Scientific American Content: Global

NASA Artemis II astronauts in ‘great spirits,’ space agency officials say as mission nears moon

Fri, 03 Apr 2026 20:36:00 +0000

Friday is the Artemis II mission’s third official day as it makes a ten-day journey around the moon and back

What are NASA’s Artemis II astronauts eating? 58 tortillas, 43 cups of coffee and a lot of hot sauce

Fri, 03 Apr 2026 20:30:00 +0000

The menu for NASA’s moon mission has 189 unique items on it and mirrors that of the International Space Station

How NASA’s moon mission could help transform space medicine

Fri, 03 Apr 2026 17:00:00 +0000

Artemis II’s AVATAR experiment will see organs-on-a-chip travel to the moon and back, revealing how such a journey affects the body’s cells

Inge Lehmann and Earth’s deepest Secret

Fri, 03 Apr 2026 16:00:00 +0000

Science writer Hanne Strager explores how the trailblazing Danish seismologist Inge Lehmann overcame self-doubt to discover that Earth has a solid inner core, overturning the long-held belief that it was liquid

NASA’s Artemis II astronauts may catch a comet—if it can survive the sun

Fri, 03 Apr 2026 15:48:00 +0000

Amid a journey of celestial spectacles, the Artemis II astronauts may spot a comet—if it survives a dash past the sun

Where is Artemis II now? NASA mission is committed to the moon

Fri, 03 Apr 2026 14:00:00 +0000

The second day of the Artemis II moon mission saw the crew perform a series of maneuvers that put the Orion capsule on course for the lunar far side

Where did the ‘Oh-My-God’ particle come from?

Fri, 03 Apr 2026 10:45:00 +0000

A single subatomic particle from deep space had the same energy as a baseball pitch, and scientists still don’t know how it got here

See the first stunning images of a massive coral reef that has lain hidden for decades

Fri, 03 Apr 2026 10:30:00 +0000

These incredible corals form what may be one of the world’s largest reef systems—and researchers have a plan to restore it

NASA’s Artemis II astronauts put spacecraft systems to the test on 10‑day mission

Fri, 03 Apr 2026 10:00:00 +0000

Artemis II blasts off on a high‑stakes lunar flyby, marking NASA’s first crewed mission to the moon in decades

NASA’s Artemis II mission is officially on track for the moon

Thu, 02 Apr 2026 23:57:00 +0000

The Orion spacecraft just completed its last planned major fuel burn, setting its course for the rest of its 10-day journey around the moon and back

Why humpback whale rescue effort got called off

Thu, 02 Apr 2026 20:25:00 +0000

It was a tough decision to leave Timmy the humpback whale to die on a small island in the Baltic Sea

RFK, Jr., and EPA announce plan to track microplastics in tap water and humans

Thu, 02 Apr 2026 20:00:00 +0000

The Department of Health and Human Services and the Environmental Protection Agency announced a joint effort to track microplastics in drinking water—but experts say doing so will be difficult

Octopus sex is even weirder than you think

Thu, 02 Apr 2026 18:00:00 +0000

Scientists have learned how male octopuses’ specialized sperm-depositing arm knows where to go

How Eli Lilly’s new GLP‑1 pill stacks up against Wegovy and other weight‑loss drugs

Thu, 02 Apr 2026 18:00:00 +0000

This week the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved a second GLP-1 pill for weight loss. The drug, called Foundayo, resulted in an average of 27 pounds lost in 72 weeks

‘Jaw-dropping’ fossils reset the clock on when complex animals evolved

Thu, 02 Apr 2026 18:00:00 +0000

A treasure trove of fossils from China shows that the Cambrian explosion may have been less explosive than scientists once believed

Anthropic leak reveals Claude Code tracking user frustration and raises new questions about AI privacy

Thu, 02 Apr 2026 15:40:00 +0000

Code that reads your frustration is the least interesting part of the story of this accidental leak from Anthropic. The leak reveals how AI tools are also concealing their own role in the work they help produce

See these ziti-sized fish scale a 50-foot waterfall

Thu, 02 Apr 2026 15:00:00 +0000

These tiny fish use friction to put human rock climbers to shame

NASA’s moon mission day one—a toilet mishap and spacecraft maneuvers

Thu, 02 Apr 2026 14:20:00 +0000

The first day of the Artemis II mission saw the crew enter Earth orbit and prepare for their journey around the moon

Why do Black women have worse IVF outcomes?

Thu, 02 Apr 2026 11:00:00 +0000

A new study helps narrow down the reasons why Black people undergoing infertility treatment have fewer live births

Humans have been gambling since the last ice age

Thu, 02 Apr 2026 04:01:00 +0000

A new archeological finding shows that Native Americans were exploring probability through games of chance far earlier than their Old World counterparts

NASA Artemis II astronauts ‘safe’ and ‘secure’ as they journey toward the moon, officials say

Thu, 02 Apr 2026 01:15:00 +0000

NASA launched the Artemis II moon mission on Wednesday, April 1—a date that will enable the crew to observe the moon pass in front of the sun from space

NASA’s Artemis II mission launches four astronauts to the moon

Wed, 01 Apr 2026 22:43:00 +0000

A daring 10-day voyage will take four astronauts on a loop around the moon and set the stage for future forays to the lunar surface

Secrets of color vision could hold clues to treating nearsightedness

Wed, 01 Apr 2026 18:45:00 +0000

Knowing how your eye optimizes vision could have big implications for the progression of nearsightedness

What the Meta and Google verdict means for social media design

Wed, 01 Apr 2026 17:45:00 +0000

A Los Angeles jury found Instagram and YouTube negligent in how they were built, opening a new legal fight over how courts view social media

Artemis II Mission Timeline

Wed, 01 Apr 2026 16:07:00 +0000

The four astronauts aboard the Orion spacecraft will carry out a packed schedule during their trip around the moon’s far side

Live: NASA’s Artemis II moon mission launches

Wed, 01 Apr 2026 15:00:00 +0000

The U.S. space agency on Wednesday evening launched four astronauts on what may be a record-breaking trip around the moon—see the spacecraft live

The Alaskan permafrost is thawing. Here’s why that’s so worrying

Wed, 01 Apr 2026 14:45:00 +0000

A Wisconsin-sized region of frozen soil is thawing fast, releasing three trillion more gallons of water per year than it did just four decades ago

Artemis II’s toilet is a moon mission milestone

Wed, 01 Apr 2026 12:00:00 +0000

On their voyages to the moon, NASA’s astronauts are finally getting some creature comforts of terrestrial toilets—such as having a door and being able to pee and poop simultaneously

April 1 snowpack this year is utterly dismal

Wed, 01 Apr 2026 11:00:00 +0000

A record warm winter meant that snow levels across the western U.S. were already low, but an incredible March heat wave has made things even worse

Inside a bold plan to pulverize an Earth-bound asteroid

Wed, 01 Apr 2026 10:00:00 +0000

Scientists are designing techniques to smash up space rocks that could be headed our way

Why do we have chins? Researchers may finally know

Wed, 01 Apr 2026 10:00:00 +0000

Humans are the only species that has chins. A recent study sheds light on how that came to be and why evolution doesn’t always follow the rules

Eat more plant-based protein instead of meat, top heart health body says, contradicting RFK, Jr.

Tue, 31 Mar 2026 19:35:00 +0000

These guidelines reinforce the importance of whole grains and fruit and vegetables but clash with the government’s latest nutrition advice on red meat

How a statistical paradox can make research findings fall apart

Tue, 31 Mar 2026 18:00:00 +0000

Simpson’s paradox demonstrates how counterintuitive statistics can be

How physicists proved that quantum weirdness is a feature, not a bug

Tue, 31 Mar 2026 17:45:00 +0000

Charles H. Bennett and Gilles Brassard, winners of the latest Turing Award, spent their lives touting the advantages of the quantum world

Space weather could threaten NASA’s Artemis II astronauts during their trip to the moon

Tue, 31 Mar 2026 17:30:00 +0000

A major solar storm during the Artemis II mission could harm astronauts. Here’s how NASA is protecting them

Utah’s Great Salt Lake may be hiding a massive reservoir of fresh water

Tue, 31 Mar 2026 15:50:00 +0000

Fresh-water-saturated sediment or bedrock may extend as deep as three or four kilometers below the Great Salt Lake’s basin, a new study suggests

SpaceX Starlink satellite suffers mysterious ‘anomaly’ in orbit

Tue, 31 Mar 2026 14:00:00 +0000

Elon Musk’s space Internet company said this satellite, which appears to have blown to pieces, did not appear to pose a risk to the ISS or the upcoming NASA moon mission

NASA’s nuclear mission to Mars isn’t as crazy as it sounds

Tue, 31 Mar 2026 12:00:00 +0000

The U.S. space agency’s Skyfall project calls for sending robotic helicopters to Mars on a nuclear-powered spacecraft before the end of Donald Trump’s presidency

How to get pesticides and ‘forever chemicals’ off fruits and vegetables

Tue, 31 Mar 2026 10:00:00 +0000

Fresh fruits and vegetables can often come with toxic residues from pesticides, some of which contain so-called forever chemicals. Here’s how to limit your exposure

NASA starts countdown clock to historic Artemis II moon mission launch

Mon, 30 Mar 2026 21:30:00 +0000

The space agency is targeting Wednesday, April 1, to launch a crew of four astronauts on a potentially record-breaking journey around the moon and back

Titanic and Avatar director James Cameron explains why bees are his latest fixation

Mon, 30 Mar 2026 17:30:00 +0000

James Cameron tells Scientific American how his latest documentary, Secrets of the Bees, reveals an intimate view of the inside of a beehive

New ‘Cicada’ COVID variant is spreading in the U.S.—here’s what to know

Mon, 30 Mar 2026 13:30:00 +0000

Infections of the BA.3.2 variant of the COVID-causing coronavirus are still at very low levels, but experts are concerned it may be resistant to immunity from vaccines or prior infection

These snakes steal poison from their prey—here's how they know they have enough

Mon, 30 Mar 2026 10:30:00 +0000

Snakes that gain poisons from eating toads seem to know when they’re toxic by keeping track of what they last ate

NASA’s nuclear Mars mission, Iran war’s carbon emissions surge and Pfizer’s promising Lyme vaccine trial

Mon, 30 Mar 2026 10:00:00 +0000

NASA’s nuclear Mars mission, the Iran war’s carbon fallout, the looming climate cost of rebuilding and a hopeful new Lyme vaccine

NASA astronauts are counting down to the Artemis II moon launch

Sun, 29 Mar 2026 16:20:00 +0000

NASA is targeting April 1 to launch a crew of four astronauts on a journey around the moon that will set the tone for the agency’s lunar exploration ambitions

Static electricity has baffled scientists for centuries. Can new research solve the puzzle?

Sun, 29 Mar 2026 12:00:00 +0000

This familiar phenomenon has puzzled researchers for centuries, but experiments are finally making sense of its unruly behaviors

Can you survive inside a tornado? This scientist did by accident—he’s lucky to be alive

Sat, 28 Mar 2026 13:00:00 +0000

Atmospheric scientist Perry Samson was doing fieldwork when he was unexpectedly caught inside a tornado—making him one of the few such people who have lived to tell the tale

How ultraprecise ‘nuclear clocks’ could transform timekeeping

Sat, 28 Mar 2026 12:00:00 +0000

Superprecise timekeepers based on atomic nuclei could be tested as soon as this year

How to build self-control, according to psychologists

Sat, 28 Mar 2026 12:00:00 +0000

Exercising self-control doesn’t need to be unpleasant, research shows

How human neurons on a chip learned to play Doom

Sat, 28 Mar 2026 11:00:00 +0000

Cortical Labs says the stunt points toward a new kind of low-power computing—and perhaps a new way to study neurological drugs