Sign up for CNN’s Wonder Theory science newsletter. Explore the universe with news about fascinating discoveries, scientific developments and more. CNN — The sun has a powerful magnetic field that creates sunspots on the star’s surface and unleashes solar storms like the one that bathed much of the planet in beautiful auroras this month. But … Read more
Sign up for CNN’s Wonder Theory science newsletter. Explore the universe with news about fascinating discoveries, scientific developments and more. CNN — The sun has a powerful magnetic field that creates sunspots on the star’s surface and unleashes solar storms like the one that bathed much of the planet in beautiful auroras this month. But … Read more
Circular depressions about 500 feet wide off the coast of Central California are quite old and owe their longevity to sediment flows, new research shows. However, the original cause has yet to be discovered. The Sur Pockmark Field has puzzled oceanographers since its discovery in 1998. More than 5,000 shallow circular depressions are packed into … Read more
Rather than dying dramatically in a massive supernova explosion, some large stars may die quietly and without fanfare. This could explain the mysterious and sudden disappearance of certain stars from the night sky that astronomers have noticed over the years, according to a new article in the journal Physical Assessment Letters. These massive stars can … Read more
Astronomers believe they have solved a remarkable and widely known cosmic mystery, NASA announced this week. Two groups of researchers, mainly using observations from the James Webb Space Telescope, have discovered what causes certain planets to form to look “swollen” or bloated much larger than the dimensions suggested by their remarkably low density. It’s a … Read more
A surprisingly low methane reservoir could explain how a planet around a nearby star became strangely bloated, according to new observations from the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST(. The finding shows that planetary atmospheres can inflate to remarkable amounts without resorting to esoteric theories of planet formation, astronomers say. “The Webb data tells us that … Read more
WASP-193b, a new exoplanet, is 50% larger than Jupiter, but seven times less massive, with an extremely low density comparable to cotton candy. Discovered by WASP and confirmed by observatories in Chile, the formation challenges current planetary theories and requires further research. Credit: SciTechDaily.com This exoplanet is larger but seven times less massive than Jupiter … Read more
At various points in our tangled history, modern humans have mated with each other Neanderthals. This left a telltale signature on the genomes of today’s modern humans, and this Neanderthal DNA impacts our health in countless ways. However, there is one part of our genome where no Neanderthal DNA is present: the Y chromosome. But … Read more