Science | The Guardian

The $488m Spherex mission aims to explain how galaxies evolved over billions of yearsNasa's newest space telescope rocketed into orbit on Tuesday to map the entire sky like never before - a sweeping look at hundreds of millions of galaxies and their shared cosmic glow since the beginning of time.SpaceX launched the Spherex observatory from California, putting it on course to fly over Earth's poles. Tagging along were four suitcase-size satellites to study the sun. Spherex popped off the rocket's upper stage first, drifting into the blackness of space with a blue Earth in the background. Continue reading...

Study of 21 hospitalisations shows the iced drinks can cause decreased consciousness and low blood sugarChildren under eight should not drink slushies containing glycerol, paediatricians have warned.Public health advice on their safety may need revising after a review of the medical notes of 21 children who became acutely unwell shortly after drinking one of the iced drinks, doctors concluded. Continue reading...

Injecting pollutants into the atmosphere to reflect the sun would be extremely dangerous, but the UK is funding field trialsSome years ago in the pages of the Guardian, we sounded the alarm about the increasing attention being paid to solar geoengineering - a barking mad scheme to cancel global heating by putting pollutants in the atmosphere that dim the sun by reflecting some sunlight back to space.In one widely touted proposition, fleets of aircraft would continually inject sulphur compounds into the upper atmosphere, simulating the effects of a massive array of volcanoes erupting continuously. In essence, we have broken the climate by releasing gigatonnes of fossil-fuel carbon dioxide, and solar geoengineering proposes to fix" it by breaking a very different part of the climate system.Raymond T Pierrehumbert FRS is professor of planetary physics at the University of Oxford. He is an author of the 2015 US National Academy of Sciences report on climate interventionMichael E Mann ForMemRS is presidential distinguished professor at the University of Pennsylvania. He is the author of Our Fragile Moment: How Lessons from Earth's Past Can Help Us Survive the Climate Crisis Continue reading...

Cladribine tablet for those with active multiple sclerosis will reduce hospital visits and free up appointmentsThousands of patients with multiple sclerosis (MS) in England are to become the first in Europe to benefit from a major roll out of an immunotherapy pill.Current treatments involve regular trips to hospital, drug infusions, frequent injections and extensive monitoring, which add to the burden on patients and healthcare systems. Continue reading...

Sydney surgeons enormously proud' after patient in his 40s receives the Australian-designed implant designed as a bridge before donor heart

Planet now has 274 moons, almost twice as many as all the other planets in the solar system combinedAstronomers have discovered 128 new moons orbiting Saturn, giving it an insurmountable lead in the running tally of moons in the solar system.Until recently, the moon king" title was held by Jupiter, but Saturn now has a total of 274 moons, almost twice as many as all the other planets combined. The team behind the discoveries had previously identified 62 Saturnian moons using the Canada France Hawaii telescope and, having seen faint hints that there were more out there, made further observations in 2023. Continue reading...

One-square-metre slab has one of highest concentrations of fossilised prints documented in Australia, new analysis reveals

The social, educational and financial impact is still making itself felt, especially for those who continue to mournFive years ago, on 11 March 2020 the World Health Organization (WHO) declared Covid-19 a global pandemic. In the intervening years, more than 7 million people worldwide have been reported to have died from Covid. For most people, life as they remember it before the outbreak has returned to the way it was before. However, respondents to a Guardian callout reflect a more complex picture for those who are still affected.While many reported feeling happier that working from home has allowed for a more flexible work-life balance and that eating more healthily and exercising has become a priority, many others described how they still live with what happened. Continue reading...

Archaeologists identify a possible Celtic settlement on the island and believe the trove was hurriedly transported thereThe mystery of why the world's largest iron age Celtic hoard was buried on the south-east coast of Jersey more than 2,000 years ago may have been solved by archaeologists.When about 70,000 silver coins, 11 gold torques and jewellery were unearthed in a field at Le Catillon in the Grouville district in 2012, experts were unable to explain why they had been transported to a remote and unpopulated area with dangerous coastal reefs. Continue reading...

Tetrodotoxin immobilises the female - who is about two to five times bigger than the male - so mating can occur, researchers observed

Each year, hundreds of potentially world-changing treatments are discarded because scientists run out of cash. But where big pharma or altruists fear to tread, my friend and I have a solution. It's repugnant, but it will workTwenty miles outside Geneva, beneath the towering magnificence ofa mountain called the Rock of Hell, is a long, pleasant road that runs past the Brocher mansion. Set in acres of gentle lawns and specimen trees, on the edge of the medieval village of Hermance, it is ablissful place. My friend Dominic Nutt and I have been trying to break in for years.La Fondation Brocher is the world's leading institute for research into the ethical, social and legal implications of new medical developments". It's the bioethics equivalent of the Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton: only the admin staff and the cleaners are permanently employed here; academic fellowships last a maximum of four months. Billions of pounds' worth of pharmaceuticals are influenced by the scholarly judgments that emerge from this idyllic lakeside building. Dom and I want to force entry because we're advocates for patients, and we think we've solved a small corner of a major problem that's holding back the discovery of new medicines. The trouble is, neither of us has a PhD - and in the rarefied world of academic medical ethics, that matters. Continue reading...

The Mars we know now is arid and dusty, with punishing radiation levels. But, as science correspondent Nicola Davis tells Madeleine Finlay, two new studies add weight to the idea that billions of years ago the red planet was a much wetter place. Nicola explains why researchers now think it was once home to sandy beaches, what a study looking into the type of rust on the planet has revealed about its damp past, and what all this might tell us about the former habitability of MarsMars once had an ocean with sandy beaches, researchers saySupport the Guardian: theguardian.com/sciencepod Continue reading...

Alfred is being used as the latest front in an ideological war, but facts are relevant to how we prepare for a climate-changed future

Office of technology, policy and strategy and one covering DEI initiatives were eliminated in line with efficiency' cutsNasa announced on Monday it had eliminated the office of its chief scientist and shuttered two other departments including one covering diversity, equity, inclusion and accessibility (DEIA), as Donald Trump's federal efficiency' crusade cut deep into the US space agency.The office of technology, policy and strategy that advises Nasa on important leadership decisions was also shuttered and an unspecified number of workers laid off, according to a memo to employees signed by Janet Petro, Nasa's acting administrator. Continue reading...

Researchers say problem could increase number of people at risk of starvation by 400m in next two decadesThe pollution of the planet by microplastics is significantly cutting food supplies by damaging the ability of plants to photosynthesise, according to a new assessment.The analysis estimates that between 4% and 14% of the world's staple crops of wheat, rice and maize is being lost due to the pervasive particles. It could get even worse, the scientists said, as more microplastics pour into the environment. Continue reading...

Contest in Runcorn and Helsby will be a challenge for LabourAround 80 Labour MPs could refuse to back government plans to cut billions from the welfare budget, Amy Gibbons and Tony Diver claim in a story for the Daily Telegraph. They report:The Telegraph understands that around 80 Labour MPs - roughly a fifth of the parliamentary party - won't tolerate" billions of pounds of welfare cuts set to be announced by the Chancellor later this month.The anger is said to have spread beyond the usual suspects", with MPs who would not typically criticise Sir Keir threatening to give the government a slap" over the proposals.Our Labour values are built on a simple but powerful idea: that every individual, regardless of background or circumstance, should have the support they need to make the most of their lives. Everyone who is capable of working deserves the security, dignity and agency that employment offers. Of course, there are some people who are not able to work and they must be treated with compassion and respect. But for those that can, we must restore the pathways to opportunity which are currently so sparse for millions of people. It is exactly what a Labour government exists to do ...As MPs, we understand that delivering this new social contract requires hard choices to be made. We welcome the work that has begun to rebuild our welfare system, and we are fully supportive of it. We believe reforming our broken system is not only necessary, but also a truly progressive endeavour. And so we have established the Get Britain Working Group to make that argument, insistently.The radical package of reforms will see:-5bn in savings by making it harder to qualify for Personal Independence Payments - a benefit not linked to work that is meant to help people with the additional costs of their disabilityThis government is determined that instead of facing a life on benefits ... we stretch every sinew and pull every lever to ensure that we can get those people into work, because that is the best way for them to have a successful and happy life into the future.So I think it's quite right to look at a benefit system which is clearly broken. Continue reading...

Researchers report difficulties retaining staff as White House cost-cutting stresses US medical research systemMajor Alzheimer's disease research centers across the country face a $65m funding gap amid a Trump administration-imposed delay, with at least one struggling to retain highly trained staff.Although courts have ruled a government-wide funding freeze is illegal, the administration has managed to delay research funding by canceling scientific meetings and failing to publish forthcoming meetings in the Federal Register, both which are legally required. Continue reading...

We live in dark, depressing and - frankly - terrifying times. Will technology push us over the edge or help us exit our many crises?Today we live in an era defined by crisis. Indeed, we are facing multiple overlapping threats at once: from accelerating climate breakdown to the rise of authoritarianism across the world, we are in a situation that the historian Adam Tooze calls polycrisis". It is no wonder that hope is scarce, pessimism is high and despair is pervasive. As one meme that captures the grim, morbid mood of our age reads: My retirement plan is civilisational collapse."But not everyone shares this gloomy outlook. On the extreme other end of public sentiment sit Silicon Valley billionaires: they are some of the most optimistic people on earth. Of course, it's easy to be optimistic when you are sitting on enough money to sway national politics. And yet, the source of their optimism isn't simply money. It is also a deep-seated faith in unfettered technological advances. Continue reading...

Some observers will see only initial phase but those in North and South America can enjoy full celestial displayThis week, the moon experiences a total lunar eclipse, which although not as spectacular as a total solar eclipse is still a beautiful celestial sight to behold.A total lunar eclipse occurs when the full moon passes directly behind Earth, through our planet's shadow. Skywatchers first see the shadow of Earth creeping across the face of the moon. This is known as the partial phase. Continue reading...

Tetes a claques | Remote control curtains | Writer or author? | Lady Jane Grey | Life expectancy | Singing teacher's praisesRegarding Marina Hyde's reference to JD Vance and the German word Backpfeifengesicht, meaning a face that is worthy of being slapped", in French there is the similar concise expression tete a claque (There are 1,000 grotesque memes of JD Vance - and they're all more likable than the real thing, 7 March).

TTT therapy burns away nodules that lead to salt buildup in body, which increases risk of stroke or heart attackHalf a million people in the UK with dangerously high blood pressure - a silent killer" that causes tens of thousands of deaths a year - could be cured by a new treatment.Doctors have developed a technique to burn away nodules that lead to a large amount of salt building up in the body, which increases the risk of a stroke or heart attack. Continue reading...

Kits could allow ambulance crews to identify patients with blood clots in their brain, allowing for quicker treatment

Familiar from the Covid era, the tests are becoming incredibly versatile, with potential uses including detecting killers such as strokes and sepsis

Before the next outbreak, we need a serious conversation about how to cope, but first, the more strident, misguided voices must be muted

New technique means the eye can be studied in seconds for markers of brain health and signs of neurodegenerationHigh street opticians could play a key role in pinpointing individuals at risk of dementia by spotting distinctive patterns in the retinas of those in the early stages of cognitive decline. These diagnoses would carried out during routine eye checks.The prospect follows the development of an AI technique known as Quartz that can be used to study eye scans and identify key differences in the shapes and sizes of retinal blood vessels in a few seconds. The technology automatically measures width and the extent to which these tiny veins and arteries - known as arterioles and venules - twist and turn. Continue reading...

Armed with the new EEG machine, investigators were able to look into the familiar yet strange phenomenon more deeply than ever beforeSleep is like love. If you have it, you take it for granted,' reports Wendy Cooper in the Observer Magazine on 24 January 1971. If you don't, it's rhythmic rocking or counting sheep for you, though not for Charles Dickens: he made sure his bed faced north, better to boost his creativity as he slumbered.We spend a third of our lives sleeping, but some feel they still don't get enough, some (narcoleptics) fall asleep when they eat. Some sleepwalk or, in one case, sleepride their motorbike in the middle of the night. Continue reading...

Scientific triumphs were made in the battle against the pandemic, but the memories and lessons are already in danger of being lostOn 9 March 2020, Martin Landray was studying the likely impact of Covid-19 as it started to sweep Britain. What was needed, he realised, was a method for pinpointing cheap, effective drugs that might limit the impact of the Sars-CoV-2 virus that was filling UK hospitals with dangerously ill patients.Within 10 days, Landray - working with Oxford University colleague Peter Horby - had set up Recovery, a drug-testing programme that involved thousands of doctors and nurses working with tens of thousands of Covid-19 patients in UK hospitals. Continue reading...

Maybe your isolation vision reflects a need to escape from the weight of responsibility that life inevitably bringsThe question I am a woman in my early 30s and about two years ago, I moved out of London and back home with my parents as I found the city soul-crushing: expenses and rent constantly going up and a sense of only surviving there, for which I saw no end in sight. I don't think it's unrelated that I felt my job placed unceasing, unrealistic expectations of availability on me and gave no acknowledgment of that in return.Now, I'm working remotely in a job I like well enough, that pays me more than I've ever made in my life for relatively easy work, allowing me to save. I'm enjoying being around nature and having the extra time with my family as I contemplate my next steps. But I find myself with no desires, no thoughts about where I might live or what I see my life looking like. I still feel that something is not quite right. Continue reading...

The rise of the precursor to the Irish language remains a historical mystery that linguists, geneticists and archaeologists continue to debateSaint Patrick, whose feast day is celebrated on 17 March, left behind two short works in Latin, but he probably spoke a Celtic language. By the time he was saving Irish souls in the fifth century AD, linguists are pretty sure that Celtic was spoken throughout Britain and Ireland. When Celtic first arrived in those islands, however, is an enduring mystery - one that new findings in archaeology and genetics might help to solve.The dates range between the early bronze age, around 2500BC, when archaeologists detect a major cultural transformation in Britain and Ireland, and the first century AD. Most linguists place it in between, in the last millennium BC - the iron age - but they can't prove it because the language wasn't written down until much later. Continue reading...

President's slashes to higher education institutions and research funding threaten US public health, workers sayStudents, researchers, faculty and leadership at universities and colleges across the US are grappling with drastic short- and long-term impacts for decades to come" caused by funding freezes, cuts and executive orders from the Trump administration.It's sowing a lot of chaos on campuses," said Sarah Spreitzer, vice-president and chief of staff of government relations at the American Council for Education, a non-profit representing more than 1,600 colleges, universities and related associations. Continue reading...

Virus that caused death of actor's wife in Santa Fe is rare but serious illness that can damage major organs of the bodyAuthorities said on Friday that actor Gene Hackman died of heart disease days after his wife, Betsy Arakawa, died from hantavirus pulmonary syndrome (HPS). But what exactly is this rare illness?Hantavirus pulmonary syndrome is a rare but serious viral disease that can damage the heart, lungs and other organs. The syndrome progresses quickly and can be fatal, according to the Cleveland Clinic, one of the largest and most respected medical centers in the US. Continue reading...

Robotic private spacecraft touched down about 250 meters from its intended landing site on ThursdayA robotic private spacecraft designed to provide crucial data for returning humans to the moon toppled over as it landed on the lunar surface, bringing an immediate and premature end to the mission, its operators said on Friday.Athena, a probe launched by the Texas-based company Intuitive Machines (IM) last month, touched down about 250 meters from its intended landing site near the moon's south pole on Thursday. Initially at least, it was generating some power and sending information to Earth as engineers worked to make sense of data showing an incorrect attitude". Continue reading...

Researchers used 20,000 hours of recordings of great tits in Oxford to see how culture changes among populationsWhich songs birds sing can - as with human music - be influenced by age, social interactions and migration, researchers have found.Not all birds learn songs, but among those that do, individuals, neighbourhoods and populations can produce different collections of tunes, akin to different music albums. Continue reading...

Many fellows feel the billionaire has breached its code of conduct, but others say scientific neutrality is at stakeIt is a 365-year-old institution revered the world over, with past members including luminaries such as Isaac Newton, Charles Darwin and Dorothy Hodgkin. But now a row over a billionaire maverick has thrown the Royal Society into crisis, splintering the fellowship and raising existential questions about its role in society.A growing number of scientists have called for the academy to investigate the conduct of Elon Musk - who was elected a fellow in 2018 - resulting in a passionate debate at a meeting of the scientific body on Monday evening. Continue reading...

Fruit variety developed in Norwich remains fresh for up to 12 hours after being peeledMany of us have been guilty of binning a mushy, overripe banana - but now scientists say they have a solution with the launch of a genetically engineered non-browning banana.The product is the latest in a series of gene-edited fruits and vegetables designed to have a longer shelf life. Scientists say the technology is emerging as a powerful new weapon against food waste, which occurs globally on an epic scale. Continue reading...

SpaceX's Starship spacecraft has exploded after lifting off from Texas, dooming an attempt to deploy mock satellites in the second consecutive failure this year for Elon Musk's Mars rocket programme. Videos posted on social media show debris streaking through the skies near south Florida and the Bahamas. The rocket exploded after it began to spin uncontrollably with its engines cut off, a SpaceX livestream of the mission showed

A second consecutive Starship from Elon Musk's company SpaceX has failed. A livestream posted to X shows the rocket spinning in space before the company confirms it had lost contact with the ship. Video posted to social appears to show debris from ship over the Caribbean sky. Continue reading...

Back-to-back mishaps indicate big setbacks for program to launch satellites and send humans to the moon and MarsSpaceX's Starship spacecraft exploded on Thursday minutes after lifting off from Texas, dooming an attempt to deploy mock satellites in the second consecutive failure this year for Elon Musk's Mars rocket program.Several videos on social media showed fiery debris streaking through the dusk skies near south Florida and the Bahamas after Starship's breakup in space, which occurred shortly after it began to spin uncontrollably with its engines cut off, a SpaceX livestream of the mission showed. Continue reading...

Surgeons believe the technique called functional septorhinoplasty (fSRP) kickstarts' smell recovery in patientsDoctors in London have successfully restored a sense of smell and taste in patients who lost it due to long Covid with pioneering surgery that expands their nasal airways to kickstart their recovery.Most patients diagnosed with Covid-19 recover fully. But the infectious disease can lead to serious long-term effects. About six in every 100 people who get Covid develop long Covid, with millions of people affected globally, according to the World Health Organization. Continue reading...

Flight controllers try to confirm Intuitive Machines probe's status in firm's second lunar landing in just over a yearThe Athena robotic spacecraft touched down on the lunar surface on Thursday in the second moon landing for the US space company Intuitive Machines in little more than a year.An as-yet-undiagnosed problem following its descent, however, left the craft at an incorrect attitude", with mission managers telling an afternoon press conference that they were unable to predict to what extent the operation of Athena and its various payloads will be affected. Continue reading...

Re-dating of Flagstones monument to about 3,200BC came after analysis by Exeter University and Historic EnglandA prehistoric burial site in Dorset is now thought to be the earliest known large circular enclosure in Britain prompting researchers to question whether current dating of Stonehenge may need revising.The Flagstones monument, near Dorchester in Dorset, has been re-dated to about 3200BC, approximately two centuries earlier than previously thought, following analysis by the University of Exeter and Historic England. Continue reading...

At a time when US scientists are under attack from their own government, the illiteracy around these elephantine fantasies is dangerousYou will never ever see a living woolly mammoth. While this is an obvious truth to most geneticists, zoologists and mammoth experts, the endless promises that you might get to meet an extant version of this very-much extinct elephantid apparently necessitate me typing it.The latest on the conveyor belt of mammoth resurrection stories came this week in the form of a slightly hairy mouse. Colossal Biosciences, the US company behind the woolly mouse" and ensuing media frenzy, published a non-peer-reviewed paper in which it has genetically engineered a mouse to express a gene that relates to mammoth hair, resulting in a mouse with slightly longer hair than normal.Dr Adam Rutherford is a lecturer in genetics at UCL and the author of How to Argue With a RacistThis article was amended on 6 March 2025. Colossal is proposing to modify the genes of an Asian elephant. An earlier version said the species was an African elephant Continue reading...

Madeleine Finlay and Ian Sample discuss three intriguing science stories from the week. From two private moon landings to the controversy over Elon Musk's continued membership of the Royal Society, and a new study making a link between men's health and their sperm qualityStriking images show Blue Ghost Mission 1's successful moon landingElon Musk survives as fellow of Royal Society despite anger among scientists Continue reading...

Exclusive: Sequencing will help doctors identify bacteria that cause infections and offer effective treatments faster and more accuratelyScientists have developed a rapid DNA sequencing system to stem the rise of superbugs by identifying bacterial infections faster and more accurately.Currently, hospital labs can take as long as seven days to specify bacterial infections, while for some infections a definitive diagnosis may take eight weeks. Continue reading...

Jay Bhattacharya tells hearing he is intent on protecting research, even as president takes axe to federal fundingDonald Trump's nominee to run the National Institutes of Health (NIH), Jay Bhattacharya, told senators he was committed to ensuring scientists have the resources they need" - even as the $48bn agency he hopes to lead has become a focus of the administration's ideological war and cost-cutting efforts.At a confirmation hearing on Wednesday, Bhattacharya made a pitch for free scientific inquiry and an examination of the chronic disease epidemic, now a cornerstone of Republican health rhetoric, while hoping to serve in an administration that has frightened scientists into self-censorship. Continue reading...

Study suggests infection is sexually transmitted and opens up new way to reduce recurrence by treating male partnersBacterial vaginosis can be passed to women by male sexual partners, researchers have said, challenging the longstanding view that it is not a sexually transmitted infection.Experts say the study offers a new way to reduce the risk of the infection returning in women, with another scientist saying it showed up the UK's NHS website as outdated and misleading". Continue reading...

Pioneer in the field of neuropsychopharmacology who trained a generation of scientistsMacbeth's doctor declared himself unable to cure the mind diseased", and it remains a challenge to understand and treat mental and neurological conditions.Susan Iversen, who has died aged 84, was a neuropsychologist. She saw the need to start with the fundamentals - understanding how different brain areas, and the complex networks of chemical signals that communicate between them, exert their impact on behaviour. Continue reading...

Monitoring pathogens in sewer systems would be major improvement' on current techniques, new research showsWastewater sampling could predict new disease outbreaks and the emergence of new variants of pathogens weeks or months before they become widespread, new research shows.Pathogen monitoring in sewer systems, including on airplanes, can reveal which viruses and bacteria are present and cause outbreaks, two studies indicate. Continue reading...

Study on cancer data in US agricultural heartland finds children more at risk than if exposed to just one pesticideExposure to multiple pesticides significantly increases the risk of childhood cancers compared with exposures to just one pesticide, first-of-its-kind research finds, raising new fears that children are more at risk to the substances' harmful effects than previously thought.The study's authors say they are the first to look at the link between exposures to multiple widely used pesticides and the most common childhood cancers. Most research considers pesticides' toxicity on an individual basis, and the substances are regulated as if exposures occur in isolation from one another. Continue reading...

Scientists are studying whether the grounded A23a iceberg might help stir nutrients and make food more available for penguins and sealsThe world's biggest iceberg appears to have run aground roughly 70km (43 miles) from a remote Antarctic island, potentially sparing the crucial wildlife haven from being hit, a research organisation said Tuesday.The colossal iceberg A23a - which measures roughly 3,300 sq km and weighs nearly 1tn tonnes - has been drifting north from Antarctica towards South Georgia island since 2020. Continue reading...