Ancient solar storm smashed Earth at the wrong part of the sun’s cycle — and scientists are concerned

An extremely powerful solar storm pummeled our planet 9,200 years ago, leaving permanent scars on the ice buried deep below Greenland and Antarctica. A new study of those ancient ice samples has found that this previously unknown storm is one of the strongest outbursts of solar weather ever detected and would have crippled modern communications systems … Read more

Physicists Just Smashed a Record by Keeping a Bubble Intact For Over a Year

When you think of the word “ephemeral”, many people will immediately conjure up the image of a soap bubble: delicate, gorgeous, and gone in a blink (or maybe a few). Now a team of physicists led by Aymeric Roux of the University of Lille in France has defied this cliché, creating a bubble that maintained … Read more

Ocean Temperatures Just Smashed a New Record For The Sixth Year in a Row

Ocean temperatures the world over are building at a relentless rate as humans continue to alter the atmosphere around them. In 2021, according to a new summary of two international datasets, the wave of warmth in our oceans hit a new peak, eclipsing the influence of cooler regional episodes.   While last year’s ocean warming … Read more

Biggest science news of 2021: Weather records around the world weren’t just broken, they were smashed

Record-shattering fires, freezes and rainfall around the world made it all too clear that extreme weather is fast becoming the new normal Environment 15 December 2021 By Adam Vaughan A firefighter in California in August REUTERS/Fred Greaves DEADLY fires, floods and freezes struck around the world this year, as a report by the world’s top … Read more

Archaeology: Stones smashed by horses can be mistaken for ancient human tools

Horses kick and stamp on rocks to keep their hooves in good shape, and archaeologists have now realised this can result in a collection of sharp stones that look like the work of an ancient human toolmaker Life 1 December 2021 By Graham Lawton Horses climbing over rocks Shutterstock / Valentin Finaev Some stone tools … Read more