Why airplane toilets are tiny engineering marvels
There’s nothing quite like the sound of an airplane toilet flushing. But that incredibly loud sucking sound is actually something of an engineering marvel. These toilets flush, with no water,…
May 2026
1.3 million people share DNA with Maryland’s earliest colonists
In 1634, English settlers established St. Mary’s City as the first permanent outpost in the colony of Maryland. Many of these early residents were ultimately buried in the town’s Chapel…
It’s a barracuda! It’s a shrimp! It’s a robot helping coral reefs.
Coral reefs may soon have new swimming visitors observing their life-rich aquatic metropolises. But that visitor isn’t a fish—or even a human. It’s an autonomous, multi-sensor survey robot. Developed by…
‘Two-headed snake’ confuses predators
Only around 600 of the nearly 4,000 known snake species are venomous. The recently discovered Guangxi reed snake (Calamaria incredibilis) in China is not one of those species, but its…
Picturing Earth in a New Light
Earth Observatory Science Earth Observatory Picturing Earth in a New Light Earth Earth Observatory Image of the Day EO Explorer Topics All Topics Atmosphere Land Heat & Radiation Life on…
NASA Draws on Industry for Mars Telecommunications Network
NASA’s Perseverance Mars rover used its dual-camera Mastcam-Z imager to capture this image of “Santa Cruz,” a hill about 1.5 miles (2.5 kilometers) away from the rover, on April 29,…
ISS astronauts pose with fresh fruit in microgravity
Astronaut food has come a long way from the freeze dried packets aboard the Apollo missions. During their historic lunar fly-by in April, the Artemis II crew dined on beef…
Intrepid man tests giant flaming darts used on 16th century warship
The Mary Rose is a remarkable remnant of maritime history. One of England’s largest Tudor Era vessels, the four-masted carrack sailed with a crew of around 450 sailors during the…
NASA, Industry Prepare Cryogenic Fuel Technology Demo
2 min read Preparations for Next Moonwalk Simulations Underway (and Underwater) NASA is collaborating with Eta Space of Rockledge, Florida, on an in‑orbit technology demonstration to advance a key capability…
A new dinosaur dubbed the ‘Last Titan of Thailand’ weighed more than 9 elephants
Not long before an asteroid crashed into Earth and wiped out most of the dinosaurs, a long-necked dinosaur the size of nine adult Asian elephants may have been near a…