https://www.sciencedaily.com/news/top/technology/ Top stories featured on ScienceDaily's Space & Time, Matter & Energy, and Computers & Math sections. en-us Wed, 23 Sep 2026 23:59:00 EDT Wed, 23 Sep 2026 23:59:00 EDT 60 https://www.sciencedaily.com/images/scidaily-logo-rss.png https://www.sciencedaily.com/news/top/technology/ For more science news, visit ScienceDaily. https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/09/260922005649.htm Physicists searching through Large Hadron Collider data found no evidence that the machine has been producing microscopic quantum black holes, but the result sharply narrows where such exotic physics could still be hiding. These hypothetical black holes could form if extra spatial dimensions make gravity much stronger at extremely tiny scales, potentially offering clues toward the long-sought theory of quantum gravity. Tue, 22 Sep 2026 00:56:49 EDT https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/09/260922005649.htm https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/09/260921081114.htm A new AI control system lets MIT’s tiny flying robot move with insect-like agility, boosting its speed by about 450 percent and allowing it to pull off 10 somersaults in 11 seconds. The technology could eventually enable miniature robots to search earthquake rubble and navigate dangerous spaces that conventional drones cannot reach. Tue, 22 Sep 2026 08:52:43 EDT https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/09/260921081114.htm https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/09/260921081110.htm Astronomers have discovered the first globular cluster stellar stream beyond the Milky Way, opening a new way to study dark matter in distant galaxies. These faint trails of stars trace a galaxy’s gravitational structure and could eventually help scientists map invisible matter across the universe. Wed, 23 Sep 2026 07:23:11 EDT https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/09/260921081110.htm https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/09/260921081101.htm An amateur astronomer searching satellite maps for a Quebec camping spot accidentally discovered a massive ancient impact crater. Scientists later found shatter cones that confirmed the 25-kilometer-wide structure was blasted into Earth roughly 390 million years ago. Tue, 22 Sep 2026 06:43:31 EDT https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/09/260921081101.htm https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/09/260921081058.htm NASA’s Roman Space Telescope has successfully activated its 300-megapixel infrared camera, which will capture enormous stretches of the cosmos with Hubble-like sharpness. Its planet-hunting coronagraph is also working as expected, putting Roman another major step closer to beginning science operations in 2027. Mon, 21 Sep 2026 08:10:58 EDT https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/09/260921081058.htm https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/09/260921081054.htm Stanford researchers have recorded the first real-time quantum jumps of sound, watching single phonons abruptly vanish from one energy state to another. The breakthrough could open new paths for quantum computing, error correction, highly sensitive biological sensors, and next-generation sound-based devices. Tue, 22 Sep 2026 09:17:20 EDT https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/09/260921081054.htm https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/09/260921081052.htm Ancient iron meteorites reveal that some of the Solar System’s first solid bodies were built mostly from tiny heat-forged rock beads called chondrules, while water-rich dust was largely excluded. The finding pushes this selective planet-building process back to within the Solar System’s first million years. Tue, 22 Sep 2026 23:06:29 EDT https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/09/260921081052.htm https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/09/260920222405.htm Scientists at Oak Ridge National Laboratory have developed a surprisingly simple way to turn polyethylene, the common plastic used in shopping bags and cutting boards, into gasoline and diesel-like fuels. The process uses inexpensive aluminum-based molten salts to break long plastic molecules into smaller hydrocarbons, producing about 60% gasoline under relatively mild conditions. Mon, 21 Sep 2026 09:08:40 EDT https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/09/260920222405.htm https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/09/260920222358.htm Scientists have found evidence that black holes of vastly different sizes may launch powerful jets according to the same universal rule. Supermassive black holes can produce jets soon after tearing apart a star, then fire up again hundreds or thousands of days later when their feeding rate drops to about 2% of the Eddington limit. That same threshold is known to trigger jets from much smaller black holes in the Milky Way. Mon, 21 Sep 2026 09:23:10 EDT https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/09/260920222358.htm https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/09/260920222350.htm Physicists have put a decades-old idea about why the strange rules of quantum mechanics disappear in our everyday world to one of its toughest experimental tests yet. Deep beneath Italy’s Gran Sasso mountain, researchers searched for an extremely faint radiation signal predicted by a theory suggesting that tiny fluctuations in spacetime, caused by gravity, gradually destroy quantum superpositions. After 62 days of measurements with a highly shielded germanium detector, they found no such signal. Mon, 21 Sep 2026 05:24:50 EDT https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/09/260920222350.htm https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/09/260920032049.htm A decade-long NIST experiment has produced a new measurement of the universal gravitational constant that differs unexpectedly from another leading result, deepening a 225-year-old physics puzzle. The discrepancy is tiny, but for one of nature’s most fundamental constants, it is large enough to keep scientists wondering whether hidden experimental errors or something more surprising is involved. Sun, 20 Sep 2026 06:30:31 EDT https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/09/260920032049.htm https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/09/260919031040.htm A massive crater on Mars’ moon Phobos may hide a dense region of compressed material that could reveal whether the moon is a captured asteroid or debris from an ancient impact on Mars. Japan’s upcoming MMX sample return mission could provide the measurements and physical evidence needed to solve the mystery. Sat, 19 Sep 2026 08:12:41 EDT https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/09/260919031040.htm https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/09/260919031030.htm Scientists have developed ultra-bright nanoparticles that can detect tiny amounts of chemicals and distinguish between molecules that look almost identical. The technology could one day provide a cheaper way to catch dangerous drug impurities or trace pollutants using simple low-cost lasers. Sun, 20 Sep 2026 07:35:28 EDT https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/09/260919031030.htm https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/09/260919031023.htm Physicists have detected strong evidence that heavy, fleeting Z bosons can become quantum entangled during Higgs boson decays at CERN’s Large Hadron Collider. The result shows that Einstein’s “spooky action at a distance” survives even under some of the most extreme conditions ever created in a laboratory. Sun, 20 Sep 2026 01:16:00 EDT https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/09/260919031023.htm https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/09/260919031022.htm Complex systems may work better when their parts are not perfectly alike. Northwestern physicists found that carefully balanced variation, or “disorder,” can make networks such as power grids, ecosystems, neurons, and materials more stable. Even random differences sometimes improved stability compared with completely uniform systems. The discovery could help researchers design more resilient technologies and explain why natural systems are so rarely perfectly uniform. Sat, 19 Sep 2026 07:26:53 EDT https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/09/260919031022.htm https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/09/260918024823.htm A new Caltech device can redirect a beam of light in just 74 femtoseconds using another beam and a nanoscale silicon metasurface. The breakthrough could pave the way for dramatically faster photonic communications, computing, and sensing technologies. Fri, 18 Sep 2026 07:50:13 EDT https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/09/260918024823.htm https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/09/260918024812.htm A single-celled organism can shrink to one-quarter of its length in milliseconds using a remarkable calcium-powered protein “fishnet.” Scientists hope its unusual machinery could inspire artificial muscles capable of moving far faster than today’s designs. Sat, 19 Sep 2026 07:39:22 EDT https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/09/260918024812.htm https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/09/260918024810.htm A deep-sea microbe uses an exceptionally heat-resistant enzyme to turn atmospheric nitrogen into ammonia at temperatures that would destroy most proteins. Its unusual structure and a newly observed reaction state may reveal an ancient, shared mechanism behind nitrogen fixation and could eventually inspire cleaner biotechnology and fertilizer production. Sat, 19 Sep 2026 07:49:45 EDT https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/09/260918024810.htm https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/09/260918024808.htm Scientists have found a new way to create a controlled beam of muonium, an exotic atom containing a heavier cousin of the electron. The advance could allow researchers to test for the first time whether gravity acts on second-generation particles exactly as Einstein’s theory predicts. Any unexpected difference would be a major surprise and could potentially point toward new physics, including a hypothetical fifth force. Fri, 18 Sep 2026 07:07:25 EDT https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/09/260918024808.htm https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/09/260918024802.htm NASA’s Roman Space Telescope may now have enough fuel for at least 22 years of science, more than double its original 10 year design life. An extremely precise course correction, extra fuel at launch, and additional expected savings could keep the powerful observatory studying the universe for decades. Fri, 18 Sep 2026 07:31:56 EDT https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/09/260918024802.htm https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/09/260918024759.htm Scientists are looking to diatoms, sea sponges, and plants for a cleaner way to recover rare earth elements and other valuable minerals hidden inside coal ash, red mud, and mine tailings. The bio-inspired approach could turn massive industrial waste piles into useful materials while reducing energy use, harsh chemicals, and reliance on new mining. Fri, 18 Sep 2026 22:08:56 EDT https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/09/260918024759.htm https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/09/260917003725.htm A pocket-sized, roughly $100 detector can reveal the invisible stream of cosmic particles constantly passing through Earth and even through our bodies. What began as a student physics project is now being used in major experiments, balloon missions, and potentially future spacecraft. Thu, 17 Sep 2026 09:54:19 EDT https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/09/260917003725.htm https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/09/260917003715.htm NASA’s Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter has revealed a 728-foot-wide crater that formed on the Moon in 2024, making it the largest newly formed crater ever identified in the solar system. The impact disturbed the surface for miles around it, creating a surprisingly large cold zone and showing how dramatically a single collision can reshape the lunar landscape. Fri, 18 Sep 2026 06:18:54 EDT https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/09/260917003715.htm https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/09/260917003712.htm Astronomers have confirmed a Jupiter-size planet less than a million years old, making Elias 2-24 b the youngest known planet and giving scientists a rare look at a world still being born. Its surprisingly rapid formation challenges leading theories about how giant planets come together, especially so far from their stars. Thu, 17 Sep 2026 09:00:19 EDT https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/09/260917003712.htm https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/09/260917003703.htm New supercomputer simulations suggest JWST’s puzzling Little Red Dots are rapidly growing black holes from the early Universe. Extreme radiation may have helped create unusually massive black hole seeds, while dense surrounding gas allowed them to grow dozens of times faster than black holes can today. The simulated objects closely resemble the Little Red Dots seen by Webb. If correct, they could solve the mystery of how enormous black holes formed so soon after the Big Bang. Thu, 17 Sep 2026 08:45:48 EDT https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/09/260917003703.htm https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/09/260916232525.htm Scientists have found the first evidence that liquid may have flowed across Pluto’s surface in the recent past. Dark features on the enormous Sputnik Planitia glacier appear consistent with liquid nitrogen rising through cracks from deep beneath the ice. Computer models show that nitrogen could melt at the glacier’s base and travel upward like fluid through small conduits. The finding reveals that Pluto may be much more geologically active than its frozen appearance suggests. Thu, 17 Sep 2026 00:02:29 EDT https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/09/260916232525.htm https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/09/260915232132.htm A new study suggests Earth formed almost entirely from material in the inner Solar System, challenging the idea that water-rich material from beyond Jupiter played a major role. If correct, Earth’s water may have been present much closer to the young Sun than scientists previously thought. Wed, 16 Sep 2026 07:03:10 EDT https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/09/260915232132.htm https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/09/260915232124.htm The James Webb Space Telescope has revealed surprising changes in the rings around Chariklo, a small object orbiting between Saturn and Uranus. Over just a few years, its inner ring became more opaque while its outer ring became less opaque. The results suggest that rings around small Solar System bodies may be much more dynamic than scientists previously believed. What is causing the changes remains a mystery. Tue, 15 Sep 2026 23:51:58 EDT https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/09/260915232124.htm https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/09/260915232122.htm Venus may have once had a moon, but new research suggests the planet’s incredibly slow rotation could have doomed it. Computer simulations showed that instead of gradually drifting away like Earth’s moon, a Venusian moon would likely spiral inward until it crashed into the planet, with larger moons falling even faster. Wed, 16 Sep 2026 07:49:57 EDT https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/09/260915232122.htm https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/09/260915100137.htm Scientists have developed a solar-powered desalination system that turns seawater into fresh water while removing nearly all of the leftover salt as a solid instead of producing harmful brine. The self-cleaning technology could also recover valuable minerals such as lithium, potentially turning desalination waste into a useful resource. Wed, 16 Sep 2026 10:44:50 EDT https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/09/260915100137.htm https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/09/260914102432.htm A mathematical shape famous for covering a surface without ever repeating has revealed an unexpected ability to twist light into unusual chiral patterns. The discovery could lead to new ways of controlling light, polarization, and advanced optical devices. Tue, 15 Sep 2026 09:14:55 EDT https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/09/260914102432.htm https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/09/260914102429.htm Astronomers have discovered that winds from a supermassive black hole are about 100 times more powerful than previously thought. XRISM observations showed the resulting turbulence spreading roughly 300,000 light-years, extending far beyond the black hole’s host galaxy. The energy involved rivals several billion supernova explosions, revealing just how dramatically black holes can influence the space around them. Tue, 15 Sep 2026 08:34:32 EDT https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/09/260914102429.htm https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/09/260913082157.htm A foundational chemistry concept found in textbooks for almost 100 years may have been taught incorrectly. Researchers say the inductive effect in neutral molecules appears to extend only across one chemical bond, rather than gradually weakening over three or four bonds as traditionally taught. The team argues that updating this explanation could make organic chemistry easier to understand and provide a stronger foundation for future research and innovation. Mon, 14 Sep 2026 10:13:47 EDT https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/09/260913082157.htm https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/09/260912222856.htm AI analysis of 400,000 Reddit posts found that users of drugs such as Ozempic, Wegovy, Mounjaro, and Zepbound reported unexpected symptoms including menstrual changes, chills, hot flashes, and fatigue. Researchers cannot say the medications caused these problems, but the patterns may reveal overlooked signals worth studying. Sun, 13 Sep 2026 06:46:19 EDT https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/09/260912222856.htm https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/09/260912220041.htm A massive worldwide survey of physicists has revealed surprisingly little agreement about some of the universe’s biggest mysteries. No majority backed the standard cosmological model, a leading explanation for dark matter, or any single theory of quantum gravity. One area of stronger agreement stood out: 68% said the Big Bang does not necessarily represent the beginning of time. Researchers say the divisions show just how alive and unsettled the frontiers of physics remain. Sun, 13 Sep 2026 09:15:56 EDT https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/09/260912220041.htm https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/09/260912220038.htm Scientists are combining an electron microscope with a quantum computer to squeeze far more information from each electron. The approach could reveal faint details with fewer electrons, helping protect fragile samples that conventional microscopy can damage. Sun, 13 Sep 2026 08:03:59 EDT https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/09/260912220038.htm https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/09/260912220033.htm Scientists have engineered yeast to turn PET plastic and agricultural waste into ingredients for protein-rich, 3D-printed cookies called µBites. Developed partly for NASA’s Deep Space Food Challenge, the system can produce proteins, fats, vitamins, and even vanilla flavoring from waste materials. Researchers hope the unusual technology could eventually help address both plastic pollution and food insecurity, while also supplying food in extreme environments such as deep-space missions. Sun, 13 Sep 2026 07:54:36 EDT https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/09/260912220033.htm https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/09/260912220025.htm Researchers have experimentally demonstrated the optical Magnus effect for the first time, revealing that a tightly focused laser interacts most strongly with an atom slightly away from the beam’s center. The unexpected shift is similar to the physics that makes a spinning table tennis ball curve through the air. Because lasers are used to control qubits, the effect could create errors in quantum computers, but it might also provide a new way to couple qubits together. Sun, 13 Sep 2026 07:22:01 EDT https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/09/260912220025.htm https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/09/260912220022.htm A century-old mystery in Venus’s clouds just became more intriguing, as scientists calculated how strongly the unidentified material behind its dark ultraviolet patterns must absorb light. The results sharply narrow the possibilities and could help future spacecraft determine whether the mysterious substance is organic, inorganic, or something unexpected. Sat, 12 Sep 2026 23:44:09 EDT https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/09/260912220022.htm https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/09/260911214303.htm Physicists at CERN have found a new way to peer deep inside atomic nuclei and distinguish between two competing explanations for how gluons behave. Using the ALICE experiment at the Large Hadron Collider, researchers measured particle production at unprecedented spatial resolution, revealing structures as small as about one-quarter the size of a proton. At the smallest scales, they saw a surprising drop in J/ψ production that conventional “nuclear shadowing” struggles to explain. Sat, 12 Sep 2026 11:04:06 EDT https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/09/260911214303.htm https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/09/260911214245.htm Researchers at Harvard have demonstrated a way to protect quantum information using microscopic sound waves. By continuously surrounding a diamond-based qubit with mechanical vibrations, they extended its coherence time by roughly threefold. The same phonons could eventually both transmit and protect quantum information, opening the door to compact sound-based quantum networks on chips. Sat, 12 Sep 2026 10:08:20 EDT https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/09/260911214245.htm https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/09/260911204910.htm Researchers at Binghamton University have developed a mathematical strategy that can solve Wordle with a 99% success rate. Instead of simply guessing words packed with common letters or choosing the most likely answer, the method uses Shannon entropy, a measure from information theory, to identify guesses that reveal the most useful information. Each guess is designed to rapidly shrink the pool of possible answers, even when the guessed word itself seems unlikely to be correct. Sat, 12 Sep 2026 09:35:56 EDT https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/09/260911204910.htm https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/09/260911003858.htm Scientists have created an ultra-small nanolaser that could eventually allow microchips to transmit information with light instead of electricity, potentially making computers faster while cutting energy use roughly in half. Thousands of the lasers could fit on a single chip, opening possibilities for more efficient data centers, smartphones, and advanced medical sensors. Fri, 11 Sep 2026 08:03:26 EDT https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/09/260911003858.htm https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/09/260911003854.htm Scientists have discovered that Mercury’s surface contains far less silicon dioxide than previously thought, pointing to an unexpectedly hot volcanic past. The finding suggests ancient lava may have originated from deeper, more extensively melted parts of the planet’s mantle. Fri, 11 Sep 2026 21:28:22 EDT https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/09/260911003854.htm https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/09/260911003845.htm Researchers have found a way to perform certain quantum operations more than 1,000 times faster, cutting thousands of repeated control cycles down to just one. The advance could reduce errors and bring reliable, fault-tolerant quantum computers closer to reality. Fri, 11 Sep 2026 07:52:30 EDT https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/09/260911003845.htm https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/09/260910225251.htm Unconventional quantum theories may imply that time itself has a tiny fundamental uncertainty, placing an ultimate limit on how precisely any clock could measure it. The effect is far beyond current detection, but it could reveal a hidden connection between quantum mechanics, gravity, and spacetime. Fri, 11 Sep 2026 01:18:44 EDT https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/09/260910225251.htm https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/09/260909231729.htm Scientists have discovered that the Moon-forming collision may have depended heavily on how hot and physically strong early Earth and Theia were. New simulations found that some impacts create the familiar disk of debris that later becomes the Moon, while others can produce an intact Moon in only about five hours. The results challenge the long-standing assumption that the enormous collision could be modeled as if both worlds behaved mostly like fluids. Wed, 09 Sep 2026 23:17:29 EDT https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/09/260909231729.htm https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/09/260909231712.htm Researchers have created a foam-based material that produces intense whiteness and water repellency without titanium dioxide pigments or PFAS chemicals. Inspired by natural structures in snow, clouds, flowers, and lotus leaves, the material uses tiny pores to scatter light while its rough surface repels water. The technology could offer a more sustainable way to make white, water-resistant everyday materials. Thu, 10 Sep 2026 08:22:11 EDT https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/09/260909231712.htm https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/09/260909005217.htm Interstellar comet 3I/ATLAS contains exceptionally high levels of methanol, suggesting it formed under conditions very different from those that shaped most comets in our solar system. ALMA also revealed that tiny icy grains around the comet are releasing methanol like miniature comets, giving astronomers an unusually detailed look at an object from another star system. Wed, 09 Sep 2026 04:47:39 EDT https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/09/260909005217.htm https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/09/260909005212.htm Two major alien-life announcements in 2025 generated enormous excitement, but most astrobiologists remained unconvinced. Only 6.6% of surveyed experts thought possible biological molecules on K2-18b probably represented extraterrestrial life, while 15.1% said the same about intriguing mineral patterns in a Martian rock. Wed, 09 Sep 2026 07:13:30 EDT https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/09/260909005212.htm https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/09/260909005159.htm Scientists discovered that charged water droplets can damage protective coatings by releasing tiny electrical discharges when they hit a surface. The hidden effect could help explain weathering and lead to tougher coatings for cars, bridges, buildings, and more. Wed, 09 Sep 2026 20:44:47 EDT https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/09/260909005159.htm https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/09/260909005148.htm Scientists found that a tiny atomic structure that forms on nickel oxide during methane conversion is more effective than the metallic nickel long believed to drive the reaction. The discovery allowed a low-nickel catalyst to rival one containing 10 times more metal, potentially opening the door to cheaper and more efficient industrial catalysts. Wed, 09 Sep 2026 01:33:42 EDT https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/09/260909005148.htm https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/09/260907201600.htm A new analysis of more than 1,700 supernovae is questioning whether the universe is really accelerating at all. After accounting for the ages of the stars that produce these explosions, researchers found signs that cosmic expansion may actually be slowing. They also argue that the apparent acceleration changes with direction, which would be difficult to explain with dark energy. Other cosmologists dispute the conclusion, setting up a major test for upcoming observatories. Tue, 08 Sep 2026 23:59:08 EDT https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/09/260907201600.htm https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/09/260907201556.htm Astronomers have detected an exceptionally faint hydrogen radio signal from billions of light-years away using South Africa’s MeerKAT telescope. Instead of finding galaxies one at a time, the technique measures their combined hydrogen glow across enormous stretches of space. The successful detection shows that astronomers may soon be able to create much larger 3D maps of the Universe. Tue, 08 Sep 2026 23:06:55 EDT https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/09/260907201556.htm https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/09/260907201552.htm Physicists have directly observed a long-predicted quantum effect of gravity, putting one of Einstein’s foundational ideas to a striking new test. Using ultracold atoms, researchers split an atom’s quantum wave so that one part was held in place while the other fell freely under gravity, then reunited the two to measure the tiny difference that emerged. Tue, 08 Sep 2026 08:09:21 EDT https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/09/260907201552.htm https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/09/260906170132.htm Scientists have devised a new way to switch magnetic computer memory while using far less energy than today's leading technologies. By mathematically optimizing the pulses used to flip digital bits, the method could reduce energy consumption by several orders of magnitude. Simulations suggest it may bring future memory devices surprisingly close to the fundamental physical limit for processing information. The same idea could eventually work with electrical currents or ultrafast lasers. Sun, 06 Sep 2026 21:14:19 EDT https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/09/260906170132.htm https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/09/260904000328.htm Scientists used Earth’s magnetic field and atmosphere as a planet-sized detector to search for some of the lightest proposed forms of dark matter. The approach dramatically improved limits on ultralight axions and uncovered several intriguing dark photon signals that still need to be explained. Sat, 05 Sep 2026 20:58:46 EDT https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/09/260904000328.htm https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/09/260904000313.htm The LUX-ZEPLIN experiment has detected a rare particle interaction that looks unusually difficult to explain as ordinary background noise and appeared where dark matter might be expected. Scientists are not claiming a discovery yet, but additional data could show whether this single mysterious event is the first hint of a long-sought dark matter particle. Fri, 04 Sep 2026 02:46:01 EDT https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/09/260904000313.htm https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/09/260903064229.htm A huge 10-sided atmospheric pattern has appeared around Saturn’s south pole, giving the planet a surprising counterpart to its famous northern hexagon. Hubble data suggest the strange decagon only began emerging in the past few years and is still growing stronger. Researchers hope continued observations will reveal why it suddenly formed and whether it could persist for decades. Thu, 03 Sep 2026 08:41:39 EDT https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/09/260903064229.htm https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/09/260903064222.htm A more realistic quantum model has revealed evidence that strange, nearly immobile quasiparticles called fractons could exist in solid materials. Their inability to move freely could make them promising building blocks for unusually robust quantum information storage. Mon, 07 Sep 2026 01:45:36 EDT https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2026/09/260903064222.htm