Explosions of universe’s first stars spewed powerful jets
Instead of ballooning into spheres, as once thought, early supernovae ejected jets that may have seeded new stars.
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Ocean activity is key controller of summer monsoons
Results may help researchers interpret ancient monsoon variations, predict future activity in the face of climate change.
North Atlantic Ocean productivity has dropped 10 percent during Industrial era
Phytoplankton decline coincides with warming temperatures over the last 150 years.
3 Questions: Salvatore Vitale on LIGO’s latest detections
“We will keep listening for these faint and remote cosmic whispers,” says the physics professor.
New polymer films conduct heat instead of trapping it
Material may replace many metals as lightweight, flexible heat dissipators in cars, refrigerators, and electronics.
“Nanofiber yarn” makes for stretchy, protective artificial tissue
Twisted fibers coated with living cells could assist healing of injured muscles and tendons.
TESS discovers its first Earth-sized planet
Orbiting a nearby star, the new planet is the smallest identified so far by the TESS mission.
Earliest life may have arisen in ponds, not oceans
Study finds shallow bodies of water were probably more suitable for Earth’s first life forms.
Working together as a “virtual telescope,” observatories around the world produce first direct images of a black hole
Images reveal supermassive black hole at the heart of the Messier 87 galaxy.
Researchers tune material’s color and thermal properties separately
Polymers could be designed to reflect or trap heat, regardless of hue.
3 Questions: Lisa Barsotti on the new and improved LIGO
“If we are very lucky, we might observe something new … or maybe even something totally unexpected.”
Dark matter experiment finds no evidence of axions
In its first run, ABRACADABRA detects no signal of the hypothetical dark matter particle within a specific mass range.
MIT receives $30 million to help address energy challenges in Egypt
Award from USAID will support research collaborations through new Center of Excellence in Energy at Ain Shams University in Cairo.
Ken Kamrin seeks fundamental behaviors in sand
Mechanical engineering professor’s models of granular flow shed light on agriculture, soils, and geology.
MIT celebrates 50th anniversary of historic moon landing
Symposium featuring former astronauts and other Apollo mission luminaries examines the program’s legacy.