Science & Tech

ArXiv preprint claims possible 0.38‑parsec binary supermassive black holes in NGC 5044

An arXiv preprint reports two radio-bright cores 0.38 pc apart in NGC 5044, a possible record sub-parsec binary SMBH — the claim is unreviewed and provisional.

#blackholes, #ngc5044, #radioastronomy, #astrophysics

Gaia astrometry suggests hidden fifth companion in HR 8799 system

Gaia and archival data point to a possible 10–14 Jupiter-mass object 2–3 au from HR 8799, filling a long-standing inner detection gap.

#exoplanets, #gaia, #hr8799, #astronomy

Simulation Study Maps How NIF-Style Indirect Drive Could Reach High Target Gains

An arXiv modeling paper from LLNL and Inertia outlines indirect-drive targets that simulations say could yield 265–427 MJ from a hypothetical 10 MJ laser.

#fusion, #livermore, #nif, #simulation, #inertia

Reanalysis with Corrected Pantheon+ and DES-DOVEKIE Leaves Hubble Tension Intact

A reanalysis applying corrected Pantheon+ and DES-DOVEKIE supernova data finds the local Hubble constant stays near 73 km/s/Mpc, leaving the Hubble tension unchanged.

#hubbletension, #cosmology, #supernovae, #pantheonplus, #des

Preprint claims first direct auroral radio detection and magnetic-field measurement for exoplanet β Pictoris b

Unreviewed arXiv preprint reports MeerKAT detections of auroral radio bursts from β Pictoris b and infers a ≳1.25 kG magnetic field; confirmation needed.

#exoplanets, #astronomy, #radioastronomy, #magneticfields

Multi-agent AI 'Station' publishes code and Lean proofs after claiming novel mathematical discoveries

An arXiv preprint says the open‑world multi‑agent system Station claimed several new mathematical results and published code, full dialogues and Lean proofs.

#ai, #math, #research, #formalproofs

Preprint: Strong helium outflow detected on sub‑Neptune GJ 3090b could strip its gas in ~300 million years

An arXiv preprint reports a strong metastable-helium signal from sub‑Neptune GJ 3090b, implying rapid photoevaporative loss that could strip its H‑He envelope in ~300 million years.

#exoplanets, #astronomy, #helium, #photoevaporation

BEAST: Exascale Bayesian Weather Transformer Trained on JUPITER Reaches 3.96 Exaflops

A multi‑institution team trained BEAST, a Bayesian weather transformer, on JUPITER at 3.96 exaflops, producing 0.25° probabilistic forecasts; arXiv preprint.

#weather, #ai, #supercomputing, #forecasting, #exascale

Preprint reports Kohn‑Sham DFT at 100–200 million atoms and an 11.3M-atom battery interface

An arXiv preprint describes an O(N) Kohn‑Sham DFT method the authors say scaled to 100–200M atoms and matched XPS on an 11.3M-atom battery interface.

#dft, #materials-science, #computational-physics, #batteries

August 2026 Tied as Warmest Month on Record as U.S. Logs Hottest Meteorological Summer

Copernicus and NOAA report August 2026 tied as the warmest month globally while the contiguous U.S. experienced its hottest June–August on record amid a strong El Niño.

#climate, #elnino, #heatwave, #climatechange

Study finds delayed submarine caldera collapse triggered Tonga’s most destructive 2022 tsunami

New study links Tonga’s Jan. 15, 2022 near-field tsunami to a delayed underwater caldera collapse and finds ocean sound signals reached about 2,600 km.

#tsunami, #volcano, #hungatonga, #hydroacoustics, #caldera

Study of eROSITA clusters gives first constraints on Early Dark Energy; joint fit suggests H0 ≈ 71 km/s/Mpc

eROSITA cluster counts yield first cluster-based constraints on Early Dark Energy; combined with CMB and BAO the fit finds f_EDE≈0.10 and H0≈71.4±1.4 km/s/Mpc.

#astronomy, #cosmology, #erosita, #hubbletension

Preprint: Hybrid physics–ML flood model outperforms NOAA’s National Water Model in retrospective hourly U.S. simulations

An arXiv preprint reports a hybrid physics–ML model beat NOAA’s National Water Model in retrospective hourly U.S. flood simulations, notably for rare flood peaks.

#hydrology, #floods, #ai, #noaa

Scientists measure time-cubed quantum phase in freely falling atomic wave packets

Ultracold rubidium interferometer measures long‑predicted T^3 quantum phase in a freely falling atomic wave packet, consistent with the equivalence principle.

#quantum, #gravity, #physics, #interferometry

Two 2025 Pediatric Deaths in China Linked to Experimental Gene-Therapy Trials Raise Transparency Questions

Two children died in separate experimental gene-therapy trials in China in 2025; disclosures in 2026 have raised questions about safety oversight and reporting.

#gene-therapy, #china, #clinical-trials, #research-ethics