marcus Corbin on material, biological, and spiritual belonging
The Surprising Things You Find Digging Through Frozen Prehistoric Squirrel Poop
The Ice Age rodents left behind a lot to study
Why Robots Still Can’t Do Science
AI can read the literature in an afternoon and design molecules a chemist never would. So why can't a robot hold a pipette?
