Science | The Guardian

One of the oldest recognised constellations, it appears on Babylonian clay tablets and Ptolemy's second-century listFor those of us in the northern hemisphere, September is an excellent time to search for the faint constellation of Capricornus, the sea goat, one of the oldest recognised constellations. It appears on Ptolemy's second-century list of 48, and even before that on Babylonian clay tablets that date from a few thousand years BC.Capricornus is depicted to be a chimera, a mythical creature containing the body and head of a goat and the tail of a fish. In Greek mythology it is often associated with Amalthea, who hid the young Zeus from his child-devouring father, Cronos, or Pan the shepherd god. Continue reading...

Research finds 76% higher risk for 15-year-olds with dysmenorrhorea than those without painful mensesTeenagers who have moderate or severe period pain are much more likely to develop chronic pain as adults, according to research.Researchers said the findings should serve as a wake-up call to improve menstrual education, reduce stigma, and ensure young people have access to effective support and treatment early on. Continue reading...

Discovery that clopidogrel is a more effective blood thinner could transform health guidelines worldwideDoctors have found a drug that is better than aspirin at preventing heart attacks and strokes, in a discovery that could transform health guidelines worldwide.For decades, millions of people have been advised to take aspirin to reduce their risk of experiencing a serious cardiovascular event. A daily low-dose aspirin makes blood less sticky and helps prevent heart attacks and strokes. Continue reading...

GLP-1 agonists could be given to millions with heart conditions to help them stay out of hospital and live longerWeight loss drugs can reduce by half the risk of heart patients being hospitalised or dying early, according to the largest study of its kind.The class of drugs, known as GLP-1 agonists, have been found to offer dramatic benefits" to heart patients, significantly cutting their risk of falling seriously ill or dying prematurely from any cause. Continue reading...

Climate.gov, which went dark this summer, to be revived by volunteers as climate.us with expanded missionEarlier this summer, access to climate.gov - one of the most widely used portals of climate information on the internet - was thwarted by the Trump administration, and its production team was fired in the process.The website offered years' worth of accessibly written material on climate science. The site is technically still online but has been intentionally buried by the team of political appointees who now run the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Continue reading...

When my mother, Jenny Cox, who has died aged 86 of cancer, was admitted to hospice care, she told staff of her passions: her grandchildren and great-grandchildren, plants and the great outdoors - and her concertinas.She also brought up an old injustice. An adventurous botanist, in her 20s Jenny had planned to do a PhD on the flora of the inhospitable island of South Georgia, in the south Atlantic. However, the British Antarctic Survey vetoed it: no unmarried women. A feminist fire was lit. Jenny's marriage to my father, Peter, lasted more than 60 years. A hands-on mother of three sons, she retrained as a teacher and worked in primary schools in Bristol. Continue reading...

Hundreds of staff gathered outside the CDC headquarters in Atlanta on Thursday to support the public health leaders who resigned, or were fired by the Trump administration, in recent days. Three of the four senior leaders who resigned yesterday, Debra Houry, Demetre Daskalakis and Daniel Jernigan, spoke at the demonstration

First global systematic review finds vaccine associated with 18% lower risk of stroke or heart attack in adultsGetting the shingles vaccine could lower your risk of a heart attack or stroke by as much as 20%, according to the first study of its kind.Shingles is a common condition affecting millions worldwide that causes a painful rash and can lead to serious problems such as deafness, long-lasting pain and blindness. It is more likely to cause serious problems in older age groups. Continue reading...

Scientists say shocking' discovery shows rapid cuts in carbon emissions are needed to avoid catastrophic falloutThe collapse of a critical Atlantic current can no longer be considered a low-likelihood event, a study has concluded, making deep cuts to fossil fuel emissions even more urgent to avoid the catastrophic impact.The Atlantic meridional overturning circulation (Amoc) is a major part of the global climate system. It brings sun-warmed tropical water to Europe and the Arctic, where it cools and sinks to form a deep return current. The Amoc was already known to be at its weakest in 1,600 years as a result of the climate crisis. Continue reading...

Gains in cutting deaths from tuberculosis at risk as health officials warn clinics forced to ration drugs and testingMalawi is facing a critical shortage of tuberculosis drugs, with health officials warning that stocks will run out by the end of September.It comes just months after the World Health Organization (WHO) revealed that the country had successfully reduced tuberculosis (TB) cases by 40% over the past decade. Continue reading...

There are increasing reports of people experiencing delusions after intensive use of AI chatbots. The phenomenon, dubbed AI psychosis', has raised concerns that features built into large language models may contribute to some users losing touch with reality. Madeleine Finlay speaks to Dr Hamilton Morrin, a psychiatrist and researcher at King's College London, about his recent preprint exploring who is at risk and how models could be made saferClips: CBS, BBC, NBC Continue reading...

Extravagant armour and tail weaponry on Spicomellus afer fossil confound existing theories of how the species evolvedTank-like physique, bristling with body armour and a collar of spikes the length of golf clubs, Spicomellus afer looks more like a Pokemon creation than a living creature. This bizarre dinosaur roamed the flood plains of what is now north Africa 165m years ago, palaeontologists have revealed.The fossil, the oldest known ankylosaur specimen, was unearthed near the central Moroccan town of Boulemane. Its extravagant armour has confounded existing theories of how the ankylosaurs, a major group of plant-eating dinosaurs, evolved. Continue reading...

A professor teamed up with student musicians to inspire interest in data about the catastrophic scale' of the crisisA university professor has set her team's research on the plight of Florida's declining oyster population to music, aiming to inform a receptive new audience about the catastrophic" scale of the crisis.Heather O'Leary, professor of anthropology at St Petersburg's University of South Florida (USF), partnered with student composers and faculty from its music department to create Oysters Ain't Safe, a soft jazz alternative to crunching data into a boring" technical report. Continue reading...

Researchers say findings show need for conservation efforts to focus on nutritional diversityWild bees strategically visit different flowers to balance their intake of protein, fat and carbohydrates, a study has found.A team of ecologists observed eight species of wild bumblebees in the Colorado Rockies over eight years to develop a comprehensive nutritional map. Continue reading...

Astounding study of rocks formed from foundry waste on Cumbrian coast could throw geological precepts into doubtRocks take thousands to millions of years to be made, right? Wrong. Researchers have discovered that industrial waste has forged itself into rock over the course of just a few decades. This astounding discovery, made at Derwent Howe on the UK's Cumbrian coast, challenges theories about how rocks are formed.The rocks, which are a glassy texture and blue-grey colour, are made from slag, leftover from the iron and steel-making foundries that operated near Derwent Howe in the 19th and 20th centuries. Samples show the rocks contain many of the chemicals found in ordinary sedimentary rocks, but in this case hardened into solid rock within 35 years. An aluminium drinks tab dating to 1989 or later and a 1934 George V coin, fused into the new rock, are proof of its rapid formation. Continue reading...

Sharks could struggle to feed themselves efficiently in future, affecting marine ecosystem stability, researchers saySharks without teeth might sound like the stuff of dreams to swimmers and surfers. Now a new study has found that ocean acidification could leave the apex predators without their critical survival weapon.Shark jaws carry several rows of teeth and new ones quickly push forward to replace losses. However, rapidly acidifying oceans are damaging shark teeth and could speed losses past replacement rates. Sharks with bad teeth could struggle to feed themselves efficiently, potentially affecting shark populations and marine ecosystem stability", the study said. Continue reading...

Third time was the charm on for the launch of SpaceX's Starship megarocket, after the launch had been scrubbed two times in as many days. The 10th test flight comes after a string of explosive failures that raised doubts about whether the world's most powerful launch vehicle can fulfil founder Elon Musks's vision of colonising Mars or helping Nasa return astronauts to the moon

Test flight comes after explosive failures raised doubts over founder Elon Musk's goals to reach Mars and moonThird time was the charm on Tuesday for the launch of SpaceX's Starship megarocket after the launch had been scrubbed two times in as many days. The success of this 10th flight proved the spacecraft had overcome its past failures key to the Mars rocket's reusable design.The stainless steel behemoth, 403ft (123 meters) tall, lifted off from the company's Starbase in southern Texas at 6.30pm local time (2330 GMT), to loud cheers from engineering teams, a webcast showed. This mission was to be a test of the ship's new heat shield tiles and satellite deployment abilities, among hundreds of other upgrades from past iterations. Continue reading...

After a couple of postponements, Elon Musk's SpaceX will make another attempt to launch its enormous Starship rocket for a third time to achieve several long-sought development milestones missed due to past tests ending in early failures Continue reading...

Research reveals why single fermentation beers sometimes lack the thick, stable foam of other pub favouritesA flat pint of beer with no head is a common gripe among pub-goers. And while the bar staff's pint-pulling technique is often assumed to be the cause, scientists have discovered that the stability of beer foam is also highly dependent on the chemical makeup of the brew.Triple fermented beers have the most stable foams, the study found, while the froth created by single fermentation beers, including lagers, are inherently more likely to collapse before you have time to take the first sip. Continue reading...

Results suggest brain co-evolved with manual dexterity, say scientists, with humans by no means the outlierBig hands might mean big feet, but it seems long thumbs are linked to large brains - at least in primates.Researchers say the results suggest the brain co-evolved with manual dexterity in such mammals. Continue reading...

For more than a decade, scientists have been puzzling over what was causing billions of starfish to dissolve into piles of white goo. Sea star wasting disease has ravaged starfish populations, wiping out 90% of the once common sunflower sea star. Now, researchers have finally identified the culprit. Madeleine Finlay speaks to Dr Melanie Prentice, one of the team to crack the case. She explains the impact the disease has had on the marine environment, how they found the pathogen responsible, and what it means for sea stars' recoveryScientists identify bacterium behind devastating wasting disease in starfishSupport the Guardian: theguardian.com/sciencepod Continue reading...

Launch delay from Elon Musk's company marks latest in streak of setbacks, including a liquid oxygen leak on SundaySpaceX was forced to scrap the launch of its giant Starship rocket from Texas again on Monday, this time due to weather, marking the latest in a streak of setbacks for the Elon Musk-run company.The 232ft (71-metre) tall Super Heavy booster and its 171ft tall Starship upper half - together taller than New York's Statue of Liberty - was due to take off from SpaceX's Starbase rocket facilities at 7.30pm local time. But the launch was called off at the last minute. Continue reading...

Genetically modified lung functioned for nine days, in latest development in xenotransplantation aimed at solving organ shortage crisisSurgeons have transplanted a lung from a genetically modified pig into a brain dead human recipient for the first time and found it functioned for nine days, researchers have revealed.The work is the latest development in a technique called xenotransplantation that is aimed at solving the organ shortage crisis: according to the World Health Organization, only up to 10% of the global need for such transplants is being met. Continue reading...

Exposure to high temperatures could result in long-lasting damage to health of billions of people, scientists warnRepeated exposure to heatwaves is accelerating ageing in people, according to a study. The impact is broadly comparable with the damage smoking, alcohol use, poor diet or limited exercise can have on health, the researchers said.Extreme temperatures are increasingly common owing to the climate crisis, potentially causing widespread and long-lasting damage to the health of billions, the scientists warned. Continue reading...

Since our early ancestors came down from the canopy, we may think we have learned how to live without trees. But our lives remain intertwined in incredible waysOnce upon a time there was a girl who lived in a tree. She had deep-set brown eyes and brown hair. She ate fruit - orange mangosteen and black juniper berries - crunched on nuts, sucked on sweet grasses and chewed juicy leaves, and dug up tubers and roots, knowing which ones were good, and which were hard or poisonous.Sometimes, she followed the trails that crisscrossed through the grass, but much of the time she clambered through the broad crowns of the trees, reaching up for branches and feeling the texture of the bark against her hands, balancing against the trunks and springing along boughs. At night she tucked herself into the fork of several branches and curled up to sleep, watching stars like diamonds and branches against the sky. Continue reading...

The constellation contains no bright stars - but once seen seems to dominate its patch of night skyIn August, track down the constellation of Hercules, the hero. It is well placed from the northern hemisphere at this time of year, but finding it requires a little bit of celestial sleuthing owing to the fact that the constellation contains no really bright stars. Once seen, however, it seems to dominate its patch of the night sky.The chart shows the view looking west-south-west from London on 25 August at 10pm BST. The constellation's most recognisable feature is the four stars making up the keystone shape that represents Hercules's body. Continue reading...

Elon Musk's ambitious timetable for reaching the moon and conquering Mars left hanging in the balanceThe launch of Elon Musk's gargantuan Starship space rocket was scrubbed late on Sunday afternoon, with the billionaire entrepreneur's ambitious timetable for reaching the moon and conquering Mars left hanging in the balance.SpaceX said it was standing down from the launch to allow time to troubleshoot an issue with ground systems", a post on social media read. There was no information on when the launch would be rescheduled. Continue reading...

Social media is helping drive trade in skulls, bones and skin products as UK legal void risks new era of body snatching'When it comes to human stuff, I'll take anything, pretty much," says Henry Scragg. As long as it's been ethically sourced, may I add."Speaking from his macabre curiosities shop in Essex in a recent YouTube interview, Scragg wears a shabby bowler hat, has tribal-style face tattoos and a ginger beard that descends into three pendulous dreadlocks. Continue reading...

The organisation that manages the Square Kilometre Array Observatory has denied whistleblower allegations of financial mismanagement

Satellite mega-constellation missions behind threefold increase in emissions of climate-altering soot and COScientists are calling for a new global regime to address air pollution caused by the space industry.Prof Eloise Marais's team at University College London (UCL) began tracking space activities in 2020. Their latest figures reveal 259 rocket launches in 2024, and 223 launches in 2023. These burned more than 153,000 tonnes of fuel. Continue reading...

Istiorachis macarthurae, named after sailor Ellen MacArthur, had a pronounced sail along its back that may have been used to attract matesScientists have discovered a new species of dinosaur with an eye-catching sail" along its back and tail that may have been used to attract mates.The iguanodontian dinosaur, whose fossils were found on the Isle of Wight, was identified by Dr Jeremy Lockwood, a PhD student at the University of Portsmouth and the Natural History Museum. Continue reading...

Researchers shocked' to discover some species settling down for sleep 50 minutes later than rural counterpartsUrban birds stay up significantly later than their rural counterparts, according to research that highlights the impact of light pollution on wildlife.The study, based on recordings submitted by bird enthusiasts to a popular species identification and mapping website, showed that light pollution caused birds to sing for an average of 50 minutes longer each day, with some species waking up an hour earlier and settling down for the evening an hour later. Continue reading...

South Lake Tahoe resident was probably bitten by infected flea while camping in the area, local health authorities sayA resident of South Lake Tahoe in California has tested positive for the plague, local authorities announced this week.A statement released on Tuesday by health officials in El Dorado county said they were notified of the situation by the California department of public health (CDPH). The statement said the individual is now recovering at home and is under the care of a medical professional. Continue reading...

My friend Michael Waldman, who has died aged 83, was a palaeontologist and an inspiring teacher of geology. He discovered one of the most productive and important fossil sites in Scotland, and named several new species of extinct animals.Mike discovered the fossil site in 1971, during a Duke of Edinburgh school trip that he was co-leading to Skye. There, near the village of Elgol, he found the first mammal fossil from the time of dinosaurs in Scotland, named Borealestes serendipitus, the northern rogue found by serendipity". On subsequent trips, he and colleagues discovered fossil skeletons of fish, salamanders, lizards, turtles and mammals from the Middle Jurassic, some of the most complete examples of their kind in the world. Continue reading...

Researchers also suggest system could resolve problems with irregular and weather-dependent Earth-based supplySolar panels in space could cut Europe's terrestrial renewable energy needs by 80% by 2050, a study has found.Using a detailed computer model of the continent's future power grid, the researchers found that a system of space-based panels designed by Nasa could reduce the cost of the whole European power system by as much as 15%. It could also cut battery use by more than two-thirds. Continue reading...

Charity says it is outrageous' tooth stem cell procedures are being advertised with claims about treating' autismCompanies are making thousands of pounds by misleading parents with claims that collecting stem cells from their children's teeth can be a treatment for diabetes and autism, an investigation has found.Tooth stem cell banking, also known as dental pulp cell banking, involves parents collecting and sending lost milk teeth to a laboratory where stem cells are harvested from the dental pulp. Firms that advertise tooth banking services claim these stem cells can be used in treatments for conditions such as diabetes as well as for autism. Continue reading...

Baby brain' is often referenced jokingly and dismissively when discussing pregnancy and forgetfulness. But a new brain scan study reveals something more profound: pregnancy does not weaken the brain, it rewires it. Neelam Tailor explores what this means for neuroscience and caregiving, and how little we still understand about women's health Continue reading...

Scientists have found the first robust evidence that people's genes affect their chances of developing myalgic encephalomyelitis or chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS), a mysterious and debilitating illness that has been neglected and dismissed for decades by many in the medical community. To find out more, Madeleine Finlay speaks to science editor Ian Sample and to Nicky Proctor, who has ME and took part in the research. She also hears from Beth Pollack, a research scientist at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology who studies ME/CFS and related conditions, about how scientific understanding of the illness has improved and how scientists are transforming this knowledge into ideas about future treatmentsSupport the Guardian Continue reading...

Entrepreneur who overcame the odds to realise his vision of a spaceport in the Shetland IslandsThe serial entrepreneur Frank Strang, who has died aged 67 of oesophageal cancer, seized an unpremeditated opportunity to deliver the first licensed spaceport for vertical launches in western Europe, overcoming multiple barriers along the way.Having acquired a disused RAF radar station at the most northerly point in the Shetland Islands a decade earlier - without any thought of spaceports - by 2017 Strang had realised the potential of his asset as the government sought to promote a UK launch capacity. Continue reading...

Isotopes shows animal began life in Wales, adding weight to theory cattle used in hauling stones across countryA cow's tooth from a jawbone deliberately placed beside the entrance to Stonehenge at the Neolithic monument's very beginning in 2995 to 2900BC could offer tantalising new evidence about how the stones were transported about 125 miles from Wales to Salisbury Plain.Analysis of the third molar tooth showed the animal began life in Wales, adding weight to a theory that cows were used as beasts of burden in hauling the enormous stones across the country. Continue reading...

Analysis of blood samples finds women with the disease have 20% lower levels, a pattern not seen in menWomen should ensure they are getting enough omega fatty acids in their diets according to researchers, who found unusually low levels of the compounds in female patients with Alzheimer's disease.The advice follows an analysis of blood samples from Alzheimer's patients and healthy individuals, which revealed levels of unsaturated fats, such as those containing omega fatty acids, were up to 20% lower in women with the disease. Continue reading...

Flash of light visible for hundreds of miles was an exceptionally bright meteor, say expertsA huge fireball dashed across the skies of western Japan, shocking residents and dazzling stargazers, though experts said it was a natural phenomenon and not an alien invasion.Videos and photos emerged online of the extremely bright ball of light visible for hundreds of miles shortly after 11.00pm local time (1400 BST) on Tuesday. Continue reading...

Why evolutionary theory should be applied to peacocks, politics, iPhones and quite a lot in betweenNobody expected the Spanish Inquisition, but then again no one could have predicted the giraffe, the iPhone or JD Vance. The laws of physics don't demand them; they all just evolved, expressions of how (for better or worse) things happened to turn out.Ecologist Mark Vellend's thesis is that to understand the world, physics and evolution are the only two things you need". Evolution, here, refers in the most general sense to outcomes that depend on what has gone before. Thus the world can be divided into things that are inescapable and things that are contingent, depending on circumstances. In the terminology he borrows from evolutionary biologist Graham Bell, the study of physical necessity is the first science"; that of historical contingency the second. So, the periodic table of 90 or so natural elements, which are inescapable given the laws of physics, would fall under the first science. Dung beetles and vice presidents, which aren't, fall under the second. Continue reading...

Triggerplants in particular live up to their name with a rapid response when touch-sensitive stamen are nudgedFlowers are surprisingly touchy, especially their male parts, the stamens, with hundreds of plant species performing touch-sensitive stamen movements that can be endlessly repeated. Insects visiting Berberis and Mahonia flowers to feed on nectar get slapped by stamens that bend over and smother pollen on to the insect's face or tongue. This unwelcome intrusion scares the insect into making only a short visit, so the flower avoids wasting its nectar and pollen. The insect then finds another flower where it brushes the pollen off on receptive female organs and cross-pollinates the flower.An insect landing on the flowers of the orchid Catasetum gets a violent reception - whacked by a pair of sticky pollen bags shooting out at such great speed the insect gets knocked out of the flower with the pollen bags glued to its body. Continue reading...

With the number of very hot days rising as well as average temperatures, more and more animals are vulnerable. But while some species can adapt, others are seeing huge population declinesThe residents of Tecolutilla, Mexico, knew the heatwave was bad when they heard the thuds. One by one, the town's howler monkeys, overcome with dehydration and exhaustion, were falling from the trees like apples, their limp bodies smacking the ground as temperatures sizzled past 43C (110F) in spring last year.Those that survived were given ice and intravenous drips by rescuers. At least 83 of the primates were found dead in the state of Tabasco, though local veterinarians estimated hundreds throughout the region probably perished. Continue reading...

American Academy of Pediatrics recommends children as young as six months and up to 23 months get the shotThe American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) is urging that children as young as six months and up to 23 months receive the Covid-19 vaccine - a position that diverges from the current federal guidance given by the Trump administration's health agencies.The AAP released its updated childhood immunization schedule, which outlines recommendations for vaccines against Covid-19, influenza and RSV for individuals under 18. Continue reading...

Deaths from short-term exposure to fine particulates spewed by forest fires underestimated by 93%Choking smoke spewed by wildfires is far more dangerous than previously thought, a new study has found, with death tolls from short-term exposure to fine particulates underestimated by 93%.Researchers found that 535 people in Europe died on average each year between 2004 and 2022 as a result of breathing in the tiny toxic particles known as PM2.5 that are released when wildfires rage. Continue reading...

Hot summer also causing trees to shed their leaves as concerns raised over food gap' for wildlife in autumnAutumn is the season of mists and mellow fruitfulness", according to the poet John Keats - but anyone hoping for a glut of blackberries this September may be sorely disappointed.In many parts of the UK brambles have been bursting with fruit since mid-summer, with some now bearing only shrivelled berries. And it is not the only hallmark of autumn that appears to have come early: trees are dropping their leaves, apples are ripe and acorns are hitting the ground. Continue reading...

Amid collapse of global pollution treaty, scientists highlight environmental factors causing fertility crisisAction must be taken to curb the use of plastic additives linked to plummeting sperm counts, a leading reproductive scientist has warned, as splits over chemical regulation contributed to the collapse of a crucial treaty on plastic pollution.Across the world, sperm counts have been declining at a rate of about 1% a year for the past 50 years, and human fertility has been diminishing at a similar rate, studies have shown. Continue reading...