Science & Tech

Global Ocean Temperatures Near Record High as 2026 Spike Arrives Without El Niño Boost

Preliminary data show sea surface temperatures near record highs in March 2026 despite neutral Pacific conditions, raising risks for storms and reefs.

#climatechange, #oceantemperatures, #marineheatwaves, #coralbleaching, #hurricaneseason

Gravitational-wave catalog reveals long-predicted ‘missing’ range in black hole masses

Analysis of dozens of LIGO-Virgo-KAGRA mergers finds evidence for the pair-instability mass gap, linking black hole sizes to stellar deaths.

#gravitationalwaves, #blackholes, #ligo, #astrophysics, #stars

CERN’s LHCb Spots New ‘Heavy Proton,’ Settling a 20-Year Particle Dispute

Upgraded LHCb confirms the doubly charmed baryon Ξcc⁺ at 3,620 MeV, matching theory and undercutting a disputed 2002 SELEX claim.

#cern, #lhc, #particlephysics, #quarks, #qcd

Nature study warns 2°C warming could still bring extreme drought, fires and floods

A new Nature study finds that even at 2°C warming, worst-case climate models show 4°C-level risks for crops, forests and cities.

#climatechange, #globalwarming, #extremeweather, #drought, #wildfires

NASA’s Artemis II Prepares to Send Astronauts Around the Moon for the First Time Since 1972

Artemis II aims to launch four astronauts on a 10-day lunar flyby, testing SLS and Orion amid cost, safety and geopolitical pressure.

#nasa, #artemis, #moon, #spaceflight, #orion

Geomagnetic Storm Sparks Rare Aurora Sightings Far From the Poles

A CME-driven G3 geomagnetic storm on March 20–21 sent vivid auroras as far south as Wyoming and central Europe, with limited impacts reported.

#aurora, #spaceweather, #solarcycle25, #geomagneticstorm

Stanford Researchers Turn Protein Fragments Into DNA for Sequencer-Based Proteomics

A Stanford team reports “reverse translation,” encoding peptides into barcoded DNA readable on standard sequencers—promising single-molecule proteomics beyond mass spec.

#proteomics, #dnasequencing, #stanford, #biotechnology, #singlecell

Global ‘evolution gardens’ show plants can adapt to warming—until heat pushes them past a tipping point

In a five-year global experiment, Arabidopsis evolved fast in many climates—but populations in the hottest sites collapsed, revealing limits to adaptation.

#climatechange, #evolution, #plantscience, #biodiversity

Newly Found Sungrazing Comet Could Flare Brighter Than Venus—or Disintegrate at the Sun

Comet C/2026 A1 (MAPS) reaches a perilous April 4 sun-skimming perihelion. Astronomers say it could blaze briefly—or vanish in a breakup.

#comet, #astronomy, #sun, #space, #nasa

Astronomers confirm second newborn giant planet in ringed WISPIT 2 system

Interferometer data confirm a second forming gas giant around young sunlike star WISPIT 2, offering a rare view of how solar systems take shape.

#exoplanets, #astronomy, #planetformation, #eso, #vlt

A Superluminous Supernova Blinked Four Times—And May Reveal Einstein’s Frame-Dragging at Work

Astronomers report a rare “chirping” supernova whose four accelerating flares may trace frame-dragging around a newborn magnetar, testing relativity.

#astronomy, #supernova, #magnetar, #generalrelativity, #timedomain

March Heat Dome Shattered Records Across the West — and Scientists Say Climate Change Made It 800 Times More Likely

A late-March heat dome pushed Phoenix past 100°F and toppled hundreds of records. Researchers say such heat was ‘virtually impossible’ without warming.

#climatechange, #heatwave, #weather, #southwest, #extremeheat

Astronomers Spot Likely Giant Impact as Distant Star’s Light ‘Goes Bonkers’

A University of Washington team says unusual dimming and an infrared surge in a young star point to a rare, Moon-like planetary collision.

#astronomy, #exoplanets, #gaia, #planetaryscience, #space

Oval Orbit Revealed in LIGO’s 2020 Neutron Star–Black Hole Crash

A new reanalysis of GW200105 finds the pair merged on an eccentric orbit, pointing to a chaotic, cluster-like origin rather than a quiet stellar partnership.

#gravitationalwaves, #ligo, #blackhole, #neutronstar, #astrophysics

NASA Rolls Artemis II Moon Rocket Back to Pad 39B, Aiming for April 1 Launch

Artemis II returns to Kennedy’s Pad 39B after helium-system repairs, setting up final tests ahead of NASA’s first crewed lunar mission since 1972.

#nasa, #artemis, #moon, #spacelaunchsystem, #orion